NZ Golfer Michael Hendry ahead of the 2017 ISPS Handa New Zealand Golf Open. Photo / Photosport
After six years of purely being an Australasian Tour event, the national open will be co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour in 2018 and 2019.
For those hoping this may result in McIlroy, Spieth, Johnson or Scott gracing the fairways, cool your excitement. It won't mean instantly recognisable names, but it
will have plenty of significant benefits. There'll be an increase in prize money, up slightly to $1.1 million while 30 Asian Tour members will be given spots in the field, up from 10 at this year's tournament.
But, perhaps most significantly and a point that's been largely underplayed since the announcement, is the fact the event will be broadcast live on the Asian Tour's global platform, beaming into potentially millions of homes across the world's most populated continent. This will obviously be of significance for the tournament itself, but also the country's tourism and economy. The government and New Zealand Golf must take advantage of this as much as they possibly can, by showcasing the beauty this country has to offer through two of the most picturesque courses. Both The Hills and Millbrook provide a challenge for the golfers but, possibly even more importantly in the grand scheme of things, they provide a stunning backdrop that only New Zealand has to offer. There's no doubt the tournament can be used for leverage to attract people here to play golf.
The New Zealand Open has long struggled for any real traction since losing the co-sanctioning with the Nationwide Tour (now web.com Tour) and the European Tour. It's struggled for big names and organisers have been criticised for introducing celebrities and a pro-am format to a proud tournament with a lot of history. But, they had to try something. Now, they will keep those elements, but are also starting to boost its profile and take it around new parts of the globe.
It's one small step, but it could well end up having some positive results for golf in New Zealand.
