All golfing roads lead to Te Puia Hot Springs for East Coast Open

Tony Akroyd on his way to winning the championship 16 final of the 2009 East Coast Open. Akroyd, who turned 48 on Thursday, is looking to make it three Open crowns at the Te Puia Hot Springs course this weekend. Photo / Paul Rickard

The golfing CV of Tony Akroyd speaks for itself.

He has represented Tairāwhiti and Poverty Bay-East Coast at the national interprovincial level.

He has set course records and has multiple club championships to his name.

He has won every major title in the region, including the elite “Triple Crown” of Poverty Bay, East Coast and King of the Coast open victories.

This weekend, a couple of days after turning 48, he is on a mission to add another to his lengthy list.

And on recent form, “Tonez” rates a very good chance.

Akroyd is among the 72 players – which could increase with late entries – competing at the 2025 East Coast Open ... 75 years after it was first held.

He won it in 2002 (beating Māhia’s Peter Bremner in the final) and again in 2009 (defeating Simon Jenkins).

A third title would lift him up the pecking order of multiple East Coast Open crowns and put him alongside the likes of Frank Gordon (1953, 1954 and 1957).

That, however, fades in comparison with the most prolific winners – Eric Gordon (11 titles between 1963 and 1986) and Peter Rouse (10 between 1970 and 2001 when he beat Akroyd in the final).

When the sun shines at Te Puia Hot Springs Golf Club, as it is for these players as they walk towards the picturesque par-3 12th green, it is a glorious experience. The club hosts its major tournament of the year, the East Coast men's open, this weekend. Photo / Chris Taewa

Akroyd, on handicap, is the fifth seed in the championship 16 headed by five-time East Coast Open champion Anaru Reedy.

Fresh from a highly successful Freyberg Masters interprovincial, at which he won six of his eight matches at No 2 in the Tairāwhiti team, Reedy is a genuine favourite.

His Electrinet Park clubmate Dan Collier is the second seed and probably the best player in Tairāwhiti yet to have won one of the Triple Crown championships.

Wellington brothers and junior representatives Mutu and Apirana Ngarimu are back for another crack. Apirana made history in 2023 when he became the youngest East Coast Open winner.

Ōpōtiki father and son Micky and Elijah Huriwaka are also in the championship 16. Micky, who played for Ngāti Porou East Coast in this year’s Heartland rugby championship, lost the 2025 final to Poverty Bay’s Waka Donnelly.

Donnelly is not defending the title. Former champion William Brown is another notable absentee.

The door is certainly open for a bolter to come through, and no one knows that more than Neil Hansen, who upstaged some of the big names, including Akroyd in the semis, in winning the 2007 East Coast Open. Hansen is playing this weekend.

The Open has attracted many a sporting celebrity over the years, and this year is no different. Former All Black Joe Stanley loves the tournament and is back for another taste of classic Coast hospitality.

Ex-All Black and East Coast great Andy Jefferd is also in the field.