olivia caldwell

The director of the Civil Aviation Authority says the finding a pilot flew carelessly out of Queenstown is a ''powerful reminder'' to those in the industry.

Cheetahs captain Adriaan Strauss is promising the Highlanders a dogfight in Invercargill tomorrow.

Wayne Oxenham completed his first adventure race a decade ago and has been into the sport ''way over his head'' since.

Otago firefighters have returned home with a sense of achievement after 21 days fighting Victorian bushfires.

The St Joseph's Catholic parish in Queenstown and Arrowtown celebrated its 150-year anniversary at the weekend.

Otago Polytechnic students Robbie Reid and Mike Scott were grounds-keeping at the Queenstown Events centre last week when the England Cricket test side played the New Zealand XI. In all, 13 grounds-keeping interns took care of two of the most important turfs in the area.

Construction of a much-anticipated children's playground at Jack's Point began this week. It is due to be completed by June.

The PGA pro-am last week brought about an unlikely partnership between two people who are no strangers to the limelight.

If Jamie McDell's singing career does not work out, the songstress will take up jet-boat driving - at least, that is what she has decided since riding on the Shotover Jet this week.

While most talk this week in Queenstown has been about golf, there has also been another first-class sporting event under way and although the crowds are few, there is no denying where the few are from.

The Queenstown Airport has its uses and on Tuesday evening four golfers of markedly differing ability took part in what was ''the longest drive'' in New Zealand.

From tomorrow, Sir Michael Hill's championship golf course, The Hills, will be the place to be during the 2013 NZ PGA Pro-Am, which has attracted 11 of the top 200 professional golfers in the world along with some top home-grown talent - and a few fair dinkum amateurs along for the ride. Ahead of tomorrow's first round and Friday's amateurs' seeding round, Olivia Caldwell takes a look at the field.

Organisers of the 2013 NZ PGA have put just about as much effort into the entertainment side of things as they have the golf itself.

The first of many speed-limit changes was put in place on Monday morning near Lake Hayes. Queenstown Lakes District Council contractors from Downer will be installing speed-limit reduction signs from Hawea to Wanaka to Cardrona and Kelvin Heights.

The top-ranked player of this week's New Zealand PGA Championship at The Hills, Brendan Jones, says he does not feel like the favourite. In fact, the New South Welshman is treating it a little bit like a holiday.

Organisers of the 2013 NZ PGA Championship being held at The Hills this week say government support and investment are crucial to the future of the tournament.

Over four decades, three-time US Open winner Hale Irwin has given thousands of hours to golf, but the 67-year-old still thinks he owes it something more.

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key and his Australian counterpart, Julia Gillard, say the integrity of sport is under a cloud in the wake of the Australian Crime Commission's report into doping and match-fixing in Australian sport.