The Yardage Book Podcast

Hello and welcome back! It was a pleasure to chat with Corey Finn recently, who is the Director of Agronomy of Yas Links, Yas Acres and Saadiyat Beach Golf Club in Abu Dhahbi. Originally from Southland, Corey has had a fascinating career at courses such as The Hills and Doha Golf Club before his time in Abu Dhabi. Corey gave great insight into prepping Yas Links each year for the Abu Dhabi Championship on the DP World Tour, working with Kyle Phillips and much more!We are proud to be presented by Power Turf NZ. Who are New Zealand's leading providers in Turf Care Equipment and Club Car Golf Carts. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/

Welcome Back! It was great to discuss the latest NZ Golf Course Rankings that have recently been released with Ranking Co-ordinator Andrew Whiley. Andrew last joined us back in 2024 for the previous edition. Andrew gave some insight into how this list was formulated, the main differences between last edition's ranking, and some on the notable panellists. Please see the full list and Andrew's new website here: https://www.golfrankings.co.nz/We are proud to be presented by Power Turf NZ. Who are New Zealand's leading providers in Turf Care Equipment and Club Car Golf Carts. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/

Hello and welcome back!It was a thrill to be joined by Michael Goldstein and Leo Barber as we discussed the best Par 3s in New Zealand. This is my no means an exhaustive list, but we explored the great one-shotters that NZ has to offer from the deep south to far north. The Youtube Podcast with accompanying photos can be found here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kz5hDU-bwbkWe are proud to be presented by Power Turf NZ. Who are New Zealand's leading providers in Turf Care Equipment and Golf Carts. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/

Hello and Welcome BackIt was great to catch up with Sean and Stephen from Yes Life Golf, who have recently released their new app 'Golfed' which allows golfers from all over NZ to track which courses they have played, leave reviews, add friends and much more. Stephen and Sean gave great insight into the backstory behind the app and future plans. Download the app here:https://apps.apple.com/nz/app/golfed-nz/id6756529504We are proud to be presented by Power Turf NZ. Who are New Zealand's leading providers in Turf Care Equipment and Golf Carts. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/

Hello and welcome back!It was a pleasure to chat with Black Cap Mitchell Santner recently on his passion for golf which he manages to squeeze in around his cricketing career. Mitch currently plays off a +2.7 handicap, and has played many amazing courses on his travels around the world. It was great to hear Mitch's thoughts on why cricketers are gravitating towards golf, some of his early golfing memories and his favourite holes in NZ. After our chat with Mitch Santner, Mitch Powell joins us for a Q+A to celebrate the 100th episode of the podcast.We are proud to be presented by Power Turf NZ. Who are New Zealand's leading providers in Turf Care Equipment and Golf Carts. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/

Hello and Welcome Back!It was great to chat with Sam Jones recently to debrief his win in the latest Cisco Series event up in Taupo at the Entelar Group Invitational. Sam gave great insight into life playing on the Hotel Planner Tour over in Europe, and talked about some of the great golf in his home Province in Taranaki. We are proud to be presented by Power Turf NZ. Who are New Zealand's leading providers in Turf Care Equipment and Golf Carts. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/

Hello and welcome back!It was a pleasure to chat with both Kerry Mountcastle and Josh Geary this week to preview the Summerset Charles Tour's UNLIMIT Taranaki Open at New Plymouth Golf Club which kicks off this week! Kerry is the inform man this season with a win at The Brian Green Property Group Super 6s in Manawatu and a Runner-up at last week's Autex Muriwai Open. Josh Geary is the defending champion at Ngamotu and it was great to discuss with him about why he has been so successful in Taranaki in recent years. Find out more about the Summerset Charles Tour here: https://www.golf.co.nz/summerset-charles-tourWe are proud to be presented by Power Turf NZ. Who are New Zealand's leading providers in Turf Care Equipment and Golf Carts. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/

