Outside the top 25 in each of his first two starts for 2022, Pampling’s bogey-free five-under 67 set him on a path to contend for a second Champions Tour title inside 12 months but was unable to keep pace with Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez over the final two rounds.

Jimenez record a hole-in-one in both his first and third rounds to record a four-stroke win, Pampling nine shots back of the winner in a share of sixth place to be the best performed Aussie on tour this week.

Currently second on the ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit, Andrew Dodt was the top Australian at the Royal’s Cup on the Asian Tour, a closing 68 in Thailand earning the Queenslander a share of 