| Daniel Hillier | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||||
| Born | (1998-07-26) 26 July 1998 (age 26) Wellington, New Zealand | ||||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||
| Sporting nationality |  New Zealand | ||||
| Career | |||||
| Turned professional | 2019 | ||||
| Current tour(s) | European Tour PGA Tour of Australasia | ||||
| Former tour(s) | Challenge Tour Charles Tour | ||||
| Professional wins | 7 | ||||
| Number of wins by tour | |||||
| European Tour | 1 | ||||
| Challenge Tour | 2 | ||||
| Other | 4 | ||||
| Best results in major championships | |||||
| Masters Tournament | DNP | ||||
| PGA Championship | DNP | ||||
| U.S. Open | CUT: 2019 | ||||
| The Open Championship | T19: 2024 | ||||
| Achievements and awards | |||||
| |||||
Daniel Hillier (born 26 July 1998) is a New Zealand professional golfer. He won the 2021 Challenge Costa Brava on the Challenge Tour.
Amateur career
Hillier had a successful amateur career, winning the New Zealand Amateur twice, in 2015 and 2017. He won the Australian Boys' Amateur 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, and was a co-medalist, with Cole Hammer, at the 2018 U.S. Amateur.
As a 17-year-old amateur, Hillier won the 2015 John Jones Steel Harewood Open on the Charles Tour. 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 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 but after a few starts in early 2020, his year was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and his appearances were largely limited to the Charles Tour. 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 after winning the final qualifying section at Notts Golf Club after rounds of 64 and 69, although he missed the cut in the championship itself. He played most of 2021 on the Challenge Tour, winning the Challenge Costa Brava in October, with a birdie at the final hole.
In July 2023, Hillier claimed his first European Tour win at the Betfred British Masters in England. He shot a final round 66 to win by two shots.
Amateur wins
- 2015 New Zealand Amateur, New Zealand U19
- 2016 Australian Boys' Amateur, New Zealand U19
- 2017 Grant Clements Memorial Tournament, Wellington Stroke Play, New Zealand Amateur
Source:
Professional wins (7)
European Tour wins (1)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 Jul 2023 | Betfred British Masters | −10 (72-71-69-66=278) | 2 strokes |  Gunner Wiebe,  Oliver Wilson
|
Challenge Tour wins (2)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 Oct 2021 | Challenge Costa Brava | −19 (71-67-62-65=265) | 1 stroke |  Marcus Helligkilde
|
| 2 | 25 Sep 2022 | Swiss Challenge | −14 (68-70-72-64=274) | 2 strokes |  Jeong-Weon Ko
|
Charles Tour wins (3)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 Oct 2015 | John Jones Steel Harewood Open (as an amateur) |
−11 (71-66-72-68=277) | 1 stroke | Jim Cusdin
|
| 2 | 7 Mar 2020 | Brian Green Property Group NZ Super 6 Manawatu | +1 (25) | 1 stroke | Jang Hyun Lee (a)
|
| 3 | 4 Oct 2020 | DVS Pegasus Open | −13 (66-70-72-67=275) | 2 strokes | Mako Thompson (a)
|
Other wins (1)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 Apr 2023 | Fruehauf Trailers Omaha Beach Pro-Am | −8 (68-62=130) | 1 stroke |  Kang Dong-woo
|
Results in major championships
Results not in chronological order in 2020.
| Tournament | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | ||||||
| PGA Championship | ||||||
| U.S. Open | CUT | |||||
| The Open Championship | NT | CUT | CUT | T19 |
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
NT = no tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic
Team appearances
Amateur
- Sloan Morpeth Trophy (representing New Zealand): 2016
- Nomura Cup (representing Australia): 2017
- Bonallack Trophy (representing Asia/Pacific): 2018 (winners)
- Eisenhower Trophy (representing New Zealand): 2018
Source:
See also
References
- "Daniel Hillier win the Cobra Puma New Zealand Men's Amateur". New Zealand Golf. 19 April 2015. Archived from the original on 23 February 2020.
- "Hillier make more history". New Zealand Golf. 5 November 2017. Archived from the original on 18 February 2020.
- "History & Honour Roll – Australian Boys' Amateur Championship" (PDF). Retrieved 16 November 2020.
- ^ "Daniel Hillier". World Amateur Golf Ranking. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- "Bledisloe Cup". New Zealand Open. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- "Hammer, Hillier Earn Co-Medalist Honors; Match Play Begins Wednesday". USGA. 14 August 2018.
- Anderson, Ian (25 October 2015). "Chantelle Cassidy triumphs again, Jim Cusdin runner-up at Harewood Open". Stuff.co.nz.
- "Top Kiwi amateur Daniel Hillier reaches his first major after qualifying for the US Open". Stuff.co.nz. 4 June 2019.
- Anderson, Ian (9 September 2018). "New Zealand fade to fourth at Eisenhower Trophy". Stuff.co.nz.
- "Top Kiwi amateur turns pro, joins Michael Campbell for first tournament". Stuff.co.nz. 10 September 2019.
- "2020 Final Stage Qualifying School". PGA of Australia. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- ^ "Hillier wins race for Jennian Homes Trophy". Golf New Zealand. 14 December 2020. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
- "Hillier wins inaugural Brian Green Property Group NZ Super 6s". New Zealand Golf. 8 March 2020. Archived from the original on 23 October 2020. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
- "Brian Green Property Group New Zealand Super6 Manawatu - Live Scoring". New Zealand Golf. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- "The Charles Tour - DVS Pegasus Open". Golf New Zealand. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
- "Daniel Hillier drains clutch putt to qualify for next month's Open Championship". Stuff.co.nz. 30 June 2021.
- Douglas, Steve (17 July 2021). "Louis Oosthuizen sets 36-hole British Open record, Ryan Fox improves one spot". Stuff.co.nz.
- "Golfer Daniel Hillier secures maiden Challenge Tour title after dramatic ending". Stuff.co.nz. 23 October 2021.
- "British Masters: New Zealand's Daniel Hillier wins first DP World Tour title". BBC Sport. 2 July 2023. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
External links
- Daniel Hillier at the European Tour official site
- Daniel Hillier at the PGA Tour of Australasia official site
- Daniel Hillier at the Official World Golf Ranking official site
- Official website