{"id":486774,"date":"2026-02-18T00:02:16","date_gmt":"2026-02-18T00:02:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/486774\/"},"modified":"2026-02-18T00:02:16","modified_gmt":"2026-02-18T00:02:16","slug":"pga-tour-winners-set-for-nz-double-at-handa-japan-australasia-championship-australian-golf-digest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/486774\/","title":{"rendered":"PGA Tour winners set for NZ double at Handa Japan-Australasia Championship \u2013 Australian Golf Digest"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>              February 17th, 2026                <\/p>\n<p>\n                By Australian Golf Digest              <\/p>\n<p>[Photo: Jason Butler\/Getty Images]<\/p>\n<p>Two of the PGA TOUR\u2019s most accomplished players, Kevin Na and Nick Watney, are confirmed to compete in New Zealand back-to-back this summer, headlining the inaugural <a href=\"https:\/\/www.australiangolfdigest.com.au\/landmark-professional-golf-tournament-coming-to-auckland\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Handa Japan-Australasia Championship at Royal Auckland &amp; Grange Golf Club<\/a> from March 5\u20138.<\/p>\n<p>The American duo will also feature in the New Zealand Open presented by Millbrook Resort from February 26\u2013March 1, giving local fans the rare chance to see multiple PGA TOUR champions in action across two consecutive events. The Handa Japan-Australasia Championship offers a NZ$1.2 million (AU$1.14 million) purse and is co-sanctioned by the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and the Japan Golf Tour, marking a new chapter for international golf in the region.<\/p>\n<p>Na arrives with a stellar career, boasting five PGA TOUR victories, including the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.australiangolfdigest.com.au\/the-clubs-kevin-na-used-to-win-the-2021-sony-open-in-hawaii\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">2021 Sony Open in Hawaii,<\/a> alongside one Asian Tour win and 46 major championship appearances. \u201cI\u2019m really excited to be part of the inaugural Handa Japan-Australasia Championship,\u201d Na said. \u201cIt\u2019s always special to play a new event and help set the tone for what it can become. I\u2019m looking forward to experiencing Royal Auckland &amp; Grange for the first time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Watney, also a five-time PGA TOUR winner and former world No. 9, highlighted his excitement at the international collaboration. \u201cThe concept of bringing together players from different tours and cultures is something I love and Royal Auckland &amp; Grange looks like being a fantastic venue,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m looking forward to the challenge and to spending time in Auckland and as much of New Zealand as I can see on this trip.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia GM Nick Dastey said, \u201cNick and Kevin are proven winners on the world stage and their presence will elevate the inaugural Handa Japan-Australasia Championship for players and fans alike.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Handa Founder Dr Haruhisa Handa added, \u201cKevin Na and Nick Watney are outstanding ambassadors for the game and their participation adds to the significance of this championship.\u201d Auckland Council Events also welcomed the news, noting the calibre of players highlights Auckland as a world-class sport destination.<\/p>\n<p>With two PGA TOUR champions set to compete on New Zealand soil consecutively, the summer promises to deliver memorable golf for fans, players and the region alike.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"February 17th, 2026 By Australian Golf Digest [Photo: Jason Butler\/Getty Images] Two of the PGA TOUR\u2019s most accomplished&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":486775,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[566],"tags":[64,63,755,246275,246276,246277,175344,246278,246279,246280,85],"class_list":["post-486774","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-golf","tag-isps-handa-japan-australasia-championship","tag-kevin-na","tag-new-zealand-golf","tag-new-zealand-open","tag-nick-watney","tag-pga-tour-winners","tag-royal-auckland-grange","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/486774","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=486774"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/486774\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/486775"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=486774"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=486774"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=486774"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}