Locums for a Small World Blog

Not surprisingly, the country that's home to the world's best golf caddy has some of the world's best golf courses

For ten years, I've been sending physicians off to working adventures in New Zealand and Australia - and not one of them has gone Down Under without a hobby as part of their quest. Both New Zealand and Australia are havens for recreation. New Zealand is heralded for its world-class fishing and tramping (hiking), and Australia's tropical beaches and Great Barrier Reef often get top billing. Then there's golf. While Australia is lauded far more often for its famous links, the Kiwis have earned a lot of golf clout. In fact, they have more courses per capita than any country in the world!

It's probably no coincidence that Steve Williams, one of the sport's top professional caddies hails from NZ. Known as the "Kiwi Caddy", Williams now caddies for Tiger Woods, but he's also caddied for the likes of Greg Norman, among others. From the age of ten, Williams says he spent weekends caddying at his home club of Paraparaumu Beach. Regarded by many as one of the greatest courses in the southern hemisphere, Paraparaumu has a world renowned layout on the dune land of the Kapiti Coast, just outside the capital city of Wellington.

Famous caddy aside, when you consider that New Zealand has some of the most beautiful landscapes in the world, the country is a golf destination second to none. It boasts three tracks in Golf Digest's list of the "100 Best Courses Outside of the United States" including the revered Kauri Cliffs Golf Club in Kerikeri on the North Island. Then there's the course said to "kidnap your heart," aptly named Cape Kidnappers in Hawke's Bay. It reminds me of Pebble Beach in California. The course juts into the Pacific Ocean like a jagged arrow (not a good time to get the yips); it's quite a piece of land for extreme golf.

You could visit a different course every day for a good long while. But if you ever get tired of chasing little dimpled white balls, there's always all the other incredible outdoor pastimes you'll find Down Under.


Alan Ashton is a senior recruiter who has worked for Global Medical for more than ten years. He has a ‘Superman-like' dual identity: by night he's a mild-mannered family man and father of two and by day he helps the public health system Down Under. Alan initially started recruiting all specialties, but now focuses primarily on internal medicine, OB/GYN and radiology. Beneath his professional veneer, Alan is a hard-core fan of the Canadian rock band, Rush.