Welcome Back!We are really excited to preview the next event on the Summerset Charles Tour schedule with The Autex Muriwai Open taking place next week at Muriwai links. It was great to preview the event with Harry Middleton who is the Superintendent at Muriwai Links and Phil Tataurangi, the Consulting Architect. We chatted to both Harry and Phil about the ongoing changes at the site, the test it will provide the field, and much more.We are proud to be presented by Power Turf NZ. Who are New Zealand's leading providers in Turf Care Equipment and Golf Carts. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/

Welcome back! It was a pleasure to visit 7 mile Beach recently and play the heavily anticipated South Course which opened for 18 hole play in December 2025. To start the episode Mitch and I give our thoughts on this phenomenal course and how it stacked up against our lofty expectations. For the bulk of the episode we talk to Will Kay who is the General Manager at 7 mile and he gave some awesome insight into the property, architecture and much more!We are proud to be presented by Power Turf NZ. Who are New Zealand's leading providers in Turf Care Equipment and Golf Carts. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/

Hello and welcome back! It was a pleasure to sit down with Luke Toomey recently to discuss his return to professional golf at the Entelar Group Invitational in Taupo as part of the Cisco Series. Tooms will be joining the likes of of Josh Geary, Sam Jones and Kerry Mountcastle in the pro-am event across 2 days at Wairakei International and The Kinloch Club. It was great to hear Tooms' expectation for the event, some of his favourite holes across the 2 courses in addition to chatting through some of his recent visits including TPC Sawgrass and Pinehurst. On the back-end we will hear from Mark Jurgeleit, who is the founder and organiser of the series. Mark runs through the notables in the field, the structure behind the event in Taupo and more. We are proud to be presented by Power Turf NZ. Who are New Zealand's leading providers in Turf Care Equipment and Golf Carts. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/Note that this episode is also available on our Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@TheYBNZ

Welcome Back!It was a pleasure to chat with Kazuma Kobori recently to chat about his career so far, including his NZPGA Championship win in 2019 and his 2023 Australian Amateur Victory. Kazuma gave great details on his early golfing life in North Canterbury and talked about life on the DP World Tour.Note that this interview was recorded a few weeks ago - just Prior to the ISPS Handa event at RAGGCWe are proud to be presented by Power Turf NZ. Who are New Zealand's leading providers in Turf Care Equipment and Golf Carts. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/Note that this episode is also available on our Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@TheYBNZ

Hello and Welcome Back!We are excited to announce we are working in association with Golf NZ to preview the 2026/27 Summerset Charles Tour season. The first event up is the Brian Green Property Group Super 6s at historic Manawatu GC. To preview the event we were joined by Dave Mangan from Golf NZ who is the GM of Championships and Golf Operations. Dave gave some great insight into unique Super 6s format, his thoughts on Manawatu GC as a tournament test, and we discussed the notable players in the field this week. Check out more here: https://www.golf.co.nz/summerset-charles-tourWe are proud to be presented by Power Turf NZ. Who are New Zealand's leading providers in Turf Care Equipment and Golf Carts. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/

Hello and Welcome Back! It was a pleasure to chat with Mike Cocking recently, who is a Director of golf architecture firm - OCM. OCM are behind the redevelopment of The Hills Golf Club near Arrowtown, which promises to be an amazing transformation of the existing layout. Mike spoke in depth on his thoughts of the existing layout, and some of the changes that they will look to make as work gets underway. On the back-end of the pod Mike gave his thoughts on many of his other projects with OCM and his thoughts on the golf courses he has played across NZ. We have a big announcement to make! We are thrilled to team up with Power Turf NZ who have signed on as our presenting sponsor.  Power Turf are New Zealand's leading supplier of Golf Carts and Turf Care, and we are very excited to elevate our content alongside them. Check them out here: https://www.powerturf.co.nz/

Welcome back! It was a pleasure to chat with Mark Hooker recently, who is the Director of Agronomy at Royal Auckland and The Grange GC. Mark gave some fantastic insight into his career, which includes positions all over the globe and how he ended up in his current position at RAGGC. Mark detailed the preparation for this weeks' ISPS Handa Japan Australasian Championship and listed some of his favourite holes across the 27 hole property.  

