Golf New Zealand chief executive Jeff Latch said the common factor which emanated strongly from all award winners, and indeed all nominees, was their unconditional passion for the sport, and sharing that enthusiasm with the wider golfing community - from weekend “hackers” strolling down the fairways with their mates, through to elite and high-performance players.
“The fantastic thing about golf is that the sport provides for so many playing opportunities - and the 2023 National Golf Awards winners truly reflect this incredibly broad range of experiences, personnel, and locations,” Latch said.
“The high degrees of excellence and passionate commitment evidenced by all our winners shows that the sport of golf is in a very healthy state - from a grassroots level, out in provincial New Zealand, and right up to the pinnacle of high-performance golf on the international stages. This bodes extremely well for the sport in the future.”
What started simply as a dad learning to coach his kids in the rudimentary skills of golf has now transitioned into more than two decades of being a volunteer golfing instructor for Neho.
The Community Coach of the Year Award is presented to a volunteer or community-orientated coach who successfully contributes to the growth of participation in an enjoyable, engaging, or innovative manner.
Neho, a sportsman and educationalist, first began coaching golf in 2002 after hanging up his rugby league boots and stepping back from his role as a rugby coach. With three young children picking up golf clubs, he thought it would be a good thing to follow them into the sport, and like a diligent dad, he learnt the fundamentals of the game and began coaching the trio.
Neho’s teaching ability quickly rose to the fore, with his 17-year-old son Kadin Neho winning the New Zealand Amateur Championship in 2013, becoming the first Northlander to win the title since 1893. Under his dad’s guidance, Kadin evolved to become a pillar in the Northland team which went on to win the national interprovincial golfing title.
Two of the current Northland golfing team participating at national interprovincial level started playing under Neho’s initial coaching guidance, while another three talented players are looming in the wings for possible provincial call-ups.
While several of his prodigies have reached high-performance levels nationally, Neho described his commitment to the sport as being a participation coach - encouraging children, women, and men to get into the game for the first time.
When a talented player comes through his programmes, he knows when to pass them on to a professional golf coach who can develop their skills further, and take them to the next level of competition golf.
Coaching out of the Whangārei Golf Club Mount Denby on Sundays, Neho has fully embraced many of Golf New Zealand’s participation programmes in both nine and 18-hole formats - including She Loves Golf and Futures. He also runs school holiday programmes for children getting into what is a booming sport in Northland.
Mentoring students is a near fulltime commitment for Neho - either on the golf course, or in his profession as a fulltime relieving teacher at Whangārei schools.
Winners at the 2023 National Golf Awards:
Community Coach of the Year Award: Wiremu Neho, Whangārei Golf Club.
Professional Coach of the Year Award: Kevin Smith, Kāpiti Coast.
Club of the Year Award: Pupuke Golf Club, Auckland.
Golf Administrator of the Year Award: Lucinda Searle, Taranaki.
Volunteer of the Year Award: Brian Chapman, Paraparaumu Beach Golf Club
Environment Club of the Year Award: Paraparaumu Golf Club, Kāpiti Coast
Golfing Event of the Year Award: Flat Day Out at Pupuke Golf Club, Auckland
Golf Performance of the Year Award: Lydia Ko
All Abilities Golfer of the Year Award: Guy Harrison, Hawke’s Bay
