Nick Watney will play both the New Zealand Open and the ISPS HANDA Japan–Australasia Championship. Photo /Getty Images
Five-time PGA Tour winner and former world No 9 Nick Watney is hoping a trip to New Zealand could be the spark to ignite a return to his prime.
Watney last played in New Zealand more than 20 years ago, at the 2004 NZ PGA Championship at Clearwater Golf Club in Christchurch. He opened with a 69 but missed the cut following a second-round 77.
He’ll join the field for the New Zealand Open at Millbrook Resort next week before the inaugural ISPS HANDA Japan-Australasia Championship at Royal Auckland and the Grange.
“And I’ve talked to some friends. I have a close friend from Palmerston North that we were neighbours for a time and good family friends, but I haven’t been back for a while, so I’m excited to see it,” Watney said.
Watney’s world ranking sits at 1085 and last year he played mostly on the Korn Ferry Tour with a handful of PGA Tour starts, including T-45 at the Myrtle Beach Classic won by Ryan Fox. At his career peak he cracked the top 10 in the world and played for the US in the Presidents Cup, beating the International team at Royal Melbourne in 2011.
His last PGA Tour win was 14 years ago at the Barclays, while in 2010 he had top 10 finishes at the Masters and the Open Championship. Now 44, he’s trying to find that magic form again, led by what he calls a “healthy delusion”.
“Part of it is just the experience of it all. I’m from a really pretty small town in California and I don’t feel like I was any sort of a phenom or anything. So I’m still in awe of the places I get to see and go to play golf. One of it is just the experience of it all.
“Obviously the New Zealand Open, I think it’s a historic event. It’s been around for a while and it’d be fun to play. And then lastly, I think hopefully this is the correct term, but I think a lot of athletes have a bit of healthy delusion. Just I still think I got some good stuff left and obviously when you have a scorecard in your hand and it counts and you’re playing against good players on good golf courses, that’s when you measure yourself. So I’d like to measure myself and haven’t been getting a load of starts around here. So once they agreed to give me a slot, it was a no-brainer to head down.
“I’d like to do as well as I could, but I have great respect for everybody, all the players down there. So come down and have a good time and hopefully do well.”
And why not? Justin Rose is two years older than Watney and ranked fourth in the world, while Adam Scott is a regular contender on the PGA Tour at 45.
And if there was ever proof that it’s never too late for a comeback in golf, it was Anthony Kim’s victory at the LIV Golf Adelaide event last weekend when, at 42, he stormed past the major winners John Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau in the final group.
“That was incredible. I haven’t seen or spoken to him for quite a while, but I think we were fairly friendly when he was out,” Watney said.
“I have mixed feelings only because, I say that meaning it was great to see, it was exciting, I was excited for him. He’s been on a bit of a journey, I guess. And at the same time I wasn’t completely shocked just because, he was really good.
“He was really good for a while ... think he reached the top 10 in the world and Ryder Cup, played amazing in the Ryder Cup and all the things. So I was happy for him and I wasn’t completely shocked to see it just because going against those two guys ... that’s where he thrived was to be in the mix. So super happy for him. And yeah, I guess that just adds to the delusion on let’s keep going and there’s still some really good stuff there.”
Watney will be joined by fellow PGA Tour winners Kevin Na and Kyle Stanley at Millbrook as they look to break the American drought - the last US winner being Bobby Gates in 2010.
Golf has changed since Watney turned professional in 2003, with distance being a key factor in today’s game.
“I think physically I’ve held up pretty well. So much of the game is power now. I have enough to compete. I know I’m not the longest or probably in the top 10%, but enough to play well. I think there is time, although it is obviously limited just with the nature of life, I suppose. But I think there’s still time to do some good stuff.”
The 2026 New Zealand Open will be played across Millbrook Resort’s iconic Coronet and Remarkables courses, between February 26 and March 1. The ISPS HANDA Japan-Australasia Championship begins March 5 in a historic first-time co-sanctioned event between the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and the Japan Golf Tour.