Golfer Pacific NZ – March 2021

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Kerry Mountcastle prevails in Super 6s at Palmerston North PAGE 3 INSIDE // GOLF IN THE WINTERLESS NORTH // NELSON FESTIVAL OF GOLF

EDITORIAL

pgueorgieff@yahoo.co.nz

When is a gimme not a gimme?

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By Paul Gueorgieff Editor, Golfer Pacific NZ

here is one tactic in matchplay golf that I have never understood.

The interclub season in Wellington is into full swing and as a consequence there is plenty of matchplay golf.

In a recent match of mine, my opposition gave me a putt to halve the hole.

As we walked away from the green I said to my opposition that I would not have given the same putt to him. He replied that as the match developed he might not be so generous.

There is a supposed tactic I’ve heard over and over again. The theory is if the match becomes

tense, that three foot putt you had been given earlier in the match, is suddenly not given.

So what, I say.

Matchplay is all about winning more holes than you lose.

It doesn’t matter if you win your holes early or late. The only thing that matters is winning more holes than you lose.

If you win six holes and lose five holes, you win. If you win most of those holes early in the match, that is of no consequence. All that counts is winning more holes than you lose.

So that makes me think why would you give that three foot putt early in the match, but not later in the match?

Yes I understand a three foot putt late in the match might be

more tense than a three foot early in the match.

But that doesn’t mean a three foot putt early in the match will be holed. A missed three foot putt early in the match is no different to a missed three foot putt later in the match.

We often analyse the game backwards when we lose.

Often we will say something like: “I three-putted the last to lose one down.’’

But we never say something like: “I three putted the first to lose one down.’’

I have always been taught to never become upset at not been given a putt. If you really think it is a genuine gimme, then you will have no problem knocking it in.

I have always been taught to not feel obliged to giving a three foot putt just because the opposition gave you a three foot putt. Some three foot putts can be harder than other three foot putts.

Some years ago I was playing an interclub match and my opposition holed a couple of medium-sized length putts on consecutive holes. I thought what a good putter this guy is.

On the following hole he missed a shortish putt and strangely conceded to me that he had developed the yipps on short putts.

It goes without saying that I virtually gave him nothing from then on and his problem of the yipps was confirmed.

NEW ZEALAND EDITORIAL Paul Gueorgieff pgueorgieff@yahoo.co.nz Ph: 64 4 565 0385 Mob: 64 27 227 1038 SALES & CLUB PACKAGE GOLF TRAILS & NOTICEBOARDS Leigh Smith smith.sun@bigpond.com Ph: 0061 7 5504 6334 Mob: 0061 433 163 043 LAYOUT & DESIGN layout.golferpacificnz@gmail.com PUBLISHER Golfer Pacific NZ LTD PO Box 51338 Tawa, Wellington 5249, New Zealand ACCOUNTS Leigh Smith smith.sun@bigpond.com SUBSCRIPTION $60.00 per annum including GST smith.sun@bigpond.com Ph: 0061 5575 7444 Mob: 0061 433 163 043 NEW ZEALAND MAIL ADDRESS PO Box 51338 Tawa, Wellington 5249, New Zealand AUSTRALIAN MAIL ADDRESS PO Box 264 Chevron Island QLD 4217, Australia COVER PHOTO: Wairarapa golfer Kerry Mountcastle with his trophy after winning the New Zealand Super 6s at the Manawatu Golf Club in Palmerston North. Photo credit: Golf New Zealand.

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March 2021

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airarapa amateur golfer Kerry Mountcastle won his second Charles’ Tour event in style beating professional Josh Geary in a tense final of the New Zealand Super 6s tournament in Palmerston North.

Mountcastle and Geary were the finalists in the event sponsored by Brian Green Property Group and battled it out over six holes at the Manawatu Golf Club.

They started on the 10th hole followed by the 12th, first, fourth, fifth and 18th holes.

But the six-hole layout wasn’t enough to separate the pair which needed an extra hole to decide the winner after both players finished three-under par in regulation play.

Mountcastle prevailed on the first playoff hole with a birdie to win his second event on the Charles’ Tour, sponsored by Jennian Homes. Mountcastle’s previous Charles Tour win was the Carrus Open in Tauranga in 2018.

Mountcastle said it was a dream come true to be a dual Charles’ Tour winner.

“This feels amazing. Just to be back out here and get a win after having a bit of a

Kerry Mountcastle plays a bunker shot during the New Zealand Super 6s tournament at the Manawatu Golf Club in Palmerston North. Photo credit: Golf New Zealand.

break is very surreal,’’ Mountcastle said.

“It’s nice to show everyone that I still have it. Golf has its ups and downs, so stepping back and taking a break has turned out to be a great decision.”

Mountcastle, from Masterton, last year took a step back from the game to

ply his trade as an electrician and bring a little more balance to his life, a decision that has clearly paid dividends.

Mountcastle was the one to beat in the matchplay part of the tournament after qualifying in first place from three rounds of strokeplay and managed

to hold off the charges that everyone made at him making plenty of birdies of his own.

He was simply outstanding all day of the six-hole matchplay events. After having a bye in the first round, he dispatched the reigning New Zealand Amateur champion James Hydes by shooting three-under, and then Jordan Loof in the quarter-finals with two-under par.

Crunch time had arrived in the semi-finals and he was faced with Cameron Harlock who he beat by shooting two-under to book his place in the final against Josh Geary.

The win could sway Mountcastle into giving golf another go, which is something the 25-year-old is excited about.

“I’m not too sure if my boss will be as happy about it as I am,” Mountcastle said with a laugh.

“We’ll see how we go. He might be a little more lenient about me taking some more leave and playing a few more of these.”

Silver medalist Josh Geary still takes home the first-place prize purse, and Cameron Harlock locked up the bronze medal after shooting five-under in the third and fourth playoff.

GOLF NEWS

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Kerry Mountcastle prevails in Super 6s at Palmerston North

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March 2021

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Kiwi appointed superintendent to top course in India GOLF NEWS Ben McLean, of New Zealand, who has been made the superintendent at a top golf course in India.

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world leading golf management company has appointed a New Zealander to be the golf course superintendent at a top course in India.

Troon, an American-based management business, has recently been expanding its operations to Asia with the latest being the Delhi Golf Club in India.

Troon has appointed Ben McLean of New Zealand to oversee enhancement projects at Delhi, including improving the playing surface of the 27-hole layout.

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McLean will be tasked with managing the agronomy operations. He has a background specialising in the turf industry, including international experience with both warm and cool season turf species.

He studied at New Zealand’s Sports Turf Institute and has gone on to work at a number of premier golf venues, including the Royal Sydney Golf Club and the Belfry Hotel & Resort in England, before he became assistant superintendent at Brookwater Golf & Country Club in Brisbane.

McLean is the latest from Brookwater Golf & Country Club to venture abroad and share his expertise and Troon experience. Brookwater has been a breeding ground for many of Troon’s brightest agronomists including Troon’s senior vice president of agronomy, Dave Nicholls, Troon international’s senior vice president of agronomy and construction, Robin Evans, and director of agronomy, David Lunardelli, as well as Clinton Southorn, the group director of agronomy across Abu Dhabi Golf Club, Saadiyat Beach Golf Club and Yas Links Abu Dhabi.

Delhi Golf Club is one of India’s premier golf clubs located in the heart of New Delhi.

It is a club full of history, starting out as a municipal course in the early 1930s and transformed into a corporate entity in 1950. The club features the 18-hole championship Lodhi Course, which was recently redesigned in 2019

by Gary Player. There is also the ninehole Peacock Course designed by Phil Ryan in 2015.

Manjit Singh, president of Delhi Golf Club, said: “We are delighted to have Troon’s expertise on board at Delhi Golf Club and welcome Ben to the team.

“Ben’s experience, attention to detail and incredible work ethic will be invaluable as we look to develop and enhance the course and take it to the next level on a global stage.”

Delhi Golf Club has enlisted Troon’s support to engage in a comprehensive improvement project to take the 27 holes offered to the next level, with a focus on improved playing surfaces and the golfers’ experiences. The

championship Lodhi Course is renowned as one of the best in India.

Mark Chapleski, president of Troon International, said: “Delhi Golf Club has an impressive reputation in India already, but it has the potential to become a world-class golfing destination and Troon is thoroughly looking forward to working on developing its agronomic reputation led by Ben alongside the staff currently on the ground.’’

Delhi Golf Club is the third golf course that Troon International will be working with in India, following the appointment to Karnataka Golf Association in 2019 and Prestige Golfshire Club which has been part of the Troon family for more than seven years.

Delhi Golf Club is one of the premier courses in India. New Zealander Ben McLean has been appointed course superintendent.

March 2021

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NEWS

“Head case Hatton” becomes showcase event on PGA Tour

ENGLISHMAN’S BALL-STRIKING PROWESS, FIERY PERSONALITY RETURN TO ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL FOR TITLE DEFENCE

By Jim McCabe

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omewhere in the lengthy list of curiosities that sat at the heart of his infamous PGA Tour career, there is this: He had more legal names than victories.

That’s right. The man born Phil McGlenno later became Phillip McClelland O’Grady, then simply Mac O’Grady. That’s three names while his victories on the PGA Tour totalled two (for the record, they came at the Sammy Davis Junior Greater Hartford Open in 1986 and the Tournament of Champions in 1987).

If you’re guessing O’Grady was a bit on the eccentric side, give yourself a gold star. Heck, he once tried to enter a team competition – by himself. Said he was going to play left-handed and right-handed.

Tournament officials were not impressed and refused O’Grady’s request.

Which never was much of a problem with O’Grady — he was easily dismissed, given his quirkiness.

But here is one assessment offered

by O’Grady that would be widely embraced by anyone who has spent a lot of time either playing the PGA Tour or watching it: “One minute you’re bleeding. The next minute you’re haemorrhaging. The next minute you’re painting the Mona Lisa.”

Should you be in the market for a current player who personifies what O’Grady meant, may we introduce Tyrrell Hatton.

The 29-year-old Englishman can go from bleeding to haemorrhaging to painting a masterpiece in the time it takes to play two holes – with brilliant dialogue to dress it up.

“Head Case Hatton,” he conceded his name would probably be if he were a disc jockey.

Funny line, but the truth is, Hatton is a showcase event on the golf course – and not just because he’s wearing out a pathway to the winners’ circle.

Actually, the European Tour victories in Abu Dhabi in January and at the BMW PGA Championship last October cemented his spot in the elite atmosphere of global players (he rose to No 5 as of last month), but did nothing to make people stop talking about his on-course antics and mannerisms.

And nowhere did he generate a sort of social media frenzy than at the 2020 Arnold Palmer Invitational, as much for his gut-check maiden win on the PGA Tour as for the string of sarcasm and self-deprecating commentary that he levelled.

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Tyrrell Hatton of England reacts to a shot on the 16th hole during the final round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational at the Bay Hill Club and Lodge in Orlando, Florida, last year. (Photo credit: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)

“Have you seen a worse golf shot?” Hatton could be heard muttering to his caddie, Mike Donaghy, after hitting an approach wide right at the ninth hole in the Arnold Palmer Invitational. When Donaghy fell quiet, Hatton pressured him.

“Answer the question,” Hatton said.

“No,” conceded Donaghy.

Hatton agreed and said loudly, “that’s terrible.”

But when the woes continued two holes later and Hatton splashed a shot into the water, it was as if everyone at Bay Hill was prepared to duck for cover as the volatile Englishman lined up an eightfoot putt for double-bogey.

“We all know what the sound is when the teapot is ready,” Paul Azinger said on NBC’s television coverage.

Indeed, we do, only the situation never escalated. Fans standing near the 11th green could breathe a sigh. Hatton made the putt for a double bogey and while weekend conditions last March proved demanding and he shot over-par both Saturday and Sunday, somehow, he prevailed to win the tournament.

Perhaps because it’s time to brush aside the emotional diatribes and focus more on Hatton’s immense ball-striking. The man is, after all, up to 10 worldwide wins, including six on the European Tour and he did stare down none other than Rory McIlroy to win in Abu Dhabi.

Dig deeper and you’ll find four wins, eight other top 10s, and brilliant consistency (16 top-20s) in Hatton’s last 25 tournaments. So, it’s not as if Hatton won’t deserve the spotlight March 4-7 when he returns to Bay Hill as the de-

fending champion. He surely does.

