Greg Turner signed off on the first Carrus Tauranga Open with a broad smile on his face but promised next year's golf tournament would be even bigger.
Turner's Golf Tour New Zealand concept got a major boost with the success of the Tauranga event and the former touring professional is getting ready to launch several more similar tournaments off the back of it.
It's understood events in Wairakei, Christchurch and Dunedin could be ready to go within six months, joining Tauranga and the Olex Taranaki Open.
"We want to have six tournaments within the next 12 calendar months, eight in the following year and to end up with 10 tournaments. I'd be really disappointed if we didn't at least achieve that," Turner said.
"I'm really looking forward to being back here with something bigger and better next year and part of a schedule of up to eight events instead of two.
"We'll sit down and work out what went well and what didn't - although I don't think there was much that didn't. It has to make sense for the sponsors and talking to them, they're all really happy."
The $40,000 Tauranga event went off without a hitch - played under blue skies for four days, with an 800-strong gallery following Josh Geary's last-day romp to victory.
Turner established the GTNZ concept with business partner David Moore, who is is based in London and has companies involved in sports promotion. He has been manager of formula one driver and world champion Jacques Villeneuve.
The tour's aim is to provide opportunities for young New Zealand professionals and to raise the bar for the leading amateurs, and Turner believes the time has come to give things a push along.
"We've decided to make this thing happen and for that we need to take a bigger risk position. I've got shareholders who are ... prepared to take that risk."
The Tauranga event won't be part of that risk, however - major sponsor Carrus Corporation, headed by Paul Adams, has already committed to another year, with a view to a longer term deal.
"The whole organisation was very professional and we'd be happy to be involved into next year," Adams said.
"For the first tournament around here in 20-odd years, it was fantastic outcome really. Guys were saying they haven't seen a gallery in Tauranga like it for as long as they could remember."
Turner was also hoping that New Zealand Golf will come on board with the concept, enabling them to add the North Island, South Island and New Zealand strokeplay tournaments to the schedule.
Earlier this year, GTNZ also established an advisory board made up of several of New Zealand's sporting greats, including Russell Coutts, Brett Steven, Marnie McGuire, Anton Oliver, Grant Fox and Tom Schnackenberg.
Fox and Steven both attended the tournament, with Fox caddying for his son Ryan, who finished on one-under 283 in equal 17th.
Turner is adamant his concept is the best way to take promising amateurs through to the professional ranks. "The goal here is to create Kiwi world champions. I'd love to be standing here in five or 10 years time talking about some of the guys who played here this week who've gone on to be right up there on top of the world.
"We've got a great reputation for producing world-class amateurs and a lousy reputation in taking them on from there. This is an important part in that jigsaw puzzle and I'm determined to play what part I can."
- BAY OF PLENTY TIMES
Golf: Turner keen on building Tauranga Open
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