Xtreme Drivers League (XDL) is the New Zealand national sports organisation for the high-performance sport of long drive, whereby players compete to see who can hit a golf ball the farthest distance. Founded under IGANZ, the league has gone from strength-to-strength since its inception. Company Founder and “The Entrepreneur Queen of Long Drive”, Olna Ford’s journey goes back to 2016, when she began hosting celebrity golf tournaments to aid struggling clubs. We gain more insight into the league and the business, with both areas serving to drive high performance sport on a worldwide stage. IGANZ aims to be a world-leading sports organisation, expanding the underrated sport of long drive to conquer international markets, in the process creating a new spectator sport that can be enjoyed by people around the world, through its worldclass Xtreme Drivers League. Built on integrity and fair play, the company provides services including drive training, event management, event organisation, and player management, for clients ranging from golfers and keen drivers to sponsors. IGANZ strives to constantly exceed its clients’ needs, maintaining high standards and positive energy stemming from the high-performance environment in which athletes and staff thrive. Much like the drivers on the XDL grid, IGANZ places emphasis on winning, ultimately driving Olna and the team forward in their collective mission to nurture success that will span continents. Three particularly noteworthy areas reinforce the scope of IGANZ and the XDL, the most famous of these being the New Zealand Long Blacks, founded by Olna herself, and otherwise known as “The Originals”. The Long Blacks were formed following the inaugural IGANZ National Long Drive Championship in 2017, and had the pleasure of their logo launched on national sports television, much to the delight of the team and its fans. Its first player named was Sam Jones and he was the first New Zealand champion. This team is a collection of the fastest and longest hitters the country and the sport have to offer, and they were announced to be taking on the Australian team in late 2017 at the first Trans-Tasman Clash, which took place at Stonecutters Ridge Golf course. The following year, the NZ Long Blacks created history on their home turf, winning the Trans-Tasman Clash at The Kinloch Club, claiming the Darren Wise Stingray trophy. After delays due to bush fires and the global pandemic, New Zealand’s Long Blacks returned with a vengeance, and they are the current back-to-back champions of the competition. The coveted competition returned in full swing in December 2022, taking place in Port Douglas at the Mirage Country Club. The event atmosphere was buzzing, and the New Zealand Long Blacks secured a third-consecutive win against the Australian Long Ballers, garnering the former yet another nomination for a Halberg trophy celebrating the team as best-in-class. With a careful blend of skill and showmanship, the Long Blacks again made history in the sport that year, securing themselves as the country’s premier team and an integral part of IGANZ and the XDL. The second of these key areas is the IGANZ Women brand, proudly diversifying the sport and helping to bring new eyes to the product, as well as increasing participation for women and girls everywhere through role model athletes competing and championing the cause. Two of the key women celebrating and pioneering long drive are Captain of Aussie Long Ballers, Emily Ashton and Captain of the New Zealand Long Blacks, Phillis Meti. In the same vein, the IGANZ Kids brand allows for children passionate about the sport to hone their craft early, affording them the necessary skills to one day compete in the men’s or women’s tournaments. Since XDL’s commencement, the desire for global expansion has only grown stronger, and Olna has received recognition from sports authorities across the eight countries that have played host to events, with each celebrating her commitment and investment to the sport. In 2020, long drive received formal recognition from the New Zealand Sports Minister, before XDL was named as the first national sports organisation in the world for long drive at an amateur level, and the professional league was set up that too bares the XDL name. When two international competitors in one such tournament hit balls down the grid at record-breaking speeds and exceptionally long distances, attention was turned to these “big hitters” and long drive was catapulted back into New Zealand’s mainstream. Now, the XDL is 38 events down and has been played host to by eight countries, with the upcoming 2024 season set to take things to the next level. The success of the league grew, with the New Zealand Long Blacks being nominated for a Halberg Team of the Year 2021 and top XDL player receiving a Queen’s Honour in 2022, creating sports history for long drive. XDL continued success in 2023 with Best Sporting League New Zealand and has been shortlisted as one of the 20 Leading Companies of the Year 2024. XDL’s 2024 season is set to be the most exciting yet, thanks to a new technology system that will hopefully take long drive participation and awareness to that all important next level. With all this to boot, Olna explains, “One could say that XDL is seeking to be the next big thing in the sport globally.” The hype for the 2024 season is off the charts, with fans and players across the world counting down the days to the host of events that are being held across New Zealand and beyond. This is key towards expanding the business and developing the sport more widely, with the league being a key part of the long drive international federation, which too has the like-minded goal of growing XDL and the sport globally. Another way that the company is hoping to achieve this growth is through XDL TV, an on-demand streaming service that will showcase all of the league’s quality happenings once it launches live to the public next month. Olna explains, “Xtreme Drivers League is set to entertain the masses and take the world’s best drivers to the tee”, promising an unmatched spectacle guaranteed to thrill. XDL is looking forward to the implementation of a global leaderboard and player Best Sporting League 2023 – New Zealand Oct23402
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