Emerre & Hathaway Poverty Bay Men's Open 2025
Planning for the 2025 Emerre & Hathaway Men’s Open Golf Tournament here at Awapuni Links in Gisborne is well in hand.
THE FIELD:
The process of taking entries has proven successful once again, and we now have a full field of 112 Confirmed Entries and 8 Reserves.
The system we use to allow golfers from the local Tairawhiti Golf District ‘Early Bird’ status to enter the event two weeks ahead of golfers from other districts has again worked well and has not disadvantaged our very much-loved-and-appreciated ‘out-of-towners’.
As a result, we have 69 players entered from the local area and 43 players from the other parts of New Zealand. And what a field it is. As of the time of writing, we have 60 players on single-figure handicaps. The top 16, according to current handicaps, range from +1.8 to 3.0.
The full list of entries is posted at the bottom of this newsletter.
In the field are no fewer than eight former champions.
Imagine a First Division quarterfinal of:
Waka Donnelly (1989, 1990, 1992, 1997, 2005, 2008, 2010)
David Solomann (1995)
Tony Akroyd (2007)
Bruce Wilson (2013)
Peter Anderson (2018)
Willy Brown (2012, 2020, 2022)
Anaru Reedy (2021)
Mark Smith (2023, 2024)
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THE COURSE:
We will again be playing the Alternative Open Course, which we first set up in 2023, and has been well received by those taking part in The Open. This is designed to make the sequence of holes played easier for spectators to follow, as the admin of running starts from two tees in the clubhouse area, and to create more accessible finishing holes for matches starting from both the front and back nines. And to add a point of difference for this event.
THE EVENT:
Your entry fee includes:
2 x 18 rounds of qualifying stroke play on September 25
4 x 18 hole rounds of matchplay in divisions on September 26 and 27
1 x optional practice round on Wednesday, September 24
It also includes:
• Entry to Craig Investment Partners $20,000 Hole-In-One Challenge
• Entry to $1000 BDO-Emerre & Hathaway nearest to Pin Challenge
• Neighbourhood Pizza night on Thursday evening
• 3 x BDO-Sean Shivnan Pharmacy lunches
• Friday Night Calcutta Banquet meal
• Saturday night BBQ
• Chance to win prizes in seven divisions
Cooked breakfasts will be available in the Dining Room each morning at $15.
Plus! The Daffodil Coffee Cart will still be on site by the Pro Shop each morning for those who want a barista-style coffee to get their big day started. You can take this up to the kitchen if you're having breakfast at the club.
THE SIDE EVENTS:
The Craigs Investment Partners $20,000 Hole-In-One Challenge is on again. This is a classic hole-in-one promotion, set up on our notorious par 3 11th (or the 15th playing the Alternative Course). All players have one chance during the first round of qualifying, and the first person to score an “ace” will win the money. That’s $10,000 in cash to the player and a corresponding donation of $10,000 to local charity The Sunrise Foundation.
Your entry fee also includes a chance, or in fact several chances, to win our popular BDO-Emerre & Hathaway $1000 Nearest to Pin Challenge. The Nearest To Pin winners from each of the Par 3 holes during both rounds of qualifying on Thursday will take part in a final on the 18th fairway on Saturday at the completion of the tournament. There will be one Wild Card chosen on Friday night with the condition that the person who is drawn must be present in the clubhouse. Potentially, there will be seven golfers lined up on the 18th on Saturday with two attempts each from 100 metres of getting Nearest To The Pin. However, if one person wins more than one approach during qualifying, they will be given two chances per win.
That’s it for now. We look forward to seeing you all at The Open in September.
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Results from 2024
Open Champion (Keiha Cup): Mark Smith
Runner up: William Brown
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2nd Sixteen (Barrington Millar Cup): Marcus Gray
Runner up: Jace Brown
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3rd Sixteen Winner: Hayden Keast
Runner up: Keith Chung
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4th Sixteen Winner: Matt Henwood
Runner up: Andy Hayward
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5th Sixteen Winner: Toby Williams
Runner up: Hamish Evans
Consolation: Matthew Pike
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6th Sixteen Winner: Bill Simpson
Runner up: Mitch Griffiths
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7th Sixteen Winner: Manav Garewal
Runner up: Tony Thorpe
Consolation: Dave Solomann
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36 Hole Gross Winner: (Scott Plate) William Brown 142 cb
36 Hole Gross Runner up: Mark Smith144cb
36 Hole Net Winner: Zach Rolls 139
36 Hole Net Runner up:Andy Abrahams 140
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Bill Donnelly Memorial Trophy: Marcus Gray