Holden Little Drivers launches to put the spotlight on young golfing talent

Holden is on a drive to find New Zealand’s next Ryan Fox or Lydia Ko, and is launching a national talent identification and intensive development programme aimed at identifying and nurturing up and coming kiwi golf stars.

To launch the programme, Holden is running its inaugural Holden Little Drivers Tour, which will visit Westfield malls in Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland in February, to put the spotlight on undiscovered golfing talent.

Between February 13 and 28, every child under 15 who putts at one of the three mini-golf courses in the three cities will have the chance to show off their golfing prowess and win prizes.

The challenging Par 3 course, which incorporates a Holden vehicle, will be for the young putters, but with some professional golfing expertise on hand, they should be in a position to put their best putt forward and gather some useful tips to put into practice in the future. As well as spot prizes up for grabs, if they top the results table, they will win a place in the Holden Little Drivers Grand Final at the Holden NZPGA Championship in Auckland in March. 

The overall top scorer at the Holden Little Drivers Grand Final will win a money-can’t-buy prize package, which will include an international trip for two and a golf experience with Ryan Fox.

Some of golf’s modern-day greats started playing at a young age, with New Zealand’s very own Ryan Fox starting out at the age of five.

“It’s great to see Holden encouraging young talent to get out there and give golf a go” says Fox, a New Zealand Professional Golfer, just returned from a stellar year of international tournaments in 2015.

“I remember my early golf experiences, and it would have been amazing to have had access to advice and guidance from golfers that were at the top of their game. Holden Little Drivers is providing that platform for young golfers and I’m proud to be involved in this initiative,” adds Fox.

Players of the Holden Little Drivers challenge will score points based on the number of strokes and time it takes to complete the course. The highest score of the day will be entered on the leader board; finalists will converge in Auckland to compete at the Holden Little Drivers Grand Final at the Holden NZPGA Championship, Remuera Golf Course on Sunday 6 March.

“Holden has fostered a strong relationship with golf, and this is our opportunity to get out into the community to find and encourage up-and-coming golf stars,” says Marnie Samphier, GM of Marketing at Holden New Zealand.

“We are committed to bringing the game to all New Zealanders and inspiring a new generation of golfing greats.”

For more information about Holden Little Drivers visit the Holden NZ website and for details on the Holden NZPGA visit www.holdenpgachampionship.co.nz.

 HOLDEN LITTLE DRIVERS

Christchurch

13 – 14 February 2016

Westfield Riccarton, Christchurch

10 am – 6 pm daily

HOLDEN LITTLE DRIVERS

Wellington

20 - 21 February 2016

Westfield Queensgate, Wellington

10 am – 6 pm daily

HOLDEN LITTLE DRIVERS

Auckland

27 - 28 February 2016

Westfield Albany, Auckland

10 am – 6 pm daily