It’s just that no matter how solid his golf is, Hatton knows people will never stop watching, just to see if he lets off a little steam or throws himself under a bus after a bad shot. After all, how many worldclass pros would say something like this after a shot, as Hatton did a few years ago: “Oh, it’s a lovely flight. Just a shame it’s 25 yards left.”

Witty and silly, for sure, but Hatton back in 2016 earned the ire of fellow European Tour pro Gary Evans, who told the then 24-year-old to “grow up.” Mark Roe, commentating on Sky Sports, also chastised Hatton for his behaviour.

Not that petulant behavior is anything new in professional golf. Good gracious, Woody Austin nearly knocked himself unconscious one time by slamming his own putter off his head after missing a putt and Hale Irwin was known to berate himself unmercifully.

March 2021

To PGA Tour veterans like Billy Andrade, it’s always been part of the job to try and ignore the sideshow that some competitors bring to the course.

Said Andrade: “You’d play with these guys who would look like the world was about to end, complain that they never hit a good shot, and I never understood it.

“If I did that, I would have been off the tour, because I needed to be as positive as I could to play well.

“But I guess some guys need to be brutal on themselves. Maybe it’s what makes them great.”

While accepting that his running commentary and his body language might actually be overshadowing his brilliant play of late, Hatton said he feels he has a grip on it.

“I guess it has its positives and negatives,’’ Hatton said.

“It can be an issue if you start getting a fine, which is never good. But generally, it’s just a reaction. I kind of wear my heart on my sleeve, you know how I’m feeling, so I don’t try and hide that.

“It’s only an issue if I’m affecting my playing partners from it. Obviously, I would feel really bad about that. It’s definitely not my intention, I’m just — I’m obviously kind of venting.”

Then he smiled and acknowledged that he knows you can find plenty of video clips on social media that show him as “the angry golfer.”

“I managed to, I guess, produce some funny moments on the golf course so far with some of my reactions.

“You know, I’m just being me. I’m just kind of, it’s a reaction without thinking and sometimes that can be bad, so you have to give me a little bit of slack sometimes.”

So long as he keeps playing superbly and stringing together victories, giving him “a little bit of slack” will be easy. Especially if he also delivers the chuckles.

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Golf: An ideal socially distanced activity GOLF NEWS 8

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olf has been described as nearly an ideal socially distanced activity following a survey that revealed the rounds of golf in the United States last year had soared by 14 percent.

The figures were compiled by Golf Datatech which unveiled the 2020 national golf performance report, a first-of-its kind annual report analysing rounds played and retail equipment sales in the United States.

Golf Datatech’s data indicates rounds played were up by 14 percent and equipment sales increased by 10 percent over 2019.

The 14 percent increase in rounds is the largest total year increase since Golf Datatech began collecting and projecting rounds played in 1998.

Fuelled by a combination of avid players, newcomers and infrequent golfers, 2020 demand for all things golf surged during the second half of the year.

In fact, 2020 spending reached near record levels, as overall golf equipment sales eclipsed $US2.81 billion, the third highest annual total of all-time, trailing behind 2008 ($US2.91 billion) and 2007 ($US2.87 billion).

“While the global pandemic wreaked havoc on many segments of our econ-

omy, the golf industry experienced a significant boost in rounds played and equipment sales,” said John Krzynowek, partner, Golf Datatech.

“On the equipment side, sales were trending positively in both 2018 and 2019, but the double-digit gains in 2020 can only be attributed to the pandemic and golf being a respite for so many.”

While rounds played and equipment sales experienced sharp increases in 2020, apparel sales went the other direction and dropped by 14%. Golf apparel is predominantly sold through on-course golf shops, but due to Covid-19 restrictions, many pro shops were not fully operational for several months.

Additionally, a lack of international travel and lockdowns during the critical spring season in warm weather markets had a detrimental impact on many resorts, which sell a significant amount of logoed golf apparel.

While on-course sales declined, apparel sales at off-course specialty outlets, particularly those with a strong online presence, enjoyed significant growth in 2020. Moreover, the last two months of the year saw total apparel sales up 11 percent, a hopeful sign heading into 2021.

Krzynowek said: “Combining equipment and apparel sales through the on and off-course channels, total consumer demand in dollars for golf product was 3.2 percent higher than in 2019.

Given the state of the golf economy in late spring, anything in positive territory had to be considered a big win, and December data continues to impress and suggest the business may still have room to run in early 2021.”

It was in 1998 that Golf Datatech undertook the task of creating the golf industry’s first monthly projections of rounds played by state and region around the country. The company’s objective from day one was to provide accurate estimates of the health of golf by tracking rounds, which are the engine that drives almost every other aspect of the business.

The company also receives support from the National Golf Foundation (delivering course data) and WeatherTrends (weather data) in an effort to provide the industry with granular detail at the market level.

Krzynowek added: “Golf Datatech started collecting and projecting monthly rounds played data in January 1998 and has been the industry’s exclusive monthly metric since that

March 2021

time. We’ve never seen an annual increase remotely close to this, as the previous record increase occurred in 2013, a year when we had nearly perfect weather across much of the United States and rounds played grew by 5.7 percent.

“While there is no doubt that the pandemic provided a positive jolt of energy to the golf business in 2020, a warmer and drier climate across broad swaths of the US also generated more potential tee times, which the golf community passionately consumed … and continued to ask for more.

“Golf has fared better than many other US industries during the pandemic, as on-course and off-course facilities effectively adapted their operations to accommodate customers, while adhering to CDC (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention), local and national health departments guidelines.

“Overall, the golf industry can be proud of how it has handled the adversity brought on by the pandemic thus far, but always be aware that until a vaccine is distributed and broadbased immunity is present, we must all continue to be on guard.”

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Runaway winners at South Island Strokeplay

By Neville Idour

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his was the ninth consecutive and last time for the St Clair Golf Club in Dunedin to host the South Island Amateur Strokeplay Championship before it moves around the island.

What a swansong it was.

For the most part the weather was fine and particularly for the final round, warm, sunny and the course looking pristine with stunning views as the constant background. To cap it off the golf was the perfect match.

The winners Kazuma Kobori (Rangiora) and Maddie May (Russley) repeated their wins in the Otago Strokeplay. This time, however, they both streeted

their respective rivals.

Kobori led by four shots after the first round, eight after round two, 11 after round three and eventually winning by a record 16 shots. His consistency over four rounds was breathtaking.

Scores of 64, 66, 65 and 65 is as classy as it gets.

A score of 24 under par is thought to be close to a tournament record. His six birdies and nothing worse than par in the final round was a measure of his powers of concentration and ability to execute.

May was almost as dominant.

Two ahead of Sumin Kang (Wakatipu junior) after a first round 69, she stepped on the gas with a superb seven under-par 67 to bolt clear by 11

from Kang, whose 75 was the next best.

May maintained that margin as she coasted to victory. On several occasions she drove the ball 270 metres and her short game and putting were for the most part outstanding.

Her scores of 69, 67, 71 and 73 for 16 under par was impressive.

Kang’s over par second round 75 was not enough to prevent her finishing second with Rianne Li (Akarana) third.

There was so much to enjoy and none less than 13 year old Noah Novacech, another Wakatipu junior, who had rounds of 73, 74, 72 and 74.

That was just nine over par for 16th place. However this was good enough for him to win the

nett trophy, an outstanding effort from one of the youngest in the field and of slight build.

Second placed Jaeseung Na (Whitford Park), while at a lower level than Kobori, was still a standout performer with scores of 69, 69, 68 and 70 to finish eight under par. He has prodigious ability and it was eye opening to watch him drive two greens in the final round.

He reached the green on the uphill 314 metre fifth hole and then got to the back of the 312 metre eighth green.

Na also managed three eagles, as did Maddie May who had two of them in the final round.

There were more eagles by others than can be listed here.

I saw a lot of golf during the

NEWS

four rounds and so much of it great. But there were also some wretched moments. The overriding impression was not a single expression of the anger we sometimes see on the PGA Tour.

The maturity and demeanour was admirable as I observed several players lose their ball right of the trees on the 17th.

A drop was needed and players such as Na and Thomas Woods (Miramar) just carried on as if nothing untoward had happened.

So the upshot is the game in New Zealand is in good heart thanks to the various programmes and initiatives that many clubs have put in place over the years.

Tee times available up to nine o’clock at night

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ancy nine holes?

But it’s nine o’clock at night.

No problem if your are in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh.

The Vattanac Golf Resort in Phnom Penh last month opened a nine-hole course that is fully floodlit. The last tee time is 9pm.

The nine-hole course is named The Dragon Turn which is an apt description of the shape of a lake that sits in the middle of three holes of the nine holes.

Inspired by a vision to create a venue with significant character, this lake is yet another unique feature that this resort plays host to.

The launch of The Dragon Turn night golf comes after a successful end to 2020 for the resort following the opening of the second Faldo Design course, the west course, and the east course being named Cambodia’s best golf course at the 2020 World Golf Awards.

With imposing character and striking identity, the east course has received high praise from golfers the world over.

Set within captivating natural surroundings, the east course is a strategic golf course that utilises dramatic water features, creative bunkering and various forms of native fauna to challenge golfers of all levels.

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The stunning floodlit course of Vattanac Golf Resort in Cambodia

Over and above the highly enjoyable golf experience, the east pays homage to the marvels of Khmer architecture and the country’s rich history, with magnificent scale replicas of the world-renowned Angkor Wat, Bayon Temple and Preah Vihear Temple.

The west course will certainly contend with the east course as not only one of the best in Cambodia, but also one of the best in Asia.

March 2021

The west has distinctive differences from the east, of which are defined by narrower and more undulating fairways, a variety of unique water features and testing Paspalum greens. Cultural sculptures and stunning landscaping attribute to the striking scenery of Cambodia’s newest golf course.

The west is a rewarding test of skill for players of all levels, featuring five sets of tees, starting at 4512 metres to 6628 metres.

Karl Whitehead, general manager at Vattanac Golf Resort, commented: “It’s been an incredibly exciting end to 2020 and start to 2021 for us at Vattanac Golf Resort.

The announcement of the nine holes of night golf on the west course showcases how we not only want to compete to have the best championship courses in Asia, but we also, under Mr Vattanac’s vision, want to offer golfers a fresh and exciting approach to the game. The dramatic landscape of The Dragon Turn under the night sky will hopefully provide golfers this.”

Vattanac is managed by the United Stares-based Troon which is the world’s largest golf management company providing services at 585-plus locations around the globe, including managing 630-plus 18-hole equivalent golf courses.

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Range finders will be allowed at the PGA Championship in May GOLF NEWS

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he Professional Golfers’ Association of America is to allow players the use of distance-measuring devices during competition rounds at its three annual major championships – the PGA Championship, the Women’s PGA Championship and the Senior PGA Championship.

Such devices, including laser rangefinders and global positioning system (gps) units have previously been only allowed for practice rounds.

The new rules will come into effect this year, start-

ing with the PGA Championship that is scheduled to be held at Kiawah Island in South Carolina in May. Any distance measuring device will have to have its slope-adjusting capabilities turned off, so that changes in elevation is not compensated for, and no club recommendations can be offered by the device.

Increasing the pace of play, appears to be a main reason for allowing range finders and gps units.

“We’re always interested in methods that may help improve the flow of play during our championships,”

said Jim Richerson, president of the PGA of America.

“The use of distance-measuring devices is already common within the game and is now a part of the rules of golf. Players and caddies have long used them during practice rounds to gather relevant yardages.”

With the exception of the European Tour’s Legends Tour, range finders are not currently allowed for any tournaments on any of the main professional tours for men or women.

LPGA chief Mike Whan moving to the USGA

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ike Whan will become the eighth top executive in the history of the United States Golf Association (USGA) when he assumes the post as chief executive this year.

Whan last month announced his intention to step down as the commissioner of the Ladies Professional Golfers’ Association (LPGA) in 2021 after his organisation completes a search for his successor.

His transition follows 11 years at the LPGA helm, during which the organisation experienced historic growth in virtually every aspect of the business.

As the chief executive of the USGA, Whan will be responsible for leading all aspects of the association’s operations, including its core functions, essential programmes, and human and financial resources. He will also represent the USGA on a variety of national and international boards.

USGA president Stu Francis, who oversaw the chief executive search process, said: “Mike Whan is a proven, successful and transformative leader, not only in the golf industry but throughout his entire career.

“He has shown a unique ability to understand how the environment is changing in global golf and how to quickly and thoughtfully adapt an organisation to meet those changes.