Welcome Back! It was a pleasure to sit down with Dylan Higgins recently to preview this week's NZPGA Championship at Paraparaumu Beach GC. Dylan is 16 months into the GM role and gave plenty of great insight about how PBGC has come to host the event, and how he believes one of the great courses of New Zealand will provide a championship test to the players this week. I'd encourage anyone in the area to get there this week, and look forward to continuing the strong tournament run of golf around the country, 

Welcome Back! It was awesome to sit down and chat with Dylan Lindstrom recently, who is the GM of Royal Wellington Golf Club. Royal Wellington is the host of this weeks' Asia Pacific Women's Amateur Championship alongside the R&A. The event promises to be a fantastic spectacle and a big boost for golf in the Wellington Region. Dylan chatted about all that goes on behind the scenes to host an event of this stature, the amazing support of the members and volunteers and some score predictions and field previews for the event. Check out more about the event:https://www.randa.org/championships/womens-amateur-asia-pacific-championshipEnjoy 

Welcome Back! It was a pleasure to have Matt Wallbank back on the pod this week to debrief the top100golfcourses.com New Zealand top 50 ranking. Matt and I were both on the panel for this list, so were able to share our thoughts on the final rankings, and how the criteria for this list differs from others. Most importantly I feel it highlights the increasing depth and variety on offer for those playing golf in NZ. Check out Matt's website as the Kiwi Caddy here:https://www.thekiwicaddy.comCheck out the list here https://www.top100golfcourses.com/golf-courses/oceania/new-zealand

Hello and welcome back! It was a pleasure to sit down in person with Brendan Allen who is currently Head of Construction at Douglas Links, which is a new golf course being built about 15 minutes north Otaki on the Kapiti Coast. Douglas Links has had several road blocks but is now fully into the construction phase and sits on a sensational site. It is the brainchild of XERO co-founder Hamish Edwards and has been routed by course architect Darius Oliver. Brendan talks about the origins of the project, and his career up to this point which has included roles at The Hills GC and Royal Auckland (now Royal Auckland and The Grange. Enjoy! 

Welcome back! Really excited to share our first episode of 2026 with New Zealand's top male golfer Ryan Fox. Ryan is fresh off a career season on the PGA Tour, with 2 fantastic playoff wins. We chatted about his early memories of the Auckland golf-course scene, his home base at Royal Auckland and the Grange GC, and his ambassador role with Te Arai Links. We covered Ryan's many course records around NZ, recent events at home and his 3 dream memberships. This episode will be available in full on our Youtube channel so please check that out at: https://www.youtube.com/@TheYBNZEnjoy!

Welcome Back!It was awesome to chat with Sean Towndrow, who is a professional golfer and the driving force behind Yes Life Golf. Sean is on the mission of playing every golf course in NZ, and has already ticked off 57! Sean had a stellar amateur career in the north of England, having made the semi-final of the British Amateur in 2014 including a victory over Jon Rahm on the way. Enjoy Check out Yes Life Golf below:https://www.yeslifegolf.com/https://youtube.com/@yeslifegolf?si=lSag1zCiCB9KTH4M

Welcome back!It was a privilege to chat to Bryce Casey last week to discuss his upcoming participation in Chasing The Fox as part of Team Media. Which is being held later this week at Royal Auckland and The Grange GC. Bryce gave some awesome insight into how he got into golf, life as a member of Titirangi GC and what it was like to play along Ryan Fox recently on the famed Alister MacKenzie layout. Enjoy

Welcome Back! It was great to catch up with Mitch Powell earlier in the week to react to the latest Golf.com top 100 list and on the back end we talked through my recent visits to Otago GC, Chilsholm Links, Roxburgh GC, Jack's Point and The Hills. Enjoy 

Hello and welcome back! It was fantastic to chat recently with Billy Burnley who is currently an Assistant Superintendent at famed Pasatiempo Golf Club in California. With stints at Manawatu GC, Northland GC, Cypress Point, Lake Nona and Te Arai Links. It was great learn about Billy's progression in the turf industry and many of the learnings he has taken along the way. Enjoy 

