The Open is officially in a state of limbo, with no date, venue, co-sanctioning partner or naming rights sponsor in place for 2011 and beyond.
Since the 2010 tournament, the third in succession to be held in Arrowtown, finished at The Hills with young American Robert Gates' final putt on the 18th hole on January 31, there has been speculation the Open is set to move.
There appears to be strong interest from the Cape Kidnappers course, in Hawkes Bay, which is not as fan-friendly as The Hills but is bankrolled by billionaire Julian Robertson.
But New Zealand Golf acting chief executive Dean Murphy, while unable to guarantee the Open will be back at The Hills next year, has made it clear where he stands.
"It's our endeavour to try to keep it in Arrowtown.
"That's our preference.
"It's a fantastic venue and we've had a great three years there," Murphy told the Otago Daily Times yesterday.
"All the agreements around the Open have concluded, so we have to renegotiate everything.
"We're working with all the parties, with potential sponsors and hosts and tours and those sorts of people.
"We're probably about a month short of knowing exactly where it may sit next year.
"At the moment, all that's really happening is a lot of negotiating.
"It's a bit-by-bit process, so we can't say much publicly."
Murphy downplayed the prospect of clubs like Kidnappers or Gulf Harbour trying to secure the Open, saying NZ Golf was not feeling any pressure to move the tournament.
"We're very keen to go through this process with The Hills first.
"There's plenty of interest in the tournament but no strong lobbying at all."
Murphy thought this year's Open was the most successful of the three to be held at Michael Hill's private course.
"Crowd numbers were solid and television numbers were very good.
"The staging of the event was probably the best we've had.
"All in all, we're pretty happy with The Hills."
Deciding whether to stay at The Hills - for one, two or more years - or try a new course is only one factor for NZ Golf and Open promoter Bob Tuohy to consider.
Co-sanctioning is also up for debate.
The Open was aligned with Europe in 2007 but has, for the past two tournaments, worked with the Nationwide Tour, bringing an influx of young Americans to the event.
Murphy said all options were being considered, including the fledgling OneAsia Tour.
"It's an option down the track.
"But at the moment, it's our intention to keep sanction with the Nationwide Tour if possible.
"That's been very positive."
