I quote from the section of the manual describing Synchronize:
I can't get this to work. Specifically, I select Synchronize from the Tools menu and get the dual display with a single tree on the left and the sync utility panel open.
I then hold shift down and click the close button. The next time I select Synchronize from the menu, I get the same layout as before (still containing one tree).
Shift-Close doesn't seem to work for me, either. I'm not sure if it's a documentation error or a code error.
Luckily there is a workaround:
Set the lister up as you want it, then select Settings -> Lister Layouts -> Save This Lister and specify synchronize as the layout name. (You probably won't have to type the name as the name box already contained "synchronize" when I tried it.) That will overwrite the appropriate layout.
Yes it does, though there is a minor irritant with that method.
Before doing any of this, and given that Synchronize is being invoked from a single lister display, the two listers in the Synchronize layout both display the same folder displayed in the invoking single lister.
Modifying the layout as suggested seems to set the folder displayed in the destination lister permanently into the destination in the Synchronize layout.
This may just be an oddity that's not really much of a functional issue.