COVID-19 has kyboshed a lot of activities over the past couple of years but one that's thriving is golf.
Golf clubs are taking the opportunity to refresh and diversify their membership.
Meet Tilden Sanday - the new face of golf. He's Māori and Fijian and sports-mad.
"All the right genes for a rugby player, but I end up playing golf," Sanday told Newshub.
As a kid, Sanday trundled around after his dad, but since rugby and baseball are now a COVID 'no', Sanday swung back to the game at the age of 26.
"I used to go out and drink a lot with my friends but can't even do that, so I came to the golf course to play golf," he said.
In just three months at Maungakiekie Golf Club, he's playing off a 15.3 handicap. He's not the only one taking advantage of the potential for COVID-safe socially distanced play.
"All sorts of backgrounds, multiple ethnicities, cultures - you know it hasn't mattered at all to be honest," Maungakiekie Golf Club shop manager Zachary Whitting told Newshub.
"Different sports as well. We've found a lot of ex-cricketers and hockey players."
When lockdown went to level three and golf clubs re-opened, membership here jumped 23 percent, with many younger and more diverse.
It has got to the stage where some clubs like Maungakiekie have actually capped membership.
It's not just in Auckland, across the country more and more people are having a crack, prioritising health and wellbeing.
"Generally across the board there's all sorts of things that have happened that have all worked into a perfect storm for golf right now," Golf NZ chief executive Dean Murphy told Newshub.
"As we sit here today [Tuesday], we've seen this great resurgence and membership numbers are over 10 percent higher than they were this time last year."
Not so long ago golf clubs were the preserve of an ageing elite. The next generation view their emphasis on rules and dress codes as stuffy.
"I was always a bit iffy about joining a golf club but then when I joined, I just felt welcomed," Sanday told Newshub.
"They used to ask 'what's your name' and now it's, 'hi Tilden welcome to the golf club', 'hi Tilden what time are you teeing off'."
Keeping young talent like Sanday welcome is key to securing the future for a game that's changing ahead of the times.
Watch the full story above.
