More than 50 young golfers took to the greens for the Wanaka Junior Open tournament earlier this month, the largest field the junior open has attracted in the last four years.

While the majority were local Wanaka players, others came from as far afield as Christchurch and Dunedin, with the overall winner hailing from the Wakatipu Golf Club. 

Thirteen year old Noah Novacek won the junior open 18 hole gross competition with a score of 75. The seriously talented young golfer also played alongside the adults at Wanaka Golf Club (WGC) and shot under par.

“To put it in perspective, at 13 he's already in the top one per cent in New Zealand,” WGC junior golf convenor Benn Ashford said and expected him to have a bright future in golf.

Noah also won the Greg Turner Order of Merit during the Junior Open competition. The Order of Merit is a league format where players pick up points at each event they play, with the winner determined by who picks up most points during the season, Benn said.

Local golfers Sam Porter and his brother Max each won the 18 hole Stableford competition; Sam in the Under 19 age group with a score of 40 and Max in the Under 14 age group with a score of 41.

Younger Wanaka players also scored well in the shorter nine hole, six hole and three hole competitions, as well as the putting and longest drive events.

Ten year-old Isabelle Ashford not only won the three hole (gross) with a score of 21 but also achieved the longest drive over three holes. Runner up in this event was Jake Norman with 24, and Sophie Bull won the putting.

The six hole (gross) was won by Wanaka’s Lucas Simpson with a score of 35 and runner up was Charlie Helmore with 37; Charlie also won the longest drive and Tama Chaney won the putting.

The nine hole (gross) was won by Wakatipu golfer Will Carson with a score of 39 but the nett runner-up went to Wanaka’s Rui Hukaya.

Benn said he wasn’t sure why this year’s junior open had attracted more entries than usual as it’s held at the same time every year.

“In my junior convenor role I've worked closely with Golf Otago to get the tournament out there but I can't be sure the increased entries are as a result of this,” he said.

The WGC is in the process of developing a new short course, especially designed for junior players.

Benn said the short course itself might not necessarily be used for competitions but it will certainly enhance the opportunity for both new juniors to play while supporting the development of the current members.

PHOTO: Supplied