“Importantly, Mike is already a trusted peer for so many key stakeholders in the industry, and his existing relationships will not only help the USGA, but will also help advance the game.”

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Whan started his career at health products business Procter & Gamble Company in 1987, where he rose to director of marketing for oral care before leaving to pursue a passion for sports.

Whan’s sports business career began at Wilson Sporting Goods as a vice president and general manager in the golf division. He joined the TaylorMade Golf Company as vice president of marketing in 1995 and later served as vice president of sales and marketing and executive vice president/general manager for TaylorMade-adidas Golf.

In 2002, Whan became president and chief executive of Mission Hockey, a hockey equipment company.

Since joining the LPGA in 2010, Whan increased the number of tournaments on the LPGA Tour’s schedule from 24 to 34, increased purses from $US41.4 million to $US76.5 million, and grew television hours from 125 hours per season, to more than 500 hours.

Under his leadership, the LPGA became a truly global business – with players, tournaments, sponsors and fans coming from all over the world.

Currently, the LPGA Tour is televised in more than 170 countries each week.

Whan’s leadership resulted in the expansion of the LPGA to now include both the Symetra Tour, the recently announced joint venture with the Ladies

March 2021

European Tour, as well as a nearly 50 percent increase in LPGA’s teaching division.

Whan’s focus on growing the game for junior girls has led to a significant expansion of the LPGA-USGA girls’ golf programme, which had 5000 members when he joined the organisation to 90,000 girls now engaged in the programme.

Whan said: “As someone who grew up loving this game, I have always had huge respect for the USGA and its role in leading our sport.

“The game has given me so much throughout my life, both personally and professionally. I know I have a lot to learn, but I’m truly excited about this role, as it gives me the opportunity to not only give back to the game, but to also work hard to leave it stronger.”

Current USGA chief executive Mike Davis, who joined the USGA in 1990 and became the association’s seventh executive director in 2011 and first chief executive in 2016, will depart later this year to team with Tom Fazio II in a new course design venture, Fazio & Davis Golf Design.

Said Davis: “I’ve had the pleasure of working with Mike Whan for many years and I view him as a trusted, strategic leader who has a proven track record of building collaborative partnerships.

“I know the USGA will be in great hands, and I look forward to partnering with Mike to ensure a smooth and successful transition for the USGA.”

WWW.GOLFERPACIFIC.CO.NZ

Paterson racks up win No 4 in the New Zealand Seniors

B

rent Paterson won the New Zealand Seniors’ Championship for the fourth time last month.

The Aucklander cruised to victory at the Christchurch Golf Club in the aged over 50 tournament with a five under par total to win by nine shots from Anthony Chettleburgh.

Paterson carded rounds of 71, 69, and

olf Club

The Star

71. He began the final day with a five shot lead and needed one more solid round of golf to secure the title.

However, things got a little interesting through 10 holes in the final round as the five-shot lead fell to three with just eight holes to play. Paterson mixed two bogeys with a birdie to be one over the card while Chettleburgh had two bird-

By Neville Idour

he departure of general manager Brendan Allen from The Hills at Arrowtown in Central Otago recently, could have left a void difficult to fill. He had

been course superintendent for most of his time there

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and still oversaw the course operations as general manager.

However Allen’s man management was always one of his strong points so the course superintendent role has seen a seamless transition for Ben Taylor who joined The Hills in 2015 so he is well versed in all course protocols and the exciting changes happening.

He joined Gulf Harbour in Auckland as a 16-year-old part timer and then went full time a year later and completed his apprenticeship. He left Gulf Harbour after four years then worked on various construction projects at the Remuera, Peninsula and Manukau Golf Clubs in Auckland.

In February, 2003, he was just 20 years old when he headed overseas to gain some invaluable experience.

He worked at several North American courses, including an invaluable 10 month internship at Augusta National leading up to the 2004 US Masters.

In 2005 Australia called, where he would spend 2-1/2 years as the foreman at the Manly Golf Club in Sydney and 1-1/2 years as assistant superintendent at The Grange in Adelaide. He then returned to New

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Ben Taylor (left) and Sam Davis who have been appointed top greenkeepers at The Hills

EVERGLADES

Andrew Hobbs and Andrew Dutton finished in a share of first in the 50-54-yearold division on 11-over par with Chettleburgh taking out the 55-59-year-old division.

Paterson won the 60-64-year-old division while Martin Webber won the 65-69-year-old’s. Tony Reynish came out on top in the 70-plus division.

The Hills21 January in 2021excellent hands

Tracy

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ies and a bogey to make up a couple of shots.

Paterson, however, showed his class and held steady, playing his final eight holes in two-under par to lock up his fourth title and go back-to-back. Chettleburgh finished four shots clear of twotime champion Stuart Duff to take the silver medal.

NEWS

Everglades Country Golf Club

Zealand and worked as assistant superintendant at Jack’s Point in Queenstown before joining The Hills in 2015. His wife Carina heads The Hills accounts department.

Which brings us to the assistant superintendent Sam Davis who adds being an accomplished scratch handicap golfer to his greenkeeping skills. Sam originally worked at golf courses part-time to help in the funding of a golf career.

Between 2009 and 2013, Davis held seasonal positions at Renner Park and Omanu Golf Clubs in Tauranga before moving to Tauranga Golf Club. He began his traineeship there, where he worked until 2017. He won a trainee of the year award in 2016.

In 2017, Davis travelled south to assist in the preparation of The Hills for the New Zealand Open. He made a big impression there and was offered a full-time position. He is a self confessed “grass nerd”.

As Craig Palmer, the acting general manager, said: “Ben and Sam have stepped up massively since Brendan’s departure so we can rest assured that with these two at the helm the course is in excellent hands.”

Just 25 mins from CBD and 15 mins from Porirua, Lower and Upper Hutt.

637 Marshland Rd. 637 Marshland Rd, Christchurch

New Members and Green fee players welcome 9 holes $10.00 18 holes $20.00

Pay for 5 games and receive the 6th game free The course is open every day except Saturday from 12 noon to 4pm Details are available for both at the club house phone 323 8641 or the Secretary phone 323 7678 Email: evergladescgc@xtra.co.nz

DISCOVER JUDGEFORD Play the country course next to the city!

Welcome to Judgeford Golf Club.

We extend a very warm welcome to visitors to our Club.

We take pride in our reputation as the “friendliest club in Wellington” and encourage you to visit our 18 hole course to experience our friendly, welcoming atmosphere first-hand. Our on-site team of professionals who provide golf and clubhouse services go that extra step to make your visit to Judgeford enjoyable. We are fortunate to enjoy a unique micro-climate in terms of weather patterns where often the weather variables are subtly different from the prevailing conditions in surrounding areas.

Significant changes to status of amateur golfers being proposed GOLF NEWS

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orld golf’s two governing bodes, The R&A and the United States Golf Association (USGA), have announced proposals for significant changes to the rules of amateur status that govern the game world-wide.

These proposals result from a modernisation initiative that has identified a clear need to bring the rules up to date to reflect today’s global amateur game and ensure that the rules are easier to understand and apply.

The proposed rules, along with explanations to key changes, have been posted on www.RandA. org and www.usga.org and the organisations are now inviting feedback from golfers and stakeholders.

Comments will be accepted until March 26 with the new rules scheduled to be adopted on January 1 of next year.

A comprehensive review of the rules of amateur status began in late 2017, focusing on three main goals — to ensure the rules are in the best interests of the game, reflect the modern game and are easily understood and applied.

This review reaffirmed amateur golf’s important position in the game and the value in maintaining amateur status rules to safeguard all the ways golf is played and enjoyed.

The result is a set of rules that redefine the distinc-

tion between amateur and professional golf and provide a condition of eligibility – amateur status – for amateurs who compete in golf competitions.

As part of the modernisation effort, it is proposed that the new rules will identify only three acts that will result in a golfer losing their amateur status: * Accepting a prize in excess of the prize limit. * Accepting payment for giving instruction. * Accepting employment as a golf club professional or membership of an association of professional golfers. * To achieve this simplified approach, the following key changes are proposed: * Eliminating the distinction between cash prizes and other prizes. * Using the prize limit as the only way an amateur can lose amateur status through their play (meaning that entering or playing a competition as a professional would not, of itself, result in the loss of amateur status). * Removing restrictions from the rules surrounding competitions such as long-drive events, putting competitions and skills competitions that are not played as part of a tee-to-hole competition; and * Eliminating all sponsorship restrictions.

Grant Moir, director of rules at The R&A, said: “The rules of amateur status play an important role in pro-

tecting the integrity of our self-regulating sport but the code must continue to evolve.

“This is particularly so in relation to the modern elite amateur game, where many of the players need financial support to compete and develop to their full potential, and the proposed new rules will give much greater scope for this.”

Craig Winter, USGA senior director, rules of golf and amateur status, said: “Golf is unique in its broad appeal to both recreational and competitive golfers.

We understand and value how important amateur status is, not only to those who compete at the highest level of the amateur game, but for the millions of golfers at every age and skill level who enjoy competitive events at their home courses.

“These updates should help simplify these rules and ensure the health of the amateur game.”

The proposed new rules are accompanied by an overview document and explanations that detail the rationale for why changes are being proposed and, in some instances, why they have stayed the same.

Materials regarding the proposed new rules, as well as a link to provide feedback can be found at www.

RandA.org/AmateurStatusModernisation and www. usga.org/amateurstatus.

Jack Nicklaus’ first step into Saudi Arabia for golf course design

J

ack Nicklaus is embarking on his first design project in Saudi Arabia, a championship golf course for Qiddiya – Saudi Arabia’s capital of entertainments, sports and the arts.

The course, located 40 minutes from the Saudi capital of Riyadh, is under design and is awaiting commencement of construction.

The 18-time major champion and Nicklaus Design are creating the course for a private golf and country club, set within an exclusive residential community in the heart of the Qiddiya development. Ground is expected to be broken this year.

The golf course will be framed by the majestic Tuwaiq mountain range.

“To have the greatest-ever golfer commit to making his mark upon our developing golf landscape in Saudi Arabia and

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at a project as significant as Qiddiya gives us great pride,” said Yasir O Al-Rumayyan, chairman of the Saudi Golf Federation and Golf Saudi.

“To be part of the Nicklaus legacy will be something that we will always cherish, especially knowing the positive impact it will have on growing awareness of the sport at a domestic level, whilst increasing our national visibility as a vibrant new golf destination. We are looking forward to welcoming Mr Nicklaus for his first visit to Saudi Arabia in the coming months.”

Nicklaus, the most decorated player in the game’s history, said: “I am excited by this project and my first golf course design in the Middle East. To be selected as one of the first international designers to work in the Kingdom is a great honour.

“I’ve already spent time looking at the

topography of the land, images of the backdrop and terrain, and discussing with our design team a strategy for the course. The design will fully integrate the natural environment and the beautiful Qiddiya landscape, bringing together green spaces and mountainous terrain to form a picturesque canvas for both a beautiful and challenging golf course.”

Construction began on the Qiddiya project in 2019 and the golf development will include a high-end resort hotel and spa, as well as exclusive residences.

The course will be constructed with a view to hosting international championships, challenging elite golfers while providing casual players with an opportunity to enjoy the sport and develop their skills.

Nicklaus added: “By being involved in

March 2021

this project, we hope to promote the development and enjoyment of the game in the kingdom.

“We not only want to entice Saudi residents to take up the great game of golf, but we also hope this presents employment opportunities for citizens of the kingdom that are within or related to the golf industry. This mirrors the vision of Qiddiya.”

The planning of the course has been undertaken by Qiddiya in consultation with Golf Saudi.

Further expanding the sport of golf in the Kingdom, Qiddiya will be seeking designers for a second course. Together, the two courses will provide top-notch golfing facilities for residents and day visitors to Qiddiya, from elite players to those just learning the sport.

WWW.GOLFERPACIFIC.CO.NZ

Course record equalled — Russell Coutts has bonus jackpots to next year 18-hole golf course

By Neville Idour

C

lub captain Stacey Atkinson masterminded an innovative new event for the Middlemarch Golf Club in Otago recently.

A strong 20-man field set out to break the Middlemarch course record of 66 held

by Wanaka Club professional Alan Rose.

The field included former New Zealand Open winner Mahal Pearce and a number of other southern representative players.

Phil Bungard (Island Park) had a sensational last four holes at the Middlemarch Golf Course Record Challenge. He finished birdie, birdie, par, eagle to tie the course record of 66 just missing out on the $500 bonus for breaking the record.

