Julian Robertson is the Tiger Woods of financiers, and not just because the name of his company is Tiger Management. Robertson is as good at his field as Woods is in his. Known as “the Wizard of Wall Street,” the fund manager turned $8 million in 1980 into $22 billion by 1998.Robertson’s judgment in picking sites for golf isn’t bad either. In 1995 he bought 3,000 coastal acres on the northern tip of New Zealand’s North Island overlooking the Bay of Islands “for the price of a modest New York apartment.”
“I bought it as a real estate investment,” says the North Carolina native. “But it was just so beautiful I figured I had to do something with it.”
When the David Harman-designed Kauri Cliffs opened in 2000, it became an instant must play. Fifteen holes have views of the Pacific and six play alongside the cliffs.
As good as Kauri Cliffs is, Robertson managed to top himself when his second course, Cape Kidnappers, about 300 miles to the south, opened four years later. Tom Doak sculpted a dramatic design, with some holes set atop fingers of land that jut out high above the Pacific, that has to be seen to be believed.
Viewers will get that chance when Adam Scott, Brandt Snedeker and Ryder Cup stars Anthony Kim and Hunter Mahan will play the courses in the Kiwi Challenge, which was contested October 27–28 but will air November 15–16.
In addition to showcasing the players, Robertson hopes the event will inspire viewers to make a visit. “While the fact that it’s so far from everywhere else may seem like the worst part, it’s actually the best thing about it,” says the 76-year-old Robertson, a geography buff who first visited New Zealand in 1978. “People are going to want to go to places that haven’t been despoiled.”
Robertson is putting up the $2.6 million purse, couch change to a guy reportedly worth about $3 billion. The 21-handicap doesn’t risk much, however, when he tees it up with friends and family—his preferred game is a $10 nassau: “It’s just enough to keep everyone honest.”
