Rising from his sick bed to trail Will Florimo and Nathan Barbieri by one after Round 1, Hart took the outright lead with a second straight 67 in Round 2 but saved his best for last, closing out a three-stroke win with a superb 7-under 65 in Saturday’s final round.

With birdies at 15 and 17, Lismore’s Sam Brazel pushed Hart to the very end, the 36-year-old prolific adidas PGA Pro-Am Series winner responding with birdies at 17 and 18 for a 17-under total to add to his 2022 victory.

“I still haven’t managed to get a win (on Tour) yet, so that’s definitely something I’m looking forward to this year with how consistent I’ve been playing,” said Hart.

“I’ve been doing a lot of mental work again this year and it just helps a lot out there to calm my nervous system down when I’m under pressure.

“I’m just starting to know how to control that a lot better than what I used to.”

Barbieri (68) and 2024 champion Chris Wood (68) shared third at 12-under, Doug Klein (68) outright fifth at 11-under.

Turning point
Leading Brazel and Jack Pountney by one at the start of the final round, Hart made birdie at the par-5 first yet found himself tied for the lead as Brazel began his day with an eagle.

There was a two-shot swing Hart’s way when he made birdie and Brazel dropped a shot at the par-4 fourth, Hart moving a further shot clear with a further birdie at the par-4 fifth.

He would head to the back nine with a four-stroke advantage, a comfortable buffer Brazel could never rein in.

Quick quotes
“I was feeling pretty good coming up here, other than being completely sick,” said Hart.

“I didn’t actually practise the day before the tournament because I couldn’t get out of bed, but maybe that could be a blessing for me.

“Trying not to try too hard, I guess, and not think about it too much.

“I came out here with a very relaxed sort of outlook on the week, knowing that I’ve played here and won here before.

“It was just a good head space that I started with and then managed to just finished it off nicely with a couple of birdies, which is really nice.”

Leading scores
1          Tim Hart                       67-67-65—199
2          Sam Brazel                   72-63-67—202
T3        Chris Wood                  69-67-68—204
T3        Nathan Barbieri            66-70-68—204
5          Douglas Klein               69-68-68—205
6          Jack Pountney              69-66-72—207
T7        Braden Becker              72-74-62—208
T7        Samuel Slater               69-70-69—208

Next up

The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series continues its Central Queensland swing on Tuesday with the two-day JRT Group Emu Park Pro-Am at Emu Park Golf Club.

June 22

Ford wins wild shootout in Clermont

Rookie Max Ford birdied his final three holes to claim a second straight adidas PGA Pro-Am Series win at the Bolt Off Clermont Pro-Am at Clermont Golf Club.

Ford was one of a number of players to flirt with 59 across the two days at the par-71 layout, posting rounds of 63-61 for an 18-under par total and a two-stroke win.

In-form Victorian Connor McDade had the chance to reduce the deficit to one and shoot 59 in Round 2 but could only manage par at his final hole, the par-5 eighth, taking three putts from just off the green.

Playing alongside Ford in Round 1, 59-year-old Legends Tour star Brad Burns had thoughts of shooting 59 when he was 9-under with three holes to play but finished bogey-par-birdie for a round of 62.

Burns would shoot 65 in Round 2 to earn a share of third alongside Harrison Wills (62) and Kieren Jones (64).

Turning point
Hopes of a second consecutive win were fading when Ford followed up an eagle at the par-5 14th with a bogey at the par-4 15th. But after par at the par-3 16th Ford once again when on a birdie streak, making three on the trot to close out his round and finish two strokes clear of McDade.

Quick quotes
“I’ve been taking advantage of driving it well,” said Ford.

“Especially on short golf courses, I think that’s the key and that’s showed.

“(The scoring) was unbelievable. I was refreshing the scores and I saw (McDade) had creeped up the leaderboard.

“I couldn’t believe the scores he was posting out there and gave me a bit of a run for my money, but it was nice to birdie the last two coming home to lock it away.”

