NEW ZEALAND
about every course I visited, but I loved Hastings in Hawkes Bay, a short drive inland from Cape Kidnappers. One of the best parkland layouts in the North Island, where I played with head pro Brett Allan and top senior amateur Stu- art Duff. Both outstanding competitors. One of the most pleasant areas to live, and I would sign up there as a member if I ever had the opportunity. Whakatane was another beauty close to Ohope Beach, where I met up with ex-South African Pete McLaverty, the club president. He told me about the Shootouts that are a popular competi- tion among Bay of Plenty clubs. After a series of qualifying club events, 19 men and 19 women members (playing on separate days) tee off at the first hole, and the worst score is knocked out on each hole, leaving just two on the 18th. Substantial sums of money are involved through the entry fees. I witnessed the denouement of one of these Shootouts at Mount Maunganui, and there was a crowd of about 100 members walking with the final couple. Club manager Nick Hargrave in- troduced me to a few Kiwi golfing ex- pressions. What we call a “sandy” is a “grittie,” and a shot closest to the pin on a par 3 a “nearie.” When I holed a chip shot he referred to it as a “weasel.” FROM WANGANUI TO NGAMOTU At Wanganui Golf Club (The Belmont) I had 18 holes with greenkeeper David Hodge, who said he applied the three “Ms” in his job when it came to looking after the greens. “Minimum water, Min- imum fertiliser, and Maximum aeration is the secret to keeping them healthy,” he said. Wanganui is on the lower west coast, and Hodge met up with Tom Doak who visited the region to look at both Waver- ley close by, and The Belmont. “He gave me some advice about our bunkers.” Doak was attracted here by the quirki- ness of these two courses. Wanganui was indeed unusual. The clubhouse stood on a high ridge, and the front nine traversed hilly terrain. There were a series of fabulous holes and greens be- fore at the 11th we dropped down quite a height to a flatter section where the closing holes were artfully designed.
"PRISTINE SITE SANDWICHED BETWEEN PACIFIC OCEAN AND INLAND HARBOUR."
OHOPE BEACH LINKS Rumpled fairways and raised greens challenge golfers on the Bay of Plenty coast.
OHOPE BEACH LINKS Ohope Beach in the Bay of Plenty has one of the biggest campsites in the North Island. Thousands flock here in the holiday season, but it was quiet when I visited an area popular with retirees. I received a warm welcome at Ohope Beach Links where I joined up with three members, including club president Doug Marra. Doug, like many Kiwis living at the coast, had two favou- rite pastimes, golf and deep-sea fishing. I declined his offer to take me out on his boat into the bay. It’s these kind of member courses that reveal the true flavour of golf in
of its majestic links holes. It is laid out on a pristine site, sandwiched on a spit of land between the sea and an inland harbour. Not a house to be seen. It be- gan with four wonderful holes, then disappointingly deteriorated in quality for a few holes coming back to the club- house. However, the back nine was full of wonderful, raw, links holes. Three marvellous par 3s, back-to-back 5s, and a memorable 18th with a green perched on a dune alongside one of the more at- tractive clubhouses I encountered. WHAKATANE SHOOTOUTS I don’t have the space to write reams
New Zealand, and the natural friendli- ness of the locals. They don’t have fancy clubhouses, but the 19th hole is usually busy and vibrant, and members pitch in to help when needed. Minimal staff on duty. I was struck by everyone’s passion for the game, and the varying character of the courses they played. Green fees were reasonable, under $100, which is not much in what can be an expensive country for South Africans. Ohope Beach Links is not a well- known course, due to its remoteness. I found it a jewel. I had been told it was a fun layout, and yes it was short, but I was unprepared for the sheer quality
erty, slightly inland from the sea, bordered by houses, and low dunes separate parallel valleys. Similar to Hu- mewood in that each nine returns to the clubhouse, yet there the comparisons end. Vast greens fall away into run-off areas and bunkers. It was pleasingly fair in the absence of wind but became scar- ily tight when a breeze picked up. The par-3 16th will stay with me for the rest of my days. A long slender green in the dunes where only the perfect tee shot would hold the firm putting surface. A variety of holes distinguished the lay- out, constantly changing direction in an interesting pattern.
lengths, and some of the shorter ones were among the more challenging. Paraparaumu would be one of the country’s older links, and a frequent host of the New Zealand Open since it opened in the late 1940s, including the Open where Tiger Woods made a soli- tary appearance in 2002 in support of his Kiwi caddie Steve Williams. Gary Player and other South Africans teed up here regularly in the 1950s and 1960s. Cedric Amm in 1964 set a course record. The course designer was Alex Russell, Australia’s finest, who worked with MacKenzie at Royal Melbourne. It’s an interesting rectangular prop-
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MARCH/APRIL 2026
MARCH/APRIL 2026
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