Club reps took a flight with Queenstown’s Over The Top (OTT) — The Helicopter Company to Cecil Peak, where the company runs the OTT Golf Experience, one of New Zealand’s most extraordinary sporting adventures.
Accessible only by chopper, the alpine par-three course, nestled at 5000 feet, offers players the chance to take on a dramatic hole-in-one challenge from one of four tee boxes, surrounded by expansive views across Lake Whakatipu and the Southern Alps.
But not every golfer succeeds, as the balls scattered around the mountainside can attest to.
Enter the rugby club.
OTT boss Louisa ‘Choppy’ Patterson’s been running the annual ‘Golf Ball Collection’ since opening the hole in 2014, transforming the luxury experience into a meaningful community fundraiser.
For every Srixon golf ball, supplied by Golf Warehouse, retrieved, cleaned and reboxed, the community beneficiary receives a $1 financial contribution, turning their efforts on the hillside into direct support.
Patterson says the Arrowtown Rugby clubbers spent several hours combing through Spaniard grass and tussocks — "it’s no easy task" — and ultimately picked up 932 stray balls, which is "an incredible effort".
"The team embraced it, fully.
"Every ball collected makes a difference to the club."
Funds raised by the club will go towards supporting its initiatives, equipment and the continued development of grassroots rugby in the Whakatipu, while Patterson’s initiative also plays an important role in maintaining the pristine alpine environment.
By recovering and repurposing the lost balls, OTT ensures the landscape remains as untouched as possible, while giving the balls, which are returned to service, a second life.
"It’s a simple concept," she says.
"But when you see the impact it has — both for the environment and for local groups — it becomes something pretty special."
