Harry Hillier finds his home away from home after long trek from New Zealand to Kansas

Editor's note: By finishing in the top 10 of the PGA TOUR Americas Fortinet Cup standings, players in "The 10" earn Korn Ferry Tour membership the following season and are exempt into Final Stage of PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry. Before the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour season begins, "The 10" editorial series will highlight each of these 10 players.

Located in the North Island of New Zealand, the Bay of Plenty is home to Harry Hillier, a 25-year-old professional golfer who traded in everything familiar to him to take his game to the next level. Although Hillier turned in his life in the kiwifruit capital of the world for the breadbasket of America, he made a second home in Kansas by reuniting with his brother and transforming a life unknown into his own ticket for success.

At 17 years old, Hillier embarked on a 7,708-mile journey halfway across the globe and opened a new chapter of his life in Lawrence, Kansas, home to the University of Kansas.

Hillier followed in the footsteps of his older brother, Charlie, who was a junior competing on the Jayhawks golf team. Harry had visited campus before, and upon graduating high school early, made his way to the States to join his brother in chasing their mutual dream: to become professional golfers.

After capping off a successful collegiate career at Kansas, which included two individual victories, Harry and Charlie became teaching professionals at The Golf Stable, a golf performance academy that specializes in fitness and biomechanics for those interested in improving their game.

When the brothers aren’t globetrotting for golf tournaments, they spend their off weeks working as swing instructors and club fitters for the academy. Harry enjoys his time teaching and says his favorite part of the job is when the “lightbulb” goes off in a client’s mind.

Bonded by their golf aspirations, the Hillier brothers haven’t steered far from one another. While separated by just two years, the brothers are quite the opposites personality-wise. Charlie renders a laid-back yet serious demeanor, while Harry exhibits an easy-going, playful nature. Despite their differences, one thing remains true – brotherly competition.

The pair’s ambitious nature began as young boys playing soccer in New Zealand, taking up the family love affair with the sport as both their grandfathers played in the English Premier League, one for Chelsea and one for Fulham. Although it originally seemed the brothers would carry on the family legacy, Charlie joined the local club’s Tuesday golf clinics, and the beloved game of soccer was quickly traded in for golf.

After taking up the sport at 10 years old (and more officially at the age of 12), Harry began his golf career by joining his brother at Te Puke Golf Club’s Tuesday clinics, and as competitive as they were, eventually took after him in competing at tournaments.

Citing his favorite memory, Hillier recalls a time when he was 16 years old and beat his brother (the 2014 champion) for the first time at the North Island Boys Under 19 Championship in New Zealand: "My ball was plugged. They have hard faces on the bunkers, so I had an idea of just bouncing it into the bank and letting it run down the slope and pulled it off perfectly. It ran down to about 9 feet and then I holed it across the slope for probably the best moment of my life," Hillier said.

"Our competitiveness is unbelievable, so it was actually good to get one over him [Charlie]. He came up to me and said, 'Good golfing brother, you finally got one over me,' which was nice."

It would only be a year later that Hillier would take the near 8,000-mile venture to Kansas and play two seasons alongside his brother. Although the 18-year-old’s first semester away from home was accompanied by homesickness, he persevered with the help of his brother and his newfound home-away-from-home family.

The differences between New Zealand and Kansas were plentiful, from the picturesque landscapes of Te Puke to having a hand in every source of food put on the family table. Being raised on a farm and near the ocean meant that both sources provided the family with daily meals, plus an additional source of income.

Everything is handpicked in the aptly named Bay of Plenty – whether it be eggs from their chickens, vegetables from their backyard, or steaks from the nearby ranch – and everything plated originated from within a three-mile radius of the Hillier household. Hillier’s mom, Sara, continues to work the family’s orchard and sells avocados in their hometown.

Hillier seldomly visits home due to the grind of professional golf and the lengthy distance, but the family keeps in close contact and visits whenever feasible. Hillier most recently saw his mother in September at the Fortinet Cup Championship, and they were able to celebrate his promotion to the Korn Ferry Tour together. They expect to be reunited once more in December, perhaps for an even bigger celebration, as Hillier competes in Final Stage of PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry, held Dec. 12-15 at TPC Sawgrass’ Dye’s Valley Course and Sawgrass Country Club in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.

Hillier earned this exemption into Final Stage due to his finish inside the top 10 of the season-long points list on PGA TOUR Americas. Along with the exemption, Harry also earned his first Korn Ferry Tour card for the 2025 season through the Fortinet Cup. Steering his success this season was two top-10 showings, highlighted by his maiden victory at the Inter Rapidisimo Golf Championship in Bogota, Colombia.

With the help of an historic second-round – 13-under 59 – the Tour’s first sub-60 round, Hillier would go on to secure the largest margin of victory on PGA TOUR Americas (eight strokes) in the Latin America Swing’s concluding event. Hillier entered the North America Swing ranked No. 2 in the Fortinet Cup and retained his position inside the top 10 of the points list to establish membership on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour.

Following the conclusion of the PGA TOUR Americas season in September, Hillier embarked on a two-month trip to Australia, as the 25-year-old is eligible to compete in seven tournaments over the next eight weeks. He has currently locked up a spot in three events on The Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia: CKB WA PGA Championship, Bowra & O’Dea Nexus Advisernet WA Open and the Webex Players Series SA hosted by Greg Blewett.

Accompanying Hillier every step of the journey since 2017 is his all-in-one caddie and best friend, Keegan Wiltshier. The duo has been inseparable since they were 10 years old, having met at Te Puke Golf Course. Wiltshier, Charlie and Harry recently moved into a new apartment together, and although newfound benefits of being a Korn Ferry Tour member include TPC golf course privileges, the trio have made a permanent home in Kansas, much to their satisfaction.

“We have a really good relationship in terms of player-caddie on the golf course versus best friends off," said Hillier at the CRMC Championship in August. "We have cues of what to say to one another that will make each other laugh. It’s just being out there with your best mate, and just enjoying traveling the world together, too. We are moving into a new apartment a few days from now. He will have a nice big bed. That’s the perfect example of what he is willing to do for my golf career. He’s flown 10,000 miles and now he’s sleeping on the couch, caddying as my best friend.”

After a T15 finish at the CKB WA PGA Championship last weekend, strong showings over the next two weeks could present Hillier with an opportunity to tee it up amongst the world’s most elite golfers at the BMW Australian PGA Championship (won in 2023 by Min Woo Lee) and the ISPS HANDA Australian Open. From there, Final Stage of PGA TOUR Q-School will be a mere 11 days away, and Hillier, along with Wiltshier could make the trek to Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, with their eyes set on the next step of the journey: earning a PGA TOUR card.