Golf: Blue chip NZ Open in the making

Michael Campbell

New Zealand Golf has snared a naming sponsor for the $1.5 million New Zealand Open at Gulf Harbour at the end of November. Now the hunt is on for a field worthy of the 89th open.

Local hero Michael Campbell is a confirmed starter, bringing the lustre of his 2005 US Open title. The event is co-sanctioned by the European and Australasian tours and the organisers have agents working on the managers of players on those and other major tours.

Blue Chip Financial Solutions, the naming sponsor confirmed yesterday, is not quite the multi-national company originally sought. But it operates here and in Australia and is listed on the stock exchanges of both countries. It specialises in helping people to invest in residential property.

The sponsorship will initially be for one year, but there will be an on-going marketing association with golf in general for the full year with benefits envisaged for individual members and clubs. The amount is confidential.

The 2005 NZ Open was rated a success but made a substantial loss. New Zealand Golf chief executive Larry Graham is confident there would be no repetition this time and was hoping for a profit as further sponsors were signed up. Emirates has already renewed its association.

Attracting name players is a tough business when richer tournaments are offering big appearance fees, which New Zealand cannot match.

Graham said there was good feedback from players in 2005 and creative deals could be attractive, particularly with the Australian Open in Sydney, the Australian Masters in Melbourne, the Blue Chip NZ Open and the Australian PGA at Coolum running in consecutive weeks.

And the NZ Open had been praised by the European tour for the chances it had given to middle-ranked players. The winner, Niclas Fasth, was a relative unknown who had gone on to bigger things.

One complication is a clash with the qualifying school for the USPGA tour. Steven Alker, Michael Long, Tim Wilkinson, Phil Tataurangi, Grant Waite and other New Zealanders could be missing from Gulf Harbour.

One criticism levelled at the Gulf Harbour course last time was that it was too easy for the pros. Fasth beat Miles Tunnicliff in a playoff after both had finished at 22-under par.

Not everyone found the course easy. It is easy to forget that Michael Campbell missed the cut at Gulf Harbour on February 11 and won the US Open four months later.

NZ Open
Gulf Harbour Country Club
November 30-December 3
Defending champion: Niclas Fasth (Sweden)