Daniel Hillier (born 26 July 1998) is a New Zealand

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

. He won the 2021 Challenge Costa Brava on the

Challenge Tour The Challenge Tour, currently titled as the HotelPlanner Tour for sponsorship reasons and also sometimes referred to as the European Challenge Tour, is the second-tier men's professional golf tour in Europe. It is operated by the PGA European To ...

Amateur career

Hillier had a successful amateur career, winning the

New Zealand Amateur The New Zealand Amateur is the national amateur golf championship of New Zealand. It has been played annually since 1893, except for the war years and the COVID-19 pandemic, and is organised by New Zealand Golf. Currently the event is played o ...

twice, in 2015 and 2017. He won the

Australian Boys' Amateur The Australian Boys' Amateur is the nations premier junior golf championship for boys. It is run by Golf Australia. It is a 72-hole stroke-play event for players under the age of 18. Until 1993 the age limit was 21. Winners Source: See also * ...

in 2016 and was twice winner of the New Zealand under-19 championship, in 2015 and 2016. Hillier was also twice winner of the Bledisloe Cup, in 2016 and 2018, as the leading amateur in the

New Zealand Open The New Zealand Open is the premier men's golf tournament in New Zealand. It has been a regular fixture on the PGA Tour of Australasia tournament schedule since the 1970s. The 2019 event was the 100th edition of the tournament. Since 2014 it has ...

, and was a co-medalist, with Cole Hammer, at the 2018

U.S. Amateur The United States Amateur Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Amateur, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for amateur golfers. It is organized by the United States Golf Association and is currently held each August ov ...

. As a 17-year-old amateur, Hillier won the 2015 John Jones Steel Harewood Open on the

Charles Tour The Charles Tour, currently titled as the Jennian Homes Charles Tour for sponsorship reasons, is a New Zealand-based golf tour run by Golf New Zealand and the New Zealand PGA. It is named after Bob Charles (golfer), Bob Charles. The tour was foun ...

. He beat Jim Cusdin by a stroke after finishing on 277, 11-under-par, with three birdies in his last five holes. He qualified for the 2019 U.S. Open through final qualifying at Walton Heath in England. Hillier was part of the three-man New Zealand team in the

2018 Eisenhower Trophy The 2018 Eisenhower Trophy took place 5–8 September at the Carton House Golf Club in Maynooth, County Kildare, Ireland. It was the 31st World Amateur Team Championship for the Eisenhower Trophy. The tournament was a 72-hole stroke play team eve ...

in Ireland. The team led by three strokes after three rounds but faded on the final day and finished in fourth place behind Denmark, the United States and Spain. Hillier was tied for third place in the final individual standings with a score of 273, 17 under par.

Professional career

Hillier turned professional in September 2019. In January 2020 he qualified for the

PGA Tour of Australasia The PGA Tour of Australasia, currently titled as the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia for sponsorship reasons, is a professional golf tour for men, owned and operated by the PGA of Australia. Official events on the tour count for World Golf ...

but after a few starts in early 2020, his year was affected by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

and his appearances were largely limited to the

. He had some success on that tour, winning two of the six events, the Brian Green Property Group NZ Super 6 Manawatu in March and the DVS Pegasus Open in October, and ending the year as the winner of the Order of Merit. In 2021, Hillier qualified for the

Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

after winning the final qualifying section at

Notts Golf Club Notts Golf Club, more commonly referred to simply as Hollinwell, is an 18-hole members golf club in Nottinghamshire, England which has hosted a number of leading amateur and professional competitions. The course has widely been reviewed as one o ...

after rounds of 64 and 69, although he missed the cut in the championship itself. He played most of 2021 on the

, winning the Challenge Costa Brava in October, with a birdie at the final hole. In July 2023, Hillier claimed his first

European Tour The European Tour, currently titled as the DP World Tour for sponsorship reasons, and legally the PGA European Tour or the European Tour Group, is the leading men's professional golf tour in Europe. The organisation also operates the European ...

win at the

Betfred British Masters The Betfred British Masters is a professional golf tournament. It was founded in 1946 as the Dunlop Masters and was held every year up to 2008, except for 1984. Dunlop's sponsorship ended in 1982, and the name sponsor changed frequently there ...

in England. He shot a final round 66 to win by two shots.

Amateur wins

*2015

, New Zealand U19 *2016

, New Zealand U19 *2017 Grant Clements Memorial Tournament, Wellington Stroke Play,

Source:

Professional wins (7)

European Tour wins (1)

Challenge Tour wins (2)

Charles Tour wins (3)

Other wins (1)

Results in major championships

''Results not in chronological order in 2020.'' CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
NT = no tournament due to

Team appearances

Amateur * Sloan Morpeth Trophy (representing New Zealand): 2016 *

Nomura Cup The Nomura Cup, also known as the Asia-Pacific Amateur Golf Team Championship, is a biennial amateur team golf championship for men organised by the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation. The inaugural event was held in 1963 and it was played in odd-numbe ...

(representing Australia): 2017 *

Bonallack Trophy The Bonallack Trophy is an amateur golf competition on the model of the Ryder Cup which opposes every two years a European team and a team representing Asia/Pacific. The venue alternates between courses in Europe and Asia/Pacific. The first compe ...

(representing Asia/Pacific): 2018 (winners) *

Eisenhower Trophy The Eisenhower Trophy (World Men's Amateur Team Championships) is the biennial World Amateur Team Championship for men organized by the International Golf Federation. Since the tournament was first played in 1958 Eisenhower Trophy, 1958, it is nam ...

(representing New Zealand):

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

Source:

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hillier, Daniel New Zealand male golfers European Tour golfers PGA Tour of Australasia golfers Olympic golfers for New Zealand Golfers at the 2024 Summer Olympics 1998 births Living people 21st-century New Zealand sportsmen