A breakthrough victory at the Players Series Sydney on the PGA Tour of Australasia on Sunday has set off a torrent of congratulations in person, over the phone and online for NZ golfer Nick Voke.
Voke’s popularity, which has included an estimated “300 to 500 messages in the inbox”, would soar even higher if he was the one to break an eight-year drought for home players at the New Zealand Open on Sunday.
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“Growing up, this was the one that we watched,” Voke said on Wednesday after completing his final practice round at Millbrook Resort. “We know the history, we know the winners, and I mean to be part of that, with your name on the trophy, would be pretty wicked.
“You have to play pretty well, though. There's a lot of good golfers here.”
Among those very happy to see Voke hold on to win by a shot from Australian Jake McLeod on Sunday – his first success in an Official World Golf Ranking event since 2018 - was former British Masters champion Daniel Hillier, who is the No 1 ranked New Zealander in the field this week.
“I’ve been a big fan of Vokey for a long time. I remember actually back when I was younger, we used to play a Wellington versus Auckland game in Taupo, and he wasn't there. He was playing for New Zealand at the time, and they were all talking about him,” Hillier said,
“I was just young but coming through the ranks, and I thought ‘God, actually I'd love to be like Vokey. That'd be pretty cool. I've looked up to the man for a long time.”
Like Voke and the other 23 home players this week, Hillier would love to be the next New Zealander to have their name on the Brodie Breeze Trophy.
He’s in good early season form, already banking a second at this year’s Dubai Desert Classic and two other top-25 finishes on the DP World Tour to sit in fourth place on the Race to Dubai standings.
“I think it's every professional golfer's dream to win their national open, myself included,” Hillier said. “I feel like I've got the game to do it now.
“It's just not putting too much pressure on myself and going out, playing the game, staying patient with it.”
And maybe holing plenty of putts like Voke did over 72 holes at Castle Hill. “Having some confidence is really nice,” last Sunday’s champion said.
“You see some putts go in then all of a sudden the hole gets bigger. We've all felt it and the hole felt pretty big to me last week. Hopefully, it remains the same size this week.”
The 104th NZ Open begins on Thursday, with a cut for the top-60 players plus ties to compete over the final two rounds at the weekend at Millbrook Resort, chasing a total prize purse of NZ$2 million.