A seven under par round of 65 was needed on the challenging 5700-metre

From left to right are Middlemarch Course Record Challenge winner Phil Bungard, Richard Emerson (tournament sponsor) and club captain Stacey Atkinson.

layout and after 14 holes the best scores were two under. However, Bungard certainly gave it a push. His birdie on the 172-metre par three 16th and an eagle three on the par five 18th were standouts.

Second place went to Brandon Hodgson (Otago) who was one of those two under par after 14. He added another birdie to finish with 69.

Duncan Croudis (Otago) was consistent with 70 for third place. Best of the rest were Rodney Krahenbring (Wanaka) 72, Jacob Bellamy (Port Chalmers), Graeme Barbara (Wanaka) and Ryan Rosevear (Taieri) 73.

The current record holder Alan Rose (Wanaka) found his own record out of reach with a 75 while Mahal Pearce struggled with 76. The course proved no pushover and was in excellent condition with hard and fast fairways and nicely paced greens.

All of the players enjoyed the day although some wished they had come a day earlier for a practice round. The winner Bungard said he was “rapt with the course and concept”.

Atkinson and sponsors Emerson Breweries were pleased with the success of the new event and decided the $500 bonus would jackpot to next year making for a $1000 bonus.

NEWS

in the pipeline

By Neville Idour

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achting supremo Sir Russell Coutts, who masterminded New Zealand’s first win in the America’s Cup, is very much into golf.

In 2009 former PGA professional Greg Turner designed a 1685-metre nine-hole par 29 golf course for Coutts at his Crown Terrace property in Queenstown which at one time had Canadian singer-songwriter Shania Twain as a neighbour.

In 2013 three more holes were added. Currently a further three holes are being added. Now he wants to finish the project with a complete 18 holes. He has applied for resource consent from Queenstown Lakes’ District Council that will allow the required earthworks to be carried out for the final three holes.

Again the design for the project has been in the hands of Turner.

Otago Golf Club 150 years young

By Neville Idour

O

pened in 1871, the Otago Golf Club at Balmacewen in Dunedin is the oldest club in the southern hemisphere. It will celebrate this milestone later in the year.

Recently the club hosted its annual match against the Christchurch Golf Club which opened in 1873 and saw the first of 148 fixtures played.

It is an eight-man contest and in the serious stuff Otago won the singles for the Campbell Hosking Shield 5-3 and the foursomes for the Hanmer Shield 14 up.

The Friendly Shield, for the not so serious 10-man teams, was an Otago victory in singles 7-3 and foursomes 5-0.

Whangaroa Golf Club

MEN’S OPEN

24 HOLE PAR3 TOURNAMENT SPONSORED BY

sponsored by Coopers Beach

Bay of Islands Realty Ltd Licensed Agent REAA 2008 th

Saturday 27 March 2021

Sunday 21ST March 2021

10.30 AM FOR TEE-OFF AT 11.00 AM COST: $20 PER PERSON

• 11.00 am Start • 18 holes • Two divisions

MORNING TEA AT 10.15 AM A special Par 3 tournament played in Ambrose Pairs and groups of 6. This is a fun day and you don’t have to be a great golfer! Bring a friend, come in pairs or we will pair you up.

There will be some good prizes and the cost includes light lunch.

$30

ENTRY FEE INCLUDES 2s AND A LIGHT MEAL

For more information or to enter contact John O’Neill on 09 405 1808 or email info@whangaroagolf.co.nz

For more information contact the Club Captain Kohai Kingi on 0210 840 2020 To enter please phone the club on 09 405 1808 or email info@whangaroagolf.co.nz

WWW.GOLFERPACIFIC.CO.NZ

March 2021

13

Is he back? That’s the question hovering over Jordan Spieth GOLF NEWS

Jordan Spieth at The Genesis Invitational at the Riviera Country Club in California.

(Photo credit Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)

By Mike McAllister

I

s he back?

The buzz started after a spectacular Saturday in early February at the Phoenix Open. A career-best 10 birdies leading to a score of 61, tying his career-low score on the PGA Tour. A share of the third-round lead. A spot in the final group on Sunday – his first in nearly 2-1/2 years.

Is he back?

The chatter continued the following week when he held the solo lead after the second and third rounds at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, evidence by his supporters that the previous week had not been a fluke. Twice, he holed out from more than 100 yards – just the second player in PGA Tour history to pull off that feat.

Is he back?

Another positive sign through the first two rounds of The Genesis Invitational -- in contention and inside the top 12 of the leaderboard for a 10th consecutive week.

Consistency and confidence were on full display.

So, is Jordan Spieth back?

It depends on your definition and perspective, of course. If being back requires returning to the winner’s circle, then no, Spieth is not yet all the way back.

He remains in search of his first PGA Tour win since the 2017 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale in England, a drought currently at 79 worldwide starts. For a player who will eventually enter the World Golf hall of fame, winning remains the gold standard.

But if being back means simply leaving the abyss of an extended dark period that was both perplexing and frustrating – besides being unexpected, of course – then yes, perhaps Spieth is back. With a tiedfourth at TPC Scottsdale and a tied-third at Pebble Beach, Spieth recorded consecutive top five finishes for the first time since 2018.

More important, he’s showing progress and feeling confident that he’s on the proper path. With the PGA Tour schedule entering its big stretch of championships, starting with The Players’ Championship

this month, it no longer appears to be a question of whether Spieth will make noise, but just how much noise.

“As long as I’m trusting what I’m doing, I know I’m moving in the right direction,” Spieth said. “That’s just the head space that I’ve wanted to get into – and for a while now.”

Awhile, indeed. When Spieth won at Royal Birkdale in 2017 in a drama-packed final round, it was his third win of the year and 14th of his tour career. He added a couple of runner-up finishes during the FedExCup Playoffs and seemed poised for a spectacular 201718 season.

But after a Sunday 64 at the 2018 US Masters that nearly fuelled an improbable rally from nine shots down – he eventually finished tied-third to Patrick Reed – Spieth failed to build on the momentum.

In truth, he went the opposite way. He produced just one top 10 finish in his final 13 starts of the season and did not qualify for the Tour Championship. It was his first winless season on tour.

The 2018-19 season was equally unrewarding, with just one top five finish in 23 starts. Again, no Tour Championship. And the 2019-20 season was even less fulfilling -- he opened the season with an eighth at The CJ Cup @Nine Bridges, and could not match that in his ensuing 16 starts. He made the FedExCup Playoffs but was bounced after two rounds. And he was not selected for the 2019 Presidents’ Cup, the first time as a pro that he did not represent the United States’ team.

So what happened?

“There was a number of things that I got off on mechanically,” Spieth explained. “It was very frustrating because I felt just as competitive and felt the same, still the same me. I just would take the club back and feel lost.”

The numbers bear it out. In his last winning season of 2017, he ranked second in strokes gained tee to green. The next season, he fell to 23rd. Then 157th in 2019 before moving back inside the top 100 (90th) last season.

Meanwhile, his putting was all over the map. In 2018, he was 123rd in strokes gained putting.

The next season, he ranked second. Last season, he ranked 105th. In essence, he couldn’t count on the flat stick to save him.

For a player who wears his emotions on his sleeve, he definitely looked lost. Golf fans suffered right along with him. It was difficult to see him struggle.

“First time in my life where I’ve had a significant dip in success,” Spieth said.

“It had kind of been a nice uptick every single year.

So just kind of learning how to deal with that and doing it – and having to do it in such a public way was very difficult, can sometimes present even more challenges.

“But at the same time, the idea is to get to the bottom of it, turn it around, make progress every day and recognise that’s the past. I can use it as having scar tissue and use it to my advantage going forward.”

People wanted to help, but Spieth was determined to figure it out on his own, along with the help of swing coach Cameron McCormick. Everybody else was tuned out – with the exception of Butch Harmon, who offered some feedback at Spieth’s request.

Said Harmon: “He asked if I could come over and take a look at what he and Cam were working on.

“I agreed with most of the stuff they were working on. I thought I was going to have to change his clubface at the top of the swing -- you know how open that gets because he has a very weak left-hand grip -- but they had worked beautifully on that. ... I didn’t think he was turning enough ... if you don’t wind stuff up, you can’t unwind it.”

Said Spieth: “I was probably too stubborn and waited too long to probably reach out to people that I definitely could have for just help, whether it’s certain areas of the game or just getting through … down years or something like that.”

Spieth kept working but his first start this season was a missed cut at the Farmers Insurance Open. He dropped to 92nd in the world, his worst ranking since his first PGA Tour win at the 2013 John Deere Classic moved him to 59th as a 19-year-old.

From that perspective, it was his low point. Even Spieth admitted he “was not in a great head space.”

And yet, a week later, he shot 61 and found himself in the heat of battle. Golf is funny like that. Something can just click after years of frustration. Spieth might have the best explanation – if you hit “tens of thousands of golf balls the wrong way, it takes about that many to get stuff back.”

“Did some really phenomenal work from Sunday through Wednesday … that was probably the best period of a few days of work that I’ve put in in a long time,” Spieth said about the days leading up to Waste Management (Phoenix Open). It just got me believing in what I was doing and progressing forward.”

The road back has taken longer than expected for the former world No 1, and he’s not all the way there yet. Winning remains the ultimate objective, and not just one win, but multiple wins – and on the biggest stages.

For now, though, Spieth is feeling confident about the future. That might be the most important thing when wondering if he’s back.

“It gets me really excited about playing golf – and for me, that makes me happy,” he said. “It’s nice to be going to bed wanting to do what you love to do and you get to go do it. Can’t take that for granted and I’m glad to be on this side of it right now.”

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Marine Parade WESTPORT, Buller/Westland +64 (03) 789 8132

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March 2021

WWW.GOLFERPACIFIC.CO.NZ

Daniel Hillier consistent results across the ditch

D

aniel Hillier is continuing his good stint of form in the PGA Australia’s Pro-Am series with back-toback top 15 finishes in New South Wales.

16th and 17th of February at Corowa Golf Club and fin-

Hillier pegged it up at The Murray Open played on the

He then back that result up a couple of days later at

ished in a tie for 11th following round of 69 and 71 to finish at six-under par.

NEWS

the Dubbo Open played at the Dubbo Golf Club from the 20th and 21st of February after shooting rounds of 68 and 70 to finish at six-under and in a tie for 13th.

Hillier has now finished inside the top 25 in all his events over the ditch and unfortunately won’t make it back in time to defend his Brian Green property Group NZ Super 6’s title.

Meanwhile rookie professional Sung Jin Yeo has shaken off his slow start to his trip to Australia and has matched Hillier in his last two events as well.

Like Hillier, Yeo has finished in a tie for 11th The Murray Open after rounds of 68 and 72 to finish at six-under. He then shot rounds of 68 and 70 at the Dubbo Open to finish at six-under as well.

He now turns his attention to the Queanbeyan Open which gets underway in a couple of days’ time.

Chang Gi Lee has also had a run of events to be proud of finishing in fourth at The Murray Open after firing rounds of 69 and 68 leaving him at nine-under for the event.

He then backed that up with a tie for 27th position after rounds of 73 and 68 at the Dubbo Open.

Finally, Luke Brown has finished in a tie for 63rd at The Murray Open and a tie for 33rd at the Dubbo Open.

Over on the PGA Tour, Danny Lee has finished in a share of 52nd at The Genesis Invitational after rounds of 72, 70, 72, and 72 to finish at two-over for the event.

Max Homa took out the victory on the second playoff hole after finishing equal with Tony Finau at 12-under par.

Waihi Golf Club is a wonderful par 72, 5685m golf course situated amongst beautiful lush green surroundings, overlooking the Waihi Township and surrounding farm land. The course is expertly maintained and managed and will be a challenge whatever your skill level.

WWW.GOLFERPACIFIC.CO.NZ

March 2021

15

PGAPARS

pga.org.nz

NZ PGA Championship to go ahead with $100,000 purse

By Dominic Sainsbury New Zealand PGA General Manager

R

ich in history with past winners of the event being Sir Bob Charles, Greg Turner, Frank Nobilo and Michael Hendry, the Professional Golfers’ Association of New Zealand is delighted to announce that the NZPGA Championship will be staged April 28-May 2.

After the challenges of 2020 and 2021 that covid-19 has presented for competitive golfers, access to another high-quality competition while New Zealand borders are restricted is something the PGA NZ board believes is important to many aspects of the game, particularly in such challenging times.