Welcome Back! It was a privilege to sit down with Jim Rohrstaff to discuss the amazing announcement that the South Course at Te Arai Links will be hosting the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship next year. Jim talked us through the background behind the announcement, tournament logistics and course set-up. Jim also gave us an update on The Hills redevelopment, Rory McIlroy's visit to NZ last year, and one of the most remarkable hole in one story's ever told. Enjoy

Hello and Welcome Back. Really excited to share a new series we have been brainstorming over recent weeks. Architecture Spotlight. Which will be an exploration of the architectural history and principles of our most prominent New Zealand courses. Joining me throughout the whole series will be Michael Goldstein. Michael is a previous pod guest, Tournament Director of the NZ Open, and is extremely well travelled. Having previously played 365 different courses in a year. This episode focuses on Paraparaumu Beach GC and former GM and Superintendent Leo Barber joins us to unpack this iconic course on the Kapiti Coast. Enjoy Full Podcast episode available on our Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@TheYBNZ

We are back! Mitch and I are back to review a pretty amazing trip away to Te Arai Links where we were fortunate to cover the Ceta Homes Invitational. Josh Geary clinched the title with rounds of 61 and 70 to edge out Nick Coxon by a single shot. It was great to chat with tournament founder Mark Jurgeleit on the back end to get his thoughts on a pretty amazing week. Enjoy 

Welcome back! It was awesome to chat recently with the founders of Big Scope Events; Mark Jurgeleit and Josh Longney. It was great to preview the Ceta Homes Invitational at Te Arai Links which takes place next week on the 13th and 14th of October. This will be the first of a series of Pro-Ams across NZ under the Big Scope umbrella. We are also thrilled to announce that The Yardage Book will be onsite to cover the event next week and we are excited to share some awesome content at 2 of the best courses in the world. Enjoy 

Welcome Back! It was a real pleasure to chat with Taco Golf (Tae Koh) this weekend and chat all things YouTube golf, his early amateur days, favourite courses, the yips, and much more! Check out Taco's channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@tacogolf

Welcome back! A few weeks between pods, but we are back in action! It was great to chat with Mitch recently to unpack my recent golf-trip to the Nelson region, and to discuss Mitch's recent trip overseas where he played courses such as Ballyliffin, Doonbeg, Ganton and more! We also touched on the historic Ryder Cup that concluded earlier this week. Enjoy!

Hello and welcome back! It was a real privilege to be invited to the recent Wellington Turf Managers Association seminar to interview Sam Keats and Jordan Burgess on their recent experiences overseas. Sam is the Royal Wellington Superintendent and was recently on the team to prepare Royal Portrush for this year's Open Championship. Jordan is also a member of the Royal Wellington agronomy team, and was part of the crew responsible for preparing Oakmont for the latest edition of the US Open. It was fascinating to unpack these experiences and how both Sam and Jordan will take these learnings for the preparation of the upcoming Ladies Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, which is to be held at Royal Wellington this coming summer. 

Welcome Back! It was a pleasure to sit down with Cam Jones recently to chat about his fascinating career in golf. Cam is a PGA professional, having notably won the 2013 NZ Stroke-Play Championship at Paraparaumu Beach Golf Club. In more recent years Cam has transitioned his focus into coaching, and is now on the coaching staff at Muriwai GC in Auckland. Cam has also cut his teeth on some golf content creation, with awesome projects such as this year's NZ Amateur at Titirangi Golf Club and the Taupo invitational at Wairakei International. Below is a link to Cam's website: https://www.camjonesgolf.com

Hello and welcome back! It was a pleasure to chat with Geoff Saunders recently to discuss Geoff's fascinating life in golf and his latest book "To Hell And Back" an authorised biography of Ian Baker-Finch. Geoff also chatted about his successful amateur career which included his winning of the Bledisloe Cup for the low amateur at the NZ Open, and also about writing his previous authorised biography of Sir Bob Charles. Enjoy!

