KEY POINTS:
We should savour this week's New Zealand Open. It's 96 weeks since the last one and could be another 15 months till the next.
Ironically, the lack of appeal for many European Tour players of the date and venue, and the failure of New Zealanders to make the final stage of the US PGA Tour qualifying school, mean the tournament field will be like many past New Zealand Opens. It will be dominated by Australians, have the best New Zealanders and include a good selection from lower down the rankings of the European Tour.
As in the Australian Masters last week, European Tour members have not filled their allocated places, which means more local players.
If David Smail plays, and that looks increasingly likely, then virtually every high-profile New Zealand professional except Grant Waite will take part. It would be preferable if Phil Tataurangi, Michael Long and Tim Wilkinson were at the "Q school" but their failure to make it past stage two is a bonus for us.
The final field will be confirmed tomorrow, and so far I make it 23 New Zealand starters - even before the final qualifier at Manukau.
Originally there were going to be just eight spaces from that tournament for the Open. But the lack of European players means that number could rise as high as 15. Come Thursday, there might be up to 30 New Zealand players teeing off at Gulf Harbour, a very good outcome for the tournament.
I worry how Michael Campbell is going to perform. He arrives tomorrow on the fourth week of a tournament swing through China, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand. He has dinners in Wellington tomorrow night and Auckland on Tuesday. He'll be the centre of pre-tournament attention and I just hope he isn't worn out by Thursday. Campbell is well used to that kind of schedule, but he has succumbed to the pressure of expectations in New Zealand before.
One thing I reckon he can count on is that his scores last year (73-70; missed the cut) will be good enough to play next weekend. It's quite extraordinary that the 36-hole mark in 2005 was 4 under, that 76 of 79 finishers were under par for 72 holes and the winning score was 22-under. But the dry heat and calm of those summer days in February are likely to be replaced by chilly November winds and lush fairways this week which will drive scores higher.
The course par is back to 71 with the 6th, instead of yielding countless birdies as a short par five, becoming, at around 450m, the longest par four in the New Zealand Open.
For those reasons, I reckon next Sunday's winning score will be less than half the number under par that Niclas Fasth and Miles Tunnicliff scored 21 months ago. With so many New Zealanders in the field, the odds of a local victory have increased.
Such an outcome would be a very pleasant boost to a year which has seen decidedly modest New Zealand golfing achievement.