As an added dimension to the event, in celebration of where top players fell in love with the game, the tournament will also stage a district teams’ section, whereby the regions where the event players started the game will compete in a combined team event, giving the tournament a state of origin flavour as part of the championship week.

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PGA of New Zealand general manager Dominic Sainsbury was excited to be adding the event to the years calendar.

“Staging the championship this year is important to us,’’ Sainsbury said.

“We want to be providing opportunities for our professionals and with our already strong pro-am circuit and the Charles’ Tour it was the board’s strong focus for our organisation to stage a PGA Championship for the year.”

NZPGA chairman Andrew Clements added: “We have a strong strategic focus of promoting an interest in the game of golf.

“This tournament will assist in this regard by allowing New Zealand’s best available professional and amateur golfers to showcase their talents to the public.

“With the district element we are connecting the professional and amateur players, with all golfers from throughout the country, aimed very much at enlisting further regional support for our great game.”

With the support of major event partner the Institute of Golf, professional

players will compete for a prize purse of $100,000, played over four rounds at the beautiful Te Puke course in the Bay of Plenty.

Institute of Golf director Craig Dixon said: “We’re passionate about investing in the future of golf in New Zealand and enabling players to succeed on the global stage.

“Our team is excited to partner with the PGA of New Zealand and share our new data platform with the players at this year’s event.”

Staged at Te Puke Golf Club for the first time, PGA NZ believes a great step in PGA NZ’s vision of investing into the future of the game and a perfect venue to stage the district teams’ element.

Te Puke general manager Bevan Jackson added: “This is a great opportunity for our local community and the wider Bay of Plenty to come along and see some of the best golfers that New Zealand has to offer, as well as experience our party hole and enjoy our family area all for free entry.

“With the addition of the district

March 2021

teams’ format to this year’s edition, we believe that show casing a professional country club as the host represents all that is great about golf in New Zealand.”

The event will be free for the public to attend.

WWW.GOLFERPACIFIC.CO.NZ

THE BEST FROM IAN HARDIE

ianhardie.net

Will playing more golf help you to improve?

By Ian Hardie NZPGA Professional

T

here wouldn’t be a week that goes by where I don’t hear a golfer say something like: “I don’t get out to play as often as I would like to but I’m sure I would be a better golfer if I played more often than I do now.”

Other variations that golfers will use are: “If I could play every day of the week, I could finally get to a single figure handicap.”

“If I could play every day of the week, I could finally get to a scratch handicap.”

“If I could play every day of the week, I could finally get down to that 18 handicap.”

Obviously, the statement differs depending on the current (and desired) skill level of the golfer talking to me but the overall theme is the same.

Almost all golfers believe they would be better at the game if they played more often.

Seems like a fairly logical idea doesn’t it?

Well, maybe for some golfers this is true but in reality, it doesn’t actually work like that for most golfers.

Take a look around most golf courses and it doesn’t take long to identify that there are a few golfers out there who actually do play almost every day of the week.

Most of them though, aren’t getting any better at the game of golf as a result!

You may even know a golfer like that and if you take a minute to think about them – you will realise that they are probably playing on a pretty similar handicap

currently, that they were on last year and the year before - despite playing golf almost every day of the week.

In fact, they may actually be finding that their handicap is increasing over time, rather than decreasing as most golfers would expect.

This is because improvement at the game of golf requires more effort than just going round and round the course playing the same shots and thinking the same things, every game.

No doubt, you will have heard that famous quote “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

It applies directly to golf, the same as it does for many other things in life.

So, how much golf does a golfer need to play to really get better?

Obviously, it varies from golfer to golfer but luckily I do have an example (from back in the mists of time) when I was a young golfer, that may be a good guide.

I need to go back in time, to a summer holiday in my teenage years, where over a period of about 6 weeks I cut my golf handicap in half from 22 to 11.

That’s right, in half in 6 weeks!

You are probably wondering how that happened so quickly and no doubt you will be thinking that it was the result of something like an intensive series of golf lessons or the acquisition of newer and more technologically advanced golf clubs.

It was neither of those two things.

In fact, I can’t remember doing, thinking, being taught or buying a single thing that was any different to what I had at the start.

The one thing that made it possible to cut my handicap in half over a six week

period (not that it was my intention before I started in any way) was playing golf.

A lot of golf.

Over that 6 week period, I played almost every day – probably missing about 5 days.

Something that a lot of you would no doubt love to be able to do but as I’ve covered above, not necessarily enough to really improve like I did.

Thinking back, the real deciding factor that allowed me to drop my handicap by half over that 6 week period was playing golf at an even higher rate than once a day.

On most of those days, I played at least 36 holes and on occasion 45 holes.

That’s right 2 to 2 ½ rounds a day for about 4 of those 6 weeks – was the key to it all.

Well, that’s what I’ve always thought...

Thinking back, I believe that there were in fact, three things that contributed equally to that dramatic transformation as a golfer.

The first was obviously the building up of my ‘golf muscles’ through hitting thousands of golf shots in a short period of time – something that may actually be able to be duplicated by spending a much shorter period of time on the practice tee – back then though, like most golfers.

I wasn’t that interested in spending hours on the practice tee, I just wanted to play as many holes of golf as I could.

The second thing that made the difference in that short period of 6 weeks, where I played the equivalent amount of golf to what most golfers would play over one or two years was that it allowed me to effectively gain a massive amount of course management experience in a very short time.

That’s probably what made the most difference to my scores!

The third thing was something that I wouldn’t have been aware of back then but I spend a lot of time talking to golfers about now – when you are playing a lot of golf – you stop thinking about how to hit the golf ball and just get on with hitting it.

Any frustration over poor shots is dissipated as your focus is simply on playing the next shot, the next hole and the one after that.

In the end you simply figure out a way to hit the golf ball that works for you, then you get on and do it – you don’t think about golf swings at all.

It’s just you deciding on where you want the golf ball to go and playing the shot without any other thought in your mind.

So, will playing more golf help you to improve?

It might do, depending on how much effort you put in.

Play well.

Ian Hardie is Golfer Pacific’s Golf Professional contributor. He is Club Professional at Omanu Golf Club in Mount Maunganui. Ian’s time is split between the pro shop at the club and helping people to improve, while enjoying their golf more as a result of his golf coaching. Over the past few years, in an effort to help as many golfers as he can, Ian has been sharing his common sense golf advice with golfers around the world through his website golfhabits.com. With over 500 articles to read, it’s a great resource for any golfer looking to improve their golf game.

WWW.GOLFERPACIFIC.CO.NZ

March 2021

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March 2021

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Landmarking Sports History in NZ

NEW ZEALAND (BACK TO BACK) MAJOR SPONSORS TO THE SPORT OF LONG DRIVE

C

ircle the date, 20th February 2021, which landmarks sports history for New Zealand and the sport of Xtreme Drivers League. Mr JP Liebenberg from Cavalier Homes, assigned as dedicated sponsor for two years, has confirmed major sponsorship of the Global XDL Tour Championship 2022.

One brand strong, all events both local and abroad will now qualify for the Cavalier Homes - Global XDL Tour Championship 2022. New Zealand company IGANZ paid out the largest prize-purse in the history of Long Drive and with this has completed 26 events in 5 countries, formed two national teams and has 8 companies that all encompass the one vision, to grow the sport globally. IGANZ

SYDNEY - NOVEMBER 2021

I

GANZ is happy to announce the Australian Long Drive Championship is back in 2021. Destined for Sydney this November, the 2019 event was postponed due to bushfires and in 2020 the global pandemic hit. Thanks to Cavalier Homes Australia the event registration is open at https://iganz.co.nz/events/ The venue will be announced March 26th with a press release. Our previous Men’s Open winner Mr Karl Peters is the last name on the cherished trophy. Mr Jason Loftus, our Masters winner will be looking to defend his title and this year will see the women’s division open. The first IGANZ Australian Long Drive Championship 2018 was held at the Greg Norman course - Stonecutters Ridge Golf Club, Colebee NSW. With our big drivers ready to shake their energy off after lockdown, IGANZ events staff are mindful of the constant changing activities around the world due to the pandemic.

The recent signing with American Corporation (Optishot - Golf Technologies) has allowed IGANZ plans to go ahead with a safe card to host a virtual championship, if need be. Looking forward to landing on Aussie turf and making some noise that will entertain the masses.

Mr Jason Loftus - IGANZ Australian Long Drive Champions 2018 - Masters

The Cavalier Homes - Australian Open 2021 will qualify for the Global XDL Tour Championship 2022 Growing the sport since 2016, IGANZ has recently opened up qualifying events via Golf Clubs that will see the growth of XDL and the promotion of Golf work hand in hand.

Current Australian Long Drive Champion Steffan Scutti

Mr Karl Peters - IGANZ Australian Long Drive Champion 2018

WWW.GOLFERPACIFIC.CO.NZ

Get ready to be entertained by these high performance athletes to Golf. The crowd will be going wild as they see record speeds and distances being smashed off the tee. Looking forward to crossing the ditch this November!

formed Xtreme Drivers League and the International Xtreme Drivers League Federation to get the sport recognised by the Olympic Committee, dedicated to the sport since 2016. The major sponsorship announcement puts New Zealand in the media light yet again. IGANZ and Cavalier Homes joined forces to build business on and off the tee whilst growing the sport of XDL. The Cavalier Homes brand will be at the forefront of everyday activity with an On-Road media fuelled event, planned with some of the New Zealand Long Blacks. Cavalier Homes (New Zealand & Australia) events will be run by IGANZ - XDL with qualifiers around the world via Golf Club run events. The Otishop (virtual tour 2022) will also qualify and this option was put in place to safeguard our main events during the pandemic.

New Zealand is known as a nation dedicated to sport, national teams are our celebrities and with this a one team approach that we love every sport equally.

In a global pandemic everyone has been tested in every way possible to keep major sporting events and businesses afloat, the pressure has been immense.

It is people like Mr JP Liebenberg and company brands like Cavalier Homes that standout from the rest, the 1% that make an impact that we can now say have landmarked, sports history and cemented their name with the sport of XDL forever. Continued thanks to JP Liebenberg and Cavalier Homes for supporting the sport of Xtreme Drivers League.

Gilly Group Named Global Agency of Record for Marketing and Communications by Iganz Xtreme Drivers League THE TWO WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESSES PARTNER TO BRING LONG DRIVE TOUR TO THE GLOBAL STAGE

G

illy Group has announced that it has been named global agency of record for marketing and strategic communications by IGANZ, responsible for supporting the launch of the newly established Xtreme Drivers League (XDL) and Global XDL Tour Championship as well as the operations of the Long Drive events that will take place in the United States.

“Gilly Group was the obvious choice for IGANZ to work with given their upstanding work and strong connections within the Golf industry” said Olna Ford, Owner of the New Zealand Long Blacks, CEO & President of New Zealand Long Drive and CEO & President of Xtreme Drivers League, “Partnering with a fellow female entrepreneur was an added bonus. Alyson brings almost 25 years of golf industry knowledge to this project, in which we have established Long Drive as a stand-alone sport while still celebrating the sports roots in the golf space.”

The virtual tour was announced last month in partnership with golf simulator company, OptiShot Golf. Due to the ongoing travel and safety issues caused by the pandemic, the first season of the Xtreme Drivers Tour will be held virtually, with over 23 countries entering com-

March 2021

peting athletes OptiShot Golf BallFlight product will be used in the 2022 Virtual Long Drive season that will culminate in the Global Tour Championship event in Dubai at the conclusion of the season.

“It’s always exciting to have your fingerprints on the groundwork for a new brand or event and IGANZ and the Global Tour have such incredible opportunity ahead” said Alyson Ramsey Johnson, Gilly Group CEO and President. “We look forward to partnering with IGANZ to bring these new properties to life for golf and Long Drive fans around the globe.”

For more information on XDL and the announcement of the XDL TOUR, please follow @xtremedriversleague on Instagram and the website at www.iganz. co.nz. Xtreme Drivers League (XDL) is a subsidiary of IGANZ (International Golf Associates New Zealand).

ABOUT GILLY GROUP

Gilly Group is a woman-owned boutique sports marketing agency focused on building brands through marketing, sponsorship activation, event management and digital advertising. Based in the New York metro area, Gilly Group was established in 2015. More information can be found at www.gillygroup. com.