Hello and Welcome back!It was a privilege to chat recently with Mike Worsfold. Who is a Kiwi, currently working as the Assistant Superintendent at Cypress Point. Mike talks us through his amazing career so far, including his work at The Hills, St Andrews, Pine Valley and Cypress Point. Mike gave great insight on the drive, determination and long hours required to work at some of the most revered courses in the world. Mike spoke about the upcoming Walker Cup, the first at Cypress since the 1981 edition, and what the lead up to the competition has looked like. Enjoy 

Welcome back! It was thrill to sit down with Luke Toomey to preview the upcoming Open Championship at Royal Portrush. Tooms ran through some of the big storylines for this week, his picks to win and some dark horses that may make a run on the famed fairways in Northern Ireland. We also discussed the Kiwis in the field this week, with Ryan Fox in red-hot form and Daniel Hillier looking to get in the mix. 

Hello and welcome back! It was a real pleasure to interview Steve Williams at a live event hosted by Royal Wellington Golf Club to chat mainly about his recent book -  Together We Roared. Steve gave so much great insight into his 12 years caddying for Tiger Woods, some of his early memories of caddying at Royal Wellington and much more!This event was filmed in full by a Wellington media company called Create Now, and the full video is now available on The Yardage Book Youtube Channel. Link to Channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@TheYBNZCheck out the book: https://www.whitcoulls.co.nz/together-we-roared-6962770?srsltid=AfmBOoq8JG52duPW4yh61ifHryiwQ6jasukACxeF93ZmzuCXmkHozC6kCheck out Create Now: https://www.createnow.co.nz/

Welcome Back! Really excited to share this week's episode with Mike O'Keeffe. Mike runs The Ohio Programme, which is a programme that assists in the professional development of young green-keepers from all over the world, by placing them at some of the world's best courses. Mike talked at great length about many of the kiwis that he has had through the programme, and what he thinks makes New Zealanders such great recruits. I would like to thank Mike for his time and a link to the programme can be found below. https://www.nzgcsa.org.nz/new-page-2

Welcome back! After a week off Mitch and I fired up the mics to discuss the major courses in New Zealand under construction at present. We gave our thoughts on the recent world rankings from Top100 Golf Courses, which saw 5 NZ courses in the Top 100 for the first time. Mitch and I talked a bit on the back end about our recent golfing trips around the country. Enjoy!Top100 Rankings: https://www.top100golfcourses.com/top-100-golf-courses-of-the-world

Welcome back! It was a real thrill to chat with Tron Carter from No Laying Up recently to discuss his recent trip to New Zealand. TC gave such amazing insight into his favourite holes, what makes those courses so special, and his plans to come back and play more courses in the future. No Laying Up continue to set the bar for golf content and podcasting in the global golfing landscape and it was a real privilege to record. Enjoy!

Hello and welcome back! I was fortunate to sit down recently with YouTube golf personality Ron Chopper. Ron is fresh off a trip to Queenstown where he visited some of the regions best courses including Arrowtown Golf Club, Queenstown Golf Club, Millbrook Resort and Jack's Point. Ron gave some great insight into what it was like to film content and each of these courses, and discussed some future plans to get back to NZ soon. Enjoy!Ron's Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ronchopper

We are back! It was a real pleasure to chat with Evin Priest recently to unpack his new book "Together We Roared." A book which he wrote alongside Steve Williams to chronicle the 12 amazing years that Steve spent on the bag of Tiger Woods. Evin gave some great insight on how the book came to be, some of the amazing stories that he uncovered along the way, and he also gave us some of his favourite memories of Tiger from his many years of working in the industry. Check out the book here: https://www.whitcoulls.co.nz/together-we-roared-6962770Enjoy!

Hello and welcome back! It was a real privilege to chat with 1991 Open Champion, Ian Baker-Finch last week and discuss his amazing trip to New Zealand earlier this year. Ian and his wife visited many of our top courses in what can only be described as a trip of a lifetime. Ian gave great insight into the different courses they visited, some memories from his 1983 NZ Open win, and on the back-end shared his thoughts from the unforgettable final round of this year's Masters. Enjoy!

