The purse will be upped to $175,000 at the second annual Women’s New Zealand  Open. Decision to play again at Clearwater Resort is uncertain at this time.

Read all about it at www.press.co.nz – www.nzherald.co.nz and www.thecanadianpress.com – click on sports and dig a bit –  pictures, too.

circa 1908

Long sought after, at last New Zealand Golf succeeds in staging the inaugural New Zealand Women’s Open Championship to be held on January 30th to February 1st at the beautiful Clearwater Golf Club in Christchurch. The purse of $150,000 is made possible by the Women’s Golf New Zealand Fund which was established in 2005 during the amalgamation of Women’s Golf with the New Zealand Golf Association. This Open is the first professional golf tournament for women in the country since 1975 and is drawing top golfers Laura Davies and Katherine Hull to name but two.

A graduate of Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, Australian Katherine Hull was the first world-class player to sign up for the Open. Greg Ford of the Sunday Star Times, the country’s national newspaper, reports that “Hull ‘fell in love’ with the South Island while on a road trip with her sister this year and needed no convincing when promoter Bob Tuohy asked if she’d return with her clubs. ‘It’s my favourite place on Earth,’ she said. ‘I’m serious. I hiked the Milford Track, visited Christchurch, Queenstown and Greymouth. New Zealand is beautiful. I loved every minute of it and can’t wait to come back.’”

Katherine Hull - 2008 Canadian Women's Open Winner

Katherine wowed them at the 2008 CN Canadian Women’s Open at the Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club in August when she increased her lead to two strokes over threatening Yani Tseng then maintained her lead for a one-stroke victory over Se Ri Pak who challenged from behind to finish second with back-to-back birdies.  In her fifth year on the world’s richest tour for women this win was a breakthrough proving her determination to top the leaderboard. Katherine’s final score: 68-70-68-72=278, -10.

More world-class women golfers are lining up to participate in this inaugural event. “There’s no doubt,” says New Zealand Golf CEO Bill MacGowan, “the profile of women’s golf in New Zealand will benefit as a result and…will attract players from the Australian, European and US Tours, many of whom will be visiting New Zealand for the first time.” 

As well, the New Zealand Women’s Open championship will now be part of the Australian Ladies’ Professional Golf Tour, a four-tournament schedule which includes the New South Wales Open, the Australian Women’s Open and the Ladies Masters reports Christchurch City Libraries. And thanks to CC Libraries for the grand photograph of Kiwi, Miss Cowlishaw competing in the fashionable style of the day at Christchurch Golf Club’s Easter Tournament held at the Shirley Links in April 1908.

About Clearwater Golf Course and Resort

Extract from “Birdies, Bogeys and Kiwis: Golfing Around New Zealand“

A member of the prestigous The Best of Golf New Zealand, Clearwater Resort is only a fifteen-minute drive from Christchurch city and about seven minutes from the airport. This par 72, 6526-metre 18-hole course is playable 12 months of the year. Tee times are much in demand so it’s wise to book ahead. The course meanders around several spring-fed lakes and streams that teem with wild Brown and Rainbow trout. Designed by John Darby in consultation with Sir Bob Charles-World Golf Hall of Fame 2008 inductee, the cunning design manages to give players uninterrupted views of the Southern Alps. Fly fishing, tennis, cycling and strolling the Resort’s trails are all terrific alternatives to challenging this impressive golf course. 

Remember these dates and be part of this inaugural event: 30 January to 1 February 2009. Get tickets from www.ticketdirect. co.nz.  

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