Contact: LeslieAnne Wade White Tee Partners la@whiteteepartners.com www.whiteteepartners.com

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F E AT U R E

GOLF IN THE WINTERLESS NORTH This Winter, pack up your clubs and head to the North for some great homeland golfing!

WELLSFORD GOLF CLUB

"The Friendliest Club in the North" Less than an hour North of the Auckland Harbour Bridge, situated on SH 1 -- 2km south of Wellsford. Established in 1930, this scenic 18 hole course is regarded by many golfers as a " hidden treasure" offering a challenging test with some of the cheapest green fees in the region. A friendly country atmosphere welcomes visitors of all abilities.

Cart hire available together with club and trundler hire. Bar and Catering facilities available for Corporate and Group Bookings.

Come join us for an enjoyable day golfing. » wellsfordgolf.co.nz

NORTHLAND GOLF CLUB Western Hills Drive, Whangarei

Come and join in the fun at the friendly club! Located only 10 minutes north of central Whangarei, Northland Golf Club provides a scenic and challenging course for all levels of golf, all year round.

If you are looking to play and stay locally, go no further than Birchgrove Cottage, a modern standalone fully self-contained 1 bedroom holiday cottage situated right next to the golf course. Visit www.birchgrove.co.nz or call (09) 945 4236.

Visitors welcome and we provide full Clubhouse, onsite Café, covered modern driving range and Golf Shop facilities including carts, trundlers and clubs for hire. Contact the club on (09) 4351 777. » www.golfnorthland.co.nz

PEPPERS CARRINGTON RESORT, NORTHLAND GOLF Maitai Bay Road, Karikari Peninsula

The golf course is the jewel in the crown of the Pepper Resort a 3000-acre resort with a 4km coastline of secluded white sand on the Karikari Peninsula.

Designed by noted American course architect Matt Dye and opened in 2003, the course, that varies from rolling vales to challenging water holes, features one of New Zealand’s longest par-5s (at 569m) and one of the shortest par-3s (at 113m).

The course is sited to provide a variety of vistas, with ocean views to the north and east, and hillside vineyards to the south.

It is a hilly, parklands-style course with natural wetlands.

The resort also offers a vineyard, winery, a Black Angus stud farm and a beach while the hotel features an infinity swimming pool. If you play Carrington, be prepared for the par-3 seventh, a challenging hole that plays over water and flax to a severely sloping green.

MANGAWHAI GOLF CLUB

BAY OF ISLANDS GOLF CLUB, KERIKERI

Mangawhai is a true championship and consistently rates as one of New Zealand’s very best. Sand-based, always playable and making optimum use of natural terrain, the course is just over 1 hour north of Auckland’s CBD. Fairways are superbly groomed, the greens are famed for their pace and true roll, and every hole offers a different challenge for golfers of every level.

Fully stocked Golf Shop with carts and clubs for hire, spacious Lounge & Bar, quality catering and a spectacular coastal location … Mangawhai is truly unbeatable!

Email: golfshop@mangawhaigolf.co.nz for more information.

Just a few minutes from the bustling Kerikeri town centre, The Bay of Islands Golf Club, Kerikeri with its picturesque surroundings is a wonderful golfing experience in a sub-tropical climate.

This well-groomed and attractively treelined, 18-hole 6122 metre, par 73 championship layout provides the best in challenge or relaxation. There are also three 9-hole options available.

With panoramic views over the course, the superb clubhouse caters for weddings, private functions and business seminars.

Golfers of all ages and abilities are most welcome at this friendly club.

Phone the club on 09 407 8837 or email kerikeri@golf.co.nz

Molesworth Drive, Mangawhai Heads

» www.mangawhaigolf.co.nz/

Golf View Road, Kerikeri

» www.bayofislandsgolfclub.co.nz

KAURI CLIFFS GOLF COURSE Matauri Bay Road, Matauri Bay

The Kauri Cliffs Golf Resort was designed by David Harman, ranks among the world’s top 50 courses. It isn’t a cheap outing, but what an experience. Fifteen of the holes view the Pacific Ocean with six of them playing along the cliffs that plunge to the Ocean. The beautiful inland holes wind through marsh, forest and farmland. The complex includes a world-class practice range plus putting and chipping greens. In 2008 and 2009 the Kiwi Challenge brounght four of the world’s best players to New Zealand to play the course including sister course Cape Kidnappers located in the Hawkes Bay. » http://www.kauricliffs.com/

» http://www.peppers.co.nz/carrington

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March 2021

WWW.GOLFERPACIFIC.CO.NZ

STONE STORE LODGE

Just two kilometres from the centre of Kerikeri township, and only minutes walk from the Kerikeri Inlet, the historic Stone Store, and two first class restaurants - The Stone Store Lodge offers a combination of history, privacy, and convenience. Nestled amongst New Zealand’s native Flora and Fauna, the Lodge offers exceptional views from each of its private balconies. The generous range of modern amenities, warm hospitality, and tastefully appointed rooms will ensure your stay is a lifelong memory.

The Stone Store Lodge is centrally located within easy reach of four well known golf courses: Kauri Cliffs, Carrington, Kerikeri and Waitangi.

We can arrange your tee times, green fees, clubs and carts.

Ask about our golf and accommodation gift vouchers.

The Stone Store lodge is a perfect retreat for the golfer. It is within a few minutes walk or drive to a number of first class restaurants and yet is secluded and private.

» stonestorelodge.co.nz

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WAIPU GOLF CLUB State Highway 1, Waipu

For a great day out on the golf course, or a stopover game on your way north, look no further than Waipu Golf Club. Situated on State Highway 1, an easy 90 minute drive north of the Johnsons Hill Tunnel at Orewa, the course is an all-weather links style course playable in all conditions, with spectacular views over Bream Bay from all 18 holes.

The clubhouse is open from 8 am to 5 pm daily for hire carts, clubs and trundlers. Green fees range from $40 for 18 holes and $25 for 9 holes weekdays for affiliated members ($45 and $30 weekends). We also have our Thrifty Thursday special of $1 per hole for all. Enjoy breakfast or lunch at the Tee Café open from 8.30 am, with gluten free food a specialty.

If you need a place to stay, Ruakaka Beachfront Motel is a 10 minute drive away - phone 09 432 7166.

For more information or to book a tee time, call us on 09 432 0259 or email waipu@golf.co.nz. » http://www.waipugolfclub.org.nz/

SHERWOOD PARK GOLF CLUB Millington Road, Maunu

A secluded setting, situated beneath the Maunu volcanic cone in Whangarei. Its rich soil, sub-tropical climate and groves of native trees, complemented by stone walls and water hazards, give this course a unique atmosphere. The club hosted the inter-provincials in 2002, after the clucb had a full-course irrigation system installed at a cost of $250,000. The signature hole is the par-3 14th at 188m which plays over a couple of ponds is rated among New Zealand’s best holes.

Sherwood Park started life as a nine-holer. » www.sherwoodparkgolf.co.nz

March 2021

WHANGAREI GOLF CLUB

Denby Cres, Tikipunga, Whangarei

This is the course where Sir Michael Hill first aquired his passion for golf, which ultimately led to the establishment of his fabulous course at Arrowtown, The Hills.

Originally known as Mt Denby, it is Whangarei’s oldest club (dating back to 1917) and is located on the road to Whangarei Falls and Tutukaka, only 5 minutes from the city centre. The course features bush-covered walkways and is a true test for any golfer. The club’s most famous landmark is the twin pine (split by lightning) aside the par-4 sixth hole. This is a beautiful course with tight driving holes. » www.whangareigolfclub.co.nz

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F E AT U R E

GOLF IN THE WINTERLESS NORTH This Winter, pack up your clubs and head to the North for some great homeland golfing!

TREGHAN LUXURY LODGE Kerikeri Road, Kerikeri

Fairways perfectly groomed, stunning ocean views, wonderful scenery, sunshine and holes that offer a challenge or two!

A stay at the tranquil Treghan Luxury Lodge in Kerikeri, Bay of Islands will mean you enjoy some of the best golf courses in New Zealand, while totally relaxing off the course in secluded and elegant surroundings. Your play can include Kauri Cliffs Golf Course, Waitangi and Bay of Islands, Kerikeri.

And afterwards you can eat in or dine out in one of the award winning restaurants or vineyards the Bay of Islands has to offer. A perfect combination – golf by day, delicious food and luxurious sleep by night. » www.treghan.co.nz/

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March 2021

WWW.GOLFERPACIFIC.CO.NZ

Miura Golf Introduces PI-401 UTILIZING THE LATEST IN CLUBMAKING TECHNOLOGY, NEW MIURA IRONS DELIVER LEGENDARY DESIGN AND FEEL TO BROADER RANGE OF GOLFERS.

M

iura Golf has introduced the PI401, the first player improvement iron in the distinguished Japanese manufacturer’s history.

The PI-401 makes it possible for golfers of all levels to experience the renowned sound, feel and performance of a Miura iron. The forged face and cast body meld the latest performance enhancing technology with six decades of clubmaking craftsmanship to produce maximal distance and forgiveness.

The PI-401 is masterfully crafted under the supervision of the Miura family. Discerning golfers can preorder the PI-401 at www.miuragolf.com.

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When Katsuhiro Miura first began forging irons in 1957, he dedicated his career to refining the classic iron. He has since been joined by sons Shinei and Yoshitaka, and the multigenerational collaboration has produced the finest premium clubs in the game.

“We have created an exceptional iron that goes higher, straighter, and further than any club we’ve ever produced, all while maintaining our family’s standards for design and performance,” said Shinei Miura, who now leads the factory in Himeji, Japan that bears his family’s name. “Using two different materials, we were able to manipulate weight distribution in the PI-401 and introduce a club that is worthy of bearing the Miura name.”

“The Miura family doesn’t design clubs based on market trends; Miura irons are produced solely by the pace of inspiration,” said Hoyt McGarity, CEO of Miura Golf. “After years of monitoring the evolution of technological innovation, the family finally felt comfortable stepping into this equipment category, designing an iron without compromise that is the perfect gateway to the Miura lineup.”

The PI-401 is designed to help golfers get the best out of their game. By delivering minimal offset at address, the club head frames the ball comfortably, in-

spiring confidence and control. The twopiece construction has enabled Miura Golf to optimize the thickness of the club face. Made from Premium S35C carbon steel, the 3.6mm ultra-thin face allows for an enlarged sweet spot generating faster ball speed, higher trajectory, and further distance. All without compromising the sensory feedback golfers covet.

Using a cast 8620 soft steel body, the dual-material iron bears a larger head and wider sole for more forgiveness with an even distribution of weight throughout the club. The widened sole with four separate angles improves turf interaction with less resistance and is consistent in a range of conditions.

McGarity added: “The Miura family understands the scrutiny that comes with lofty expectations earned over six decades of craftsmanship. With the PI-401, we are finally able to deliver the tangible performance of Miura equipment to golfers of every skill level in a new design that’ll feel distinctly familiar in the hands of anyone who has played Miura irons before.”

The set of clubs runs 4-9, PW, and GW, and retails for $330 per iron. Golfers can purchase the PI-401, and all other Miura products, at authorized club fitters around the globe or fully assembled at

March 2021

W H AT ’ S N E W www.Miuragolf.com.

Learn more about the Miura process by watching the documentary Discovering Perfection: The Miura Story.

ABOUT MIURA GOLF

Miura Golf makes the world’s finest forged golf clubs, which are designed and manufactured by the Miura family in their factory in Himeji, Japan. The entire family works hands-on in the factory and continues to carry on the Miura legacy.

World-renowned craftsman Katsuhiro Miura began hand-crafting and grinding irons in 1957 and has created one of the most-respected brands in the golf industry. Miura’s endless quest for the perfect club has brought to the world more than 10 product series, a number that grows as the next generation of the Miura family – led by sons Shinei and Yoshitaka – continue their meticulous refinement and evolution of product lines. Each club is individually handcrafted and will never be mass-produced, as generations of steel-making skill and passion bring us the world’s finest golf clubs.

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Nelson Festival of Golf Course Review GREENACRES GOLF CLUB

GOLF EVENT

NELSON GOLF CLUB NELSON GOLF CLUB’S 18 hole championship links course is adjacent to the district’s airport and the picturesque waters of Tasman Bay. This beautiful seaside links course has reputedly the ‘best’ greens in the country.

Nelson golf links is only ten minutes from the centre of downtown Nelson and virtually next door to beautiful Tahunanui Beach and associated accommodation.