Hello and Welcome Back!I was fortunate to chat with Tim Sudmann from Cheeky Golf Club recently about his whirlwind challenge of playing golf everyday until he made 18 pars in a row. Tim chatted about how the idea was conceived, some of the challenges he faced along the way and the thrill of starting a media business with his two brothers! Tim is half-kiwi and he spent a good chunk of the recent NZ summer here and gave this thoughts on all the courses he played while visiting. Enjoy!Check out then Cheeky Golf Club website belowhttps://cheekygolfclub.com/

Hello and Welcome backWe are back this week and looking to explore golf through a slightly different lens! I was fortunate to chat with John Irving earlier this week, to explore his amazing work at many of the buildings at Te Arai links. John ran through projects such as the main clubhouse, Ric's Bunker bar and many moreI'd like to thank John for his time and his website can be found belowhttps://www.studiojohnirving.com/Enjoy!

We are back, and very much continuing on our recent mission of unpacking the grass-roots and club aspects of New Zealand Golf. This week Mitch and I sat down to discuss the recent submission from the listeners on the best golf trips that NZ has to offer for a green fee budget of $400 and below. We had many great suggestions from the listeners, which spanned the length of the country. Mitch and I broke down the green fee prices in each region and total driving time between the courses to try and uncover the best trip for the listeners in this more affordable price range. Thanks to all those who submitted suggestions and we hope you enjoy!

Welcome Back! We promised that 2025 would see us diving into the more grass-roots elements of our golfing culture, and I am stoked to share this weekend's episode where we are diving into Hokitika GC with course conveyor, Don Hibbs. Don gave some great insight into the history of the club, how the course survives through generous volunteers like himself, and he unpacked the golfing options that the west coast has to offer. Enjoy!

Welcome Back!I was fortunate to sit down earlier in the week with Rick Moe, AKA Rick Golfs. Rick is one of the most prominent contributors to the golf travel space on X/Twitter and it was a great pleasure to get his thoughts on the courses he visited on our North Island here in NZ. Rick visited courses such as Pio Pio Aria, all the way through to our big named courses including Tara Iti. Check out Rick here https://x.com/Top100Rick

Hello and Welcome Back!I was thrilled to be able to chat with Reece Haspell recently to discuss his pretty remarkable career so far. Reece has been working as a shaper for Gil Hanse at many interesting places, most recently on the re-design at Royal Sydney which is just about to re-open. Reece has spent a bit of time in NZ over the last year and it was great to get his impressions on some of the courses he has visited, and he gave some great insight on the work that is just beginning at Hogan's Gully which is a new course just outside of Arrowtown here in NZ. Enjoy!

Hello and Welcome Back! We are wading into the unchartered waters of the professional game this week as we preview this week's NZ Open. So many fascinating storylines heading in, with home heroes Daniel Hillier, Sam Jones and Michael Hendry (and many more) flying the NZ flag this week. Plus a great collection of international stars lead by Australian, Lucas Herbert. I was fortunate to be joined by amateur golfing sensation, Cooper Moore. Who is teeing it up this week at the age of 16! It was great to hear his thoughts heading into his first NZ Open. We are looking forward to a great event this week at Millbrook Resort and can't wait for it to get started. Enjoy!

Welcome back! After a few weeks break we have a very special guest for this weeks pod. Phil Tataurangi was very generous with his time to talk over his career in golf. Phil ran us through how he got starting in the game, winning the 92 Eisenhower trophy, and of course his victory in 2002 which gave him access into the 2003 Masters. Phil also talked his career in broadcasting and in course design with his work at Windross Farm and Tieke. Enjoy 

Welcome Back! This week I was fortunate to sit down with Matt Wallbank AKA The Kiwi Caddy for an interview breaking down his amazing year of golf travel in 2024. Matt visited courses such as Cypress Point, Cal Club, Royal Dornoch and Sunningdale to name a few! Matt gave some great insight into how this trip was planned, and also talked about some of the domestic golf travel he is looking to line up in 2025. I want to thank Matt for his time and would encourage everyone to check out all the course write-ups from his trip here: https://www.thekiwicaddy.com/the2024escapeThanks to our support from Angus and Grace Go Golfing https://www.angusandgracegogolfing.com/Code YARDAGEBOOKNZ for free shipping to NZ