McKinnon Wastes No Time in Speedy Title Defence

New Plymouth, New Zealand: Golf New Zealand’s Talent and Coach Development Officer Liz McKinnon is setting her sights on becoming women’s world champion at speedgolf.

McKinnon, non-playing captain for the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation’s Patsy Hankins Trophy team last year, has successfully defended her title in the Toro New Zealand Speedgolf Championship.

Now her attention will turn to the World Championships, to be held at Japan’s 700 Golf Club from November 13-15 where she’ll be aiming to continue a remarkable run in speedgolf that has seen her go unbeaten at home and overseas during the past 10 years.

McKinnon’s hard-fought victory at Fitzroy Golf Club last week means she’s won all nine of the New Zealand Championships in which she’s competed.

“I emptied the tank. I had nothing left at the finish, but the adrenalin buzz kicked in after a few minutes,’’ said McKinnon, who overcame an overnight deficit to defeat Amy Linton in the 36-hole event.

On day one, McKinnon returned an 82 in 46 minutes 37 seconds to trail Linton by 20 seconds (83 in 45 minutes 18 seconds).

In the second round, McKinnon added a 76 in 46 minutes 9 seconds for a score of 122.09, narrowly failing to beat her own world record score of 121.25 (72 in 49.25 minutes) set at Taupo’s Tauhara Golf Course in September 2020.

Reflecting on her winning total of 250.46 and 10-second triumph from Linton, McKinnon said: “All I could do was focus on one shot at a time and just keep running. I knew that Amy had been working really hard on her fitness and her golf, so having that competition motivated me to be better and give it everything that I had, which I did.

“The fact that I’ve come away with a win is the icing on the cake, but I’m just happy that I tried my best.”

For her victory, McKinnon won a NZ$3,000 grant from Parkland Products to go towards her World Championship preparations.

McKinnon has been involved in golf almost her entire life, starting to play at the age of six and going on to district and national representative honours.

After playing professionally for 4½ years on the Ladies European Tour, she retired as a touring pro, settling in Auckland and starting a family.

For the past 15 years, McKinnon has been a stalwart at Golf New Zealand where her roles have all been across the young people’s space.

As well as leading and supporting key player development areas, including the development of playing experiences that meet the needs of all young people, McKinnon has been involved in coaching and player development opportunities to inspire young people to reach their level of aspiration.

Within her role at Golf New Zealand, McKinnon has travelled extensively with development squads and women’s representative teams, including the Queen Sirikit Cup, World Amateur Team Championships, Toyota Junior Worlds and the APGC Junior Championships. Last year, she accepted an invitation from the APGC to captain the team in the Solheim Cup-style Patsy Hankins Trophy against the European Golf Association in Spain.

Joining McKinnon in Japan for the 2024 World Championships will be fellow-Kiwi Jamie Reid, who created history en route to his successful New Zealand title defence at Fitzroy Golf Club.

In miserable weather conditions, Reid shot speedgolf’s first-ever sub-100 score, carding 68 in 31 minutes and 3 seconds for a score of 99.03. Another 68 in the second round, compiled in 32 minutes and 35 seconds, gave him a winning 36-hole aggregate of 199.38.

He said: “Now, people can stop asking me when I’m going to finally break 100. To do that, and then back it up with another great score is very pleasing.

“I knew I had it in me – it was just a matter of putting the running time and the golf score together. I’m really happy to get that over the line.”