Nelson enjoys one of the most favourable climates in New Zealand with high sunshine hours which helps to explain why Nelson is a popular golfing destination.

Come and play this challenging links course year round. www.nelsongolf.co.nz

Nelson Golf Club

A true links experience situated in the delightful region of sunny Nelson. A wonderful golf course, good enough to be chosen for the 2014 NZ Amateur Championships... high praise indeed. Golfers of all abilities will find a round at Nelson very rewarding enjoying simply stunning views. There is a vibrant social side to the club making new members and casual players feel welcome to enjoy camaraderie both on and off the course. There is a full bar and catering facilities, also open to non members. There

Welcome to Greenacres Golf Club, where playing golf is a “fun” experience to be enjoyed.

This beautifully-maintained 18-hole layout, rated one of the top 40 courses in New Zealand, is conveniently located on the outskirts of Richmond, just a short drive from Nelson Airport.

Set on an island, the club offers magnificent scenery and tranquil surroundings. The course is renowned as one of the best all-weather courses in the region and tests players of all abilities, young or old, high or low handicaps.

While this course is considered one of the most challenging in the top of the South Island it is a popular course for all playing levels. The scenic yet challenging links style layout of the course in a tree lined parkland setting, is a pleasure to enjoy.

Greenacres has everything a good (and growing) golf club should have – a great course and facilities, and fabulous people that are friendly and welcoming and want you to be part of the club, even if just for one day We look forward to seeing you soon. www.greenacresgolfclub.co.nz

MOTUEKA GOLF CLUB

Motueka Golf Club, voted the 2018 NZ Golf Club of the Year, prides itself on running a friendly and wel-

Greenacres Golf Club

are great deals available on green fees and a wide range of memberships – contact the staff at the Nelson Golf club, who will be only too delighted to explain all the options available.

Call 03-548-5029 or email nelson@golf.co.nz Check out our website www.nelsongolf.co.nz and see what you’re missing. The site offers photos of the course plus other club information highlighting the Nelson Festival of Golf.

Check it out on www.nelsongolf. co.nz/festivalofgolf

coming club. The course is relatively flat and has a park like atmosphere with the fairways lined by mature trees. In addition to our beautifully maintained course we are fortunate that it is alive with abundant and varied birdlife. The course has been modified and improved over recent years. The trees have been trimmed and our fairways have been widened which has made the course more “Golfer Friendly”. The fairways are well watered and beautifully grassed and our greens are consistent and true. For those players who played last year you will find our greens are in even better condition this year!

At 5800m off the White Tees the course rewards accuracy and correct club selection. Golfers of all abilities will welcome the challenge and if you play to your handicap on your first visit you should be well satisfied. You will be in the minority!

The course sits on the east side of Motueka and provides some stunning views of Tasman Bay. With an increasing membership and glowing reports from both local and overseas visiting players, Motueka’s reputation continues to grow as one of the best country courses in New Zealand. We look forward to again hosting new and returning players to the Nelson Festival of Golf. www.moteukagolf.co.nz

Motueka Golf Club

2018 NZ GOLF CLUB OF THE YEAR

Harbour Road

Motueka

Tel: (03) 528 8998

Fax: (03) 528 8998

� Click to email us �

Harbour Road Motueka | Tel: (03) 528 8998 | www.motuekagolf.co.nz

The best island golf course in New Zealand

www.nelsongolf.co.nz 24

One of New Zealand’s GREAT GOLFING experiences March 2021

Phone 03-544-6441 • www.greenacresgolfclub.co.nz WWW.GOLFERPACIFIC.CO.NZ

GOLF TRAILS

NEWS FROM AROUND THE REGIONS

NORTHLAND WHANGAROA GOLF CLUB - NEWS AND RESULTS

WWW.GOLFERPACIFIC.CO.NZ

March 2021

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NORTHLAND NOTICEBOARD

WAIKATO NOTICEBOARD

4 Mar

Whangarei

09 437 0775

Womens Teams Day

5 Mar

Ngaruawahia

07 824 8006

5 Mar

Sherwood

09 434 6900

Mangakahia Lions Mixed Tournament

Ngaruawahia Twilights

8 Mar

Ngaruawahia

07 824 8006

5-6 Mar

The Pines

09 436 2246

The Pines Pairs

Women’s Teams Tournament

6 Mar

Houhora

09 409 8821

Houhora Mixed Open

10 Mar

Walton

027 484 2228

Mid-Week Open

Northern Wairoa

06 838 6000

Womens Teams Day

Paraparaumu Beach

04 902 8200

11 Mar

18-21 Mar

NZ Strokeplay Championship

18 Mar

Hauraki

07 867 3197

13 Mar

Kaitaia

09 409 4833

Kaitaia Mens Open

Hauraki Mid-Week Open

19 Mar

Ngaruawahia

07 824 8006

Monthly Mixed Open

23-24 Mar

Walton

027 484 2228

NZ Women’s Autumn Foursomes

WAIKATO LUKE TOOMEY GOES BACKTO-BACK AT THE BRIAN PERRY CLASSIC

The Brian Perry Classic in its 13th year produced yet another display of just what Pro Ams bring to the game of golf.

Hamilton Golf Club of St Andrews was looking its best ever and PGA NZ professionals and local Juniors set off with their 3 amateur team members for the 18-hole round.

“Greens are running fast” was the murmur around the course and as the afternoon breeze picked up the back nine had elements that gave a bit of extra thought as the shots were being lined up.

Returning back to the clubhouse with final scores Momoka Kobori, Harry Bateman and Luke Toomey all recorded a stellar 3 under par 69 to share the honours and the top prize purse.

The tournament still required to find a winner for the Brian Perry Classic Pro Am Trophy and so it was off to the 18th for a three way play off. It was a great way to cap of the day as the rest of the field enjoyed watching the playoff unfold. Luke Toomey produced a fine tee off shot in second playoff hole to set himself up to take the it out and put his name on the trophy the second year running.

Local Professional Steve Hancock with Event partner Perry Group presented the weighted trophy to Luke Toomey.

The Brian Perry Classic in 2021 delivered yet another great show.

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BAY OF PLENTY WAIHI OJI 54 HOLE TOURNAMENT

By Nan Hoggard The 54-hole tournament was first played at Waihi in 1988, and throughout the years has gained in popularity with players returning year after year. For the second year OJI Fibre Solutions, a leading producer of market pulp, paper and fibre based packaging has provided major sponsorship, together with other sponsors: The Clubroom (Tauranga, Hamilton and Auckland), Gridmaster ( Greg Bundle), La Vie en Rose Sports Bar (Waihi Beach), H& G Leach, (Quarrymen, Civil Contractors and Waste Managers), and APC Innovates (New Zealand’s leading manufacturer of retail display solutions).

There is no doubt that sponsorship plays a large part in the popularity and success of an open tournament, and the generosity of all the sponsors is very much appreciated by the Club.

It was an early start on Saturday February 6, for the 104 players in the field facing 36 holes playing in hot weather, with only a short lunch break after 18 holes, before continuing the rest of their journey. The weather was kind however, with light cloud cover from time to time, and in the afternoon a pleasant north-easterly breeze gave some relief from the heat. The course was well-presented, dry and fast, in good condition, and as always at Waihi, not without its challenges, with some tricky pin placements on the greens.

In the first 18 holes there was some excitement in his group when Robby Turnbull, 14 years old, holed-in-one on the 15th, and went on to finish the 18 holes with 69 off the stick, and subsequently to win the major tournament prize and Stafford-Bush trophy.

There was a large field with players from Auckland Region, Cambridge, Fairview, Flexiclub, Formosa, Hutt Park, Hamilton, Muriwai, Ngaruawahia, Northland, Onewhero, Pukekohe, Riverside, Tauranga, Whitford Park, Whangamata, Waiterimu, Te Puke, Renner Park, Walton, Auckland Regional Police, Remuera, Gulf Harbour, Wairakei International, Te Awamutu, Matamata, Akarana, Raglan, Ben Ohau Twizel, Marton, and Waihi.

The field was divided into three divisions for the gross, nett and stableford competitions—Senior men, Junior men and Women. Novelty prizes were also awarded in the three divisions.

RESULTS OVER 54 HOLES

Gross winner over the field (Stafford-Bush trophy): Robby Turnbull (Remuera) 213 Senior men Best Gross: Robby Turnbull 213.

Nett winner: Andy Roche 214. Runner up: Craig Edlin (Tauranga) 217; Mark Hume 220.

Winning Men’s Team Stableford winner: Murray Gutry (Hamilton) 109 points. Runners-up: David P Campbell 104; Chad Meyer (Gulf Harbour); Murray Fraser 104; Jason Baldwin 103; Marcus Niles (Te Puke) 100; Leonard Morgan (Cambridge) 100; Hamish

March 2021

Jones (Cambridge) 100; David Seagar (Te Awamutu) 99; Geoff Burgess (Hamilton) 99; Nigel Sanderson 99; Terry Gerbich 98.

Junior Men Nett winner: Tony Cliff (Whangamata) 241. Runners-up: Nick Davies 217; Earle White 218.

Stableford winner: Ken Purcell 108.

Runners-up: Neil Frederickson (Renner Park) 105; Dave Ingle 105; Howard Anderson 104; Hayden Schneffer (Onewhero) 104; David Morris 102; Peter Maria 100; Denis Borman 99; Des Johns 98; Maurice Joyce 97; Phillip McHugh 97; David Fox 97.

Women Gross winner: Fleur Reynolds (Muriwai) 239.

Nett winner: Klara Ingle 217. Runners-up: Di Sweeney (Walton) 213 .

Stableford winner: Lynley Wallace (Cambridge) 213. Runners-up: Billie-Jo Simmons 102; Phillipa Harvey 100; Jackie Robson 100; Kathryn Douglas (Walton) 98.

Teams Men Winners—Jason Baldwin, Mike Matutinovich, Andy Roche, Nigel Sanderson 410 points.

Runners up: Leonard Morgan, Jason Boobyer, Mark Hume, Deane Tetley 394; Terry Gerbich, Mark Bryant, Wayne Brierley, Murray Gutry 393; Chad Meyer, Murray Fraser, Toni Murray, Robby Turnbull 392.

Women Winners—Billie-Jo Simmons, Lynley Wallace, Klara Ingle, Phillipa Harvey 417 points.

Twos Men: Mark Boe (Wairakei International) x2, James Owen (Flexiclub); Nigel Sanderson, Steven Fair (Akarana), Murray Gutry, Chad Meyer (Gulf Harbour), David Seager (Te Awamutu), Jon Morrison (Te Puke), Deane Tetley, David P. Campbell, Matthew Smith, Andy Roche, Leonard Morgan (Cambridge), David Toomey (Whitford Park) Marcus Niles (Te Puke), Mike Leeper (Matamata), Ken Purcell x 2, Tony Cliff (Whangamata), Earle White,

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Pete Rowe.

Women: Sian Stevenson (Cambridge) x2, Heather Sharp (Walton), Kate Davidson (Walton), Dianne Sweeney (Walton).

Nearest the Pin (over three rounds) Saturday AM & PM, Sunday.

Senior Men on 13: Jon Morrison (Te Puke), Silas Toornstra (Raglan), Robby Turnbull (Remuera).

Junior Men on 6: Dave Ingle, John Drent, Denis Borman.

Women on 15: Dianne Sweeney (Walton), Lynley Wallace (Cambridge), Heather Sharp (Walton).

Longest Drive on 7 (over three rounds) Saturday AM & PM, Sunday.

Senior Men: Jason Boobyer (Cambridge), Chad Meyer (Gulf Harbour), Dave Seager (Te Awamutu).

Junior Men: Neil Frederickson (Renner Park), Mike Matutinovich, Dave Ingle.

Women: Billie-Jo Simmons, Maxine Barrett (Muriwai), Jill Agnew (Whangamata).

Daily Stableford results Saturday AM— Senior Men: Craig Edlin 42 points; Andy Roche 41; Jason Baldwin 39.

Junior Men: Tony Cliff 43; Des Johns 40; Craig Webster (Muriwai) 40.

Women: Lynley Wallace (Cambridge) 41; Klara Ingle 41; Kate Davidson (Walton) 35.

Saturday PM— Senior Men: Mark Hume 38; Chad Meyer (Gulf Harbour) 38; Murray Fraser 37.

Junior Men: Julian Jaques (Hamilton) 41; Nic Davies 40; Hayden Scheffer (Onewhero).

