$50,000 increase to major golf tournament prize   2 Feb 2010

$50,000 increase to major golf tournament prize purse at Millbrook

New Zealand's newest and richest Senior Golf Tournament on the challenging new Millbrook golf course has just got richer.

The prize purse for the Handa New Zealand Tournament, being held from 19-21 February, has increased to a record breaking NZ$200,000 - up $50,000 on the original prize money on offer.

Tournament sponsor and patron Dr Haruhisa Handa is a generous philanthropist and has decided that 10% of the prizemoney fund should be directed towards helping others.  Hence, a $10,000 donation will be made to both the International Blind Golf Association and New Zealand Junior Golf out of the total purse of $200,000.

Prize purses are now NZ$100,000 for the Handa NZ Senior Masters, $70,000 for the Harry Handa Handicap, and NZ$10,000 for the Handa NZ Senior Masters Pro-Am, a team event.

The increased prize purse was initially announced on Sunday (31 January) to a select group of tourism and golf heavyweights gathered to watch New Zealand Prime Minister John Key officially open the new Coronet Nine course.

Mr Handa’s Director of International Golf, Wayne Smith, said once Mr Handa heard how excited Millbrook was to host the event and the initial positive response to the Harry Handa Handicap concept, he felt it important to make that purse a more significant amount.

As a philanthropist, Mr Handa believed that by increasing the total purse he could contribute more to charity so has decided to support both the International Blind Golf Association and New Zealand Junior Golf.

The Handa tournament is a welcome addition to the Southern Senior Golf Swing that brings Australia and New Zealand's best senior golfers to the New Zealand mainland.

The tournament will not only attract some of New Zealand and Australia's top senior professional golfers, but will give local amateurs a chance to match their game against the best with a unique Dunhill Links-style format.

Amateur golfers will have a unique opportunity to play side by side with a skilled and experienced golf professional in an exciting 36-hole golf tournament, a format similar to the famous Dunhill Links at St Andrews in Scotland.

The tournament will offer amateurs the opportunity to play with some of the legends of the game in Australasia, married with Millbrook's outstanding facilities and service.  The event and Millbrook’s involvement in it has been welcomed by PGA National Events Manager Jim Clelland, who believes it will become the ‘flagship’ tournament of the eight to be played in New Zealand this year.

Dr Haruhisa Handa is a successful Japanese businessman, an academic, an accomplished artist and philanthropist, who believes that golf is the ideal forum to bring together people of all ages, abilities and cultures globally.

ENDS

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