Organisers of the New Zealand Open believe a new layout of the Millbrook course will provide an exciting finish to the event.
In a statement released yesterday, organisers said two signature holes from the Millbrook course will be used as finishing holes.
Millbrook comprises three nine-hole configurations — the Coronet nine, the Arrow nine and the Remarkables nine — and is sharing the Open with The Hills course.
Two signature holes from the Coronet nine and the Arrow nine have been combined as the finishing holes.
The tournament organisers have turned the final hole of the Coronet nine into the 17th hole, to be followed by the finishing 18th hole, which is the current ninth hole on the Arrow course.
Holes one to eight at the tournament will be on the Coronet nine and the ninth hole will be the eighth hole on the Arrow nine. Players will then play holes one to seven on the Arrow nine, followed by the ninth hole on the Coronet nine — the 17th hole — and the ninth hole on Arrow nine, the 18th hole.
Millbrook Resort country club manager Brian Spicer was excited by the changes.
"We will finish with a reachable par-5 over water as the 17th and a par-3 which is virtually surrounded by water as the 18th, which should add drama to the conclusion," he said.
"The 18th hole is a relatively straightforward par-3 but in a tournament like this, you never can tell. It all came down to the last few holes at The Hills last year, proving anything can happen at the close of a tournament."
The Remarkables nine is a hilly course and potentially tougher for golfers while the other parts of the course are flatter.
The first two days of the tournament will be played on both Millbrook and The Hills, with the final two rounds at Millbrook.
Tournament director Michael Glading was delighted with the course layout plans for the 93rd Open.
"The configuration of the final two holes at Millbrook Resort will bring new drama to the event," Glading said.
Two New Zealand Open champions designed Millbrook Resort’s layout. The original 18-hole course was designed in 1993 by Bob Charles, a four-time New Zealand Open winner.
Queenstown former professional Greg Turner, the 1989 and 1997 Open champion, designed the Coronet nine in 2009 and remodelled the existing 18-hole course.
The New Zealand Open will be played on March 9-12.