Women: Billie-Jo Simmons 39; Jackie

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Robson 37; Di Sweeney (Walton) 35.

Sunday— Senior Men: David P Campbell 38; Murray Gutry 38; Richard Taitoko 38.

Junior Men: Earle White 37; Peter Maria 36; David Morris 35.

BAY OF PLENTY NOTICEBOARD 5 Mar

Katikati

027 451 0031

Black Tee Challenge

11 Mar

Mercury Bay

07 866 5479

Women’s 18 Hole Open Teams Tournament

29 Mar

Omokoroa

07 548 0319

18 Hole Ladies Easter Open Tournament

TARANAKI

TASMAN TASMAN NOTICEBOARD 8-11 Mar

Motueka

03 528 8998

Sunday Westrupp Trophy 36 Holes Tasman Event

15 Mar

Marlborough

03 578 7646

Allan Scott Wines Tournament

2-7 May

Nelson, Greenacres, Motueka

nelson festivalofgolf@ gmail.com

Nelson Festival of Golf 2021

CANTERBURY CANTERBURY GOLF CAPTAINS DAY TOURNAMENT

TARANAKI NOTICEBOARD 21 Mar

Westown

027 412 6103

Taranaki 5000

MANAWATU-WHANGANUI

teams separated by just 6 stableford points.

Burnham’s Club Captains Aaron Tallott (39 pts) and Audrey Flower (40pts) won the tournament with a combined total of 79 stableford points.

In second place a point back on 78 points were Hawarden’s Allan Easte (38 pts) and Michelle Fletcher (40pts) with Lincoln’s Scott Saunders (37pts) and Janice Rolls (40pts) third on 77 points.

CANTERBURY MEN’S OVER 50’S & 60’S INTERCLUB

The final round of Canterbury Men’s Over 50’s and 60’s Interclub was played at Christchurch Golf Club last month in fine conditions and the course in great order.

Win Over 50s Team Gross Winners 2020.21 Christchurch Croppedners for the 2020/21 season are as follows:

MANAWATU-WHANGANUI NOTICEBOARD 19 Mar

Castlecliff

06 344 4554 (0)

Castlecliff Open Day Women

25-26 Feb

Feilding

06 323 4553

Feilding Premier Challenge

WELLINGTON WELLINGTON NOTICEBOARD 12 Mar

Masterton

06 377 4984

2021 Wairarapa Women’s Open

17 Mar

Judgeford

04 235 7633

St Pats Day Tournament

19 Mar

Trentham

04 527 7039

Women’s Vets

29 Mar

BFHGC

04 567 4722 Ext 1

Women’s Open Day

March monthly

Judgeford

04 235 7633

Junior Twilight Series

Canterbury Golf Captains Day Tournament was held at Greendale Golf Club last month in perfect golfing conditions and the course in great order. It’s always a great opportunity for Canterbury Men and Women Club Captains to enjoy each others company and share ideas from their respective clubs.

Some excellent scoring, in particular by the Ladies Club Captains saw the top 9

March 2021

Over 50’s Team Gross (Pirie Cup) Christchurch (Pictured above, Peter McDougall, Grant McEwan, Charles Whitwham and Jason Sincock) Over 50’s Individual Gross (George Turner Trophy) - Jason Sincock (Christchurch) Over 50’s Individual Net (Golf Ball Trophy) - Scott Burgess (Hanmer Springs,

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Pictured below) Over 50’s Team Net (Chamberlain Cup) - Coringa

Over 60’s Team Gross Cup - Amberley (Pictured below, Gwyn Williams, Gavin Burrows and Tala Natapu) Over 60’s Team Net Cup - Amberley Over 60’s Individual Net (A M Pemberton Salver) - Peter Nicholl (Pegasus)

MOUNTCASTLE TRIUMPHS AT CANTERBURY STROKEPLAY

New Zealand and Wellington rep Kerry Mountcastle staged a spectacular back nine comeback to beat Canterbury’s Kazuma Kobori by one shot for the Men’s Championship at the 2021 Smiths City Canterbury Strokeplay held at Clearwater last month.

Kobori led by a shot starting the final round and by the 12th hole had built that lead up to three shots courtesy of a short game masterclass - sinking many length putts, and a chip-in on 12. Mountcastle

was striking the ball well but couldn’t capitalise missing several makeable birdie putts through to hole 14. On this tricky par 5 he hit an iron off the tee then a spectacular 3 wood onto the green and 15 foot from the flag. Mountcastle actually thought the shot had gone into the hazard and was relieved to see it had found the green. He finally made a putt for eagle and the “two horse” race was now tied. However there was more drama to come. Mountcastle hit it in the hazard on 15 and bogeyed but Kobori also bogeyed from the middle of the fairway after misjudging the tail wind. Then on 16 hitting into the wind Kobori’s tee shot found the water and he made double bogey. Mountcastle also missed the green and made bogey but gained a shot. On 17 Mountcastle again hit it left way in the hazard. The ball was found in the trees, he hit it out and then onto the green and made a great bogey. Meanwhile Kobori could only manage bogey after finding the fairway bunker. Both players played solid down the 18th and they both made 5 foot putts for par giving the victory to Mountcastle by one. 14 year old Aucklander Joshua Bai was the spectator in the group. He played some solid golf but couldn’t make inroads into the deficit he faced at the start of the day. He finished five shots back from Kobori in third place.

No other challenges eventuated from further down the pack on a day of trying conditions on a very testing layout.

Auckland’s Aileen Du won the Women’s Championship by eight shots. She started the day with a six shot lead over Canterbury’s Maddie May and shot an even par 72 to extend the winning margin over May who shot 74. Nelson’s Lizzie Neale was third on a countback. May had a significant length advantage off the tee but other parts of her game let her down.

Meanwhile Du was consistent and steady in the tough conditions.

Waitikiri’s Brett Turner beat his Canter-

bury team-mate Jonathan Stieller to claim the Men’s Masters Championship by one shot. Turner started with a three shot lead and held on in tough conditions.

Bottle Lake’s Kieran Sharvin was third.

Invercargill’s Olivia Frost won the Women’s Masters Championship. Her second round 76 set up the win by 11 shots over defending champion Kim Moggach and Clearwater’s Rachel Eder who tied.

Templeton’s Sam McGill won the Men’s Net, Weedon’s Deanna Matthews the Women’s Net, and Christchurch’s Gary Gillard the Men’s Masters Net

CANTERBURY NOTICEBOARD 3 Mar

Hanmer Springs

Club Venue®

SGS

Date

5 Mar

Rakaia

03 302 7114

9 Hole Tournament

Greendale

021 225 8806

Women’s Canadian Foursomes

13 Mar

Hanmer Springs

03 315 7110

Simes & Bascand Cups 27 Hole Mixed American Foursomes

17 Mar

Amberley

03 314 8735

Women’s Team Stableford

OTAGO/SOUTHLAND

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HOUSE OF TRAVEL TOUR CANTERBURY

The House of Travel Tour combines the Southland Stroke Play, the Otago Stroke Play and the Canterbury Stroke Play earlier last month.

The winners of the House of Travel Tour are pictured below.

Women’s Open Winner Sumin Kang Men’s U19 Winner Zach May Men’s Open Winner Kazuma Kobori Men’s Open Runner Up Phil Bungard

Aorangi 6 Mar

Pleasant Point

03 614 7304

Pleasant Point Summer Classic

11 Mar

Lower Waitaki

03 431 3800

Lower Waitaki 9 Hole Tournament

12 Mar

Rakaia

03 302 7114

Mixed 27 Hole

20 Mar

Fairlie

021 363 956

500 Tournament

24 Mar

North Otago

03 434 6169

North Otago Triples Tournament

10 Mar

Clinton

03 415 7936

Women’s Teams Event

13-14 Mar

Taieri Lakes

03 489 7450

Taieri Classic 2021

13-14 Mar

Balclutha

03 418 2171

O’Malley Classic

15-16 Mar

Queenstown

03 442 9169

22nd Queenstown Women’s Classic

19-20 Mar

Dunstan

03 449 2729

Ladies 26th Annual Tournament

20-21 Mar

Lawrence, Toko Golf Clubs

03 417 8926

inGolf Two Course Challenge

8 Mar

Wyndham

03 206 4659

Wyndham Ladies 27 Hole

23 Mar

Invercargill

03 213 1133

Southland Strokeplay

Otago

Southland

Cup Challenger

Host Convenor

Phone

SGS 9.30 Tue Date 2 MAR^

Cup Challenger Awhitu

Host Phone BruceConvenor Wilson 09 2351299

VVV CUP 9.30 Mon 15 MAR FEB^ Alternate Pairs Paul Heath Qualify 2 WAITERIMU* CLARKS BEACH 9.30 Tue 30 Clarks Shot Beach Nev McSweney 3 AWHITU* ONEWHERO† Qualify 1

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Waikare Onewhero JJJ CUP 4 WAIUKU WATTLE DWNS* 9.30 9.30 Tue Thu 18 29 MAY^ JULY 3-Person Ambrose Waiuku Qualify Final 1 5 WAIKARE HAURAKI† 9.30 Wed 1 Hauraki Qualify 9.30 16SEPT JUNE Waikare 5 ONEWHERO† WAIKARE Qualify 3

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4 Final 2

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CCC WAIUKU† FinalCUP 3 HUNTLY

9.30 Tue 23 Nett Strokeplay Huntly/Waiterimu 12 NOV^ OCT

Les Johns Bruce Wilson

Public Ann Holidays Auckland Mn 28/1

Email: Entry or Enquiry New Year Waitangi Th 6/1 6/2 awhitugolf@xtra.co.nz W1/1-M

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Auckland Ann Mn 28/1 School Hol 28/3-14/4 Easter Fr 2-Mn Waitangi Th 5/4 6/2

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Queens B’Day Mn 1/6 Easter Fr 2-Mn 5/4

Steve Ryan Tim Howard

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School 4-19/7 Anzac St Hols 24-Mn 26/4

SteveCrooymans 027 155 467 4113 3209 waikaregolf@xtra.co.nz Noel Steele 021 crooymansfamily@xtra.co.nz AndreRuiterman 09 Steve Ryan 021236 2940513 8580 acsr@actrix.gen.nz s.j.ryan@hotmail.com

Monthly 5th Th Queens B’Day Mn30/7 1/6 School Hol 26/9-11/10 School Hols 4-19/7

Day Mn Murray Liddle 813 6000 SteveCrooymans 027 467 3209 mrrayntl@hotmail.com Monthly 5th Th26/10 30/7 crooymansfamily@xtra.co.nz Labour David Gardiner 027236 2800513 0515 acsr@actrix.gen.nz Monthly Th 29/10 gpesl@xtra.co.nz AndreRuiterman 09 School Hol5th 26/9-11/10 Tim Howard Murray Liddle

021 027 155 813 4113 6000 alhaurintim@yahoo.co.uk mrrayntl@hotmail.com

PUKEKOHE 9.00 Mon 8 NOV Pukekohe David Gardiner 027 280 0515 * 9-HOLE COURSE PLAYER LIMITS: BB Stroke Play 72; AS Pairs Play 84; 3-Person Ambrose 96.

CCC CUP WAIUKU† 9.30 Tue 23 NOV^ Nett Strokeplay Tim Howard 021 155 4113 ® FEES: Q&F Rounds $20pp; Pukekohe F4, VVV, JJJ, CCC = $25pp. Note: Clubs may vary rate. † 9-HOLE CONVENORS MEETING: in Clubrooms before Start | ^84; Changed event dates. 96. * COURSE PLAYERHeld LIMITS: BB Stroke90-Mins Play 72; AS Pairs Play 3-Person Ambrose Final 4

® FEES: Q&F Rounds $20pp; Pukekohe F4, VVV, JJJ, CCC = $25pp. Note: Clubs may vary rate. † CONVENORS MEETING: Held in Clubrooms 90-Mins before Start | ^ Changed event dates.

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Public Holidays

Email: Entry or Enquiry New Year W1/1-M 6/1

2021 VETERANS INTER-CLUB COMMUNITY 2021 VVV CUP COUNTIES-MANUKAU WAITERIMU* 9.30 Mon 15 FEB^ Alternate Shot Pairs Paul Heath 027 2911125 pgheath@xtra.co.nz Round Venue® Qualify 1 Club AWHITU*

Women’s 3 Day Tournament

12 Mar

2021 COUNTIES-MANUKAU VETERANS INTER-CLUB COMMUNITY 2021 Round

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March 2021

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