Leading scores
1          Max Ford                     63-61—124
2          Connor McDade           66-60—126
T3        Brad Burns                   62-65—127
T3        Harrison Wills               65-62—127
T3        Kieren Jones                63-64—127
T6        Jay Mackenzie              64-64—128
T6        Nathan Page                64-64—128

Next up
Players now have a week off before the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series resumes with the 54-hole $60,000 Ian Weigh Toyota Rockhampton Pro-Am from July 3-5.

June 18

Rookie Ford stuns with 10-under at Tieri

Rookie professional Max Ford has won his first adidas PGA Pro-Am Series in impressive fashion, shooting 10-under 63 to win the JET Engineering Tieri Pro-Am at Tieri Country Club.

The reigning club champion at Royal Queensland Golf Club and the 2022 Riversdale Cup winner, Ford started with two straight birdies and never took his foot off the gas.

With a host of accomplished Tour players in the field, Ford never blinked, keeping a clean card and racking up 10 birdies to finish one shot clear of fellow Queensland Chris Wood (64) with Blackwater champion Connor McDade (66) third.

Turning point
Although setting a cracking pace of his own, Ford trailed Wood by a stroke as both players neared the end of their rounds.

Having started from the fourth hole, Wood was 9-under with two holes to play yet could only come up with two pars to finish.

Ford, on the other hand, birdied both of his final holes – the par-4 fourth and par-4 fifth – to reach 10-under and record a one-stroke win.

Quick quotes
“It was good to put it all together out there,” said Ford.

“It was good to take advantage of the short holes and I certainly did.

“I drove it really well. Pretty close to a couple of greens and then it’s just down to chipping and putting and I took advantage of that.

“Really stoked with it.”

Leading scores
1          Max Ford                     63
2          Christopher Wood       64
3          Connor McDade          66
4          Brad Burns                   67
T5        Nathan Page                68
T5        Kieren Jones                68
T5        Brendan Smith             68

Next up
The WA swing resumes on Friday with the Carpet Paint & Tile – Broome Furnishings Broome Pro-Am while the Central Queensland run moves on to Clermont for the Bolt Off Clermont Pro-Am starting Saturday.

June 16

Blackwater finishes with joint winners

A Sunday surge gave NSW professional Kieren Jones his first adidas PGA Pro-Series title as he shared top spot with Victorian Connor McDade at the ABM Blackwater Pro-Am.

After an even-par first round at Blackwater Golf Club, Jones started day two five shots out of the lead, but he fired a 7-under-par 65 to match McDade (69-68) on 7-under for the 36 holes, the former amateur star securing his second title in three weeks in Queensland.

First-round leader Riley Taylor (67-71) finished a shot behind the top two alongside Brendan Smith (73-65).

Turning point

Continuing his fightback from making an eight on the par-4 fifth hole in round one, Jones went birdie-eagle over his first two holes on Sunday and eventually caught McDade by picking up shots on his final two holes.

Meanwhile, the Victorian’s second round featured seven birdies and three bogeys.

Quick quotes

Connor McDade: “I’m loving it up here. It’s nice to play some summer golf in winter, but I guess I came up here to kind of get some wins under my belt and take that into the regular Tour season later in the year.

“I found it pretty tough out there around the greens to be honest so I was just trying to get the ball on the smooth surface as much as possible. Any time I missed a green, I felt a lot of pressure.”

Kieran Jones: “The day started pretty solid and then yeah, just had a few putts finally go in. It’s been a long time since they’ve gone in. The coach should be happy.

“I’ve been working hard on the short game. It’s been one of those things I’ve been battling with of late. The chipping went well this weekend, can’t complain about that.”

Leading scores
T1 Connor McDade 69-68 -137
T1 Kieran Jones 72-65 – 137
T3 Riley Taylor 67-71 – 138
T3 Brendan Smith 73-65 -138
T3 Ben Hollis 69-69 – 138
6 Samuel Slater 75-64 – 139
7 Brad Burns 71-69 – 140
8 Jay Mackenzie 69-72 – 141

Next up
The Central Queensland swing continues with the JET Engineering Tieri Pro-Am at Tieri Country Club on Wednesday.