One of the biggest name’s in New Zealand golf, Steve Williams was today on hand to help guide young up and coming Kiwi golfers.

Williams is a man who needs little introduction; a highly
successful caddy he has teamed up with some of the greatest players in the game
including Greg Norman, Tiger Woods and Adam Scott.

But today it was a Tour Rookie, Lachie McDonald, who
Williams was working with at Remuera Golf Club in Auckland ahead of the Holden
NZ PGA Championship.

"Today was the first time I met Lachie. His parents
contacted me to see if I could come out and offer some sort of guidance on what
it takes to be a professional golfer, the preparation involved and some of the
downfalls guys can come into," said Williams.

"Lachie has just turned Pro, he has come through Tour School
and got his card so it’s all new for him. It’s great to come out here and see
how excited a young guy is."

"I walked with Lachie to offer him some guidance, not so
much on his game, but on his course management skills, how you look at things,
how you prepare for a tournament, things to look for in the future and what
steps you take to become a better player."

Motivated by his hope to see more New Zealand golfers on the
world’s biggest stage, Williams is happy to impart some of his wisdom on those
keen to learn.

"For me, the biggest thrill I have had caddying, and I have
had a lot of thrills, is being involved with other New Zealanders on the
course," added Williams.

"Like when Tiger Woods was facing off against Michael
Campbell at the US Open, or Tiger Woods facing off against Grant Waite at the
Canadian Open. Those things are exciting when you are going up against another
New Zealander."

"I have been out here a long time and experienced a lot, I
have been fortunate to caddy for some great players, and I have learnt a lot
over the years."

"We don’t have a lot of New Zealanders playing the grandest
stage in golf, which is the PGA TOUR at the moment, so any young guys that come
along and want some advice; it’s great to be able to pass that information on."

The best piece of advice Williams believes he can offer
young Pros is to stick with what got them to this point in their careers.

"One of the downfalls I see with young guys is when they
turn Pro, they get out on Tour and they go away from what got them there in the
first place," added Williams.

"What got them to being a very good player as an amateur; they
just need to take that with them and keep going."

"They don’t need to change a lot; they are obviously good
enough to get their cards. But a lot of guys get out here and all of a sudden
they change equipment and coaches, they are looking for different things."

"In my belief, from what I have learnt over the years, what
got you to where you are today you carry that on and do that better."

Lachie McDonald who has just joined the PGA Tour of
Australasia, earning his card via Qualifying School, soaked up every minute of
his time with Williams.  

"Steve was really generous in offering up his time; he came
out this morning and walked a practice round with us," said McDonald.

"It was a bit nerve racking but he was a relaxed Kiwi guy
and once we got into things it was awesome, it was humbling to have him out for
the morning."

"We received some valuable information from him, it’s not
every day you meet a guy who has been on the bag for Tiger and Adam who
obviously won last week, it was a really good experience."

Williams joined McDonald, Tyler Hodge and amateur Ryan
Chisnall for their practice round today where they learned more is less. 

"Steve had a pretty relaxed approach to how he maps out a
practice round, and it really resonated with the three of us who played with
him," added McDonald.

"It wasn’t rocket science, just keep things simple. It was
really nice to get advice from a person of his stature."

"He was also able to give us some pretty specific advice on
this course. He has been around here a bit."

"There were holes where he said ‘you don’t want to hit it
right here’ or ‘you want to make sure you keep it on the left side of the
green’ just little things that were really helpful. He obviously knows his
stuff so anything he was putting forward we were taking on board."

It would seem McDonald has already taken on board the most
important piece of advice Williams hoped to convey.  

"I will obviously take a couple of things on board but I’ll
still stick to my guns and do what I usually do to prepare for a
tournament." 

"I am fairly new as a Professional so I don’t think now is
the time to be changing a lot. I am excited for the week ahead."

The Holden NZ PGA Championship will be played at Remuera
Golf Club from 3-6 March.

Live scoring will be available here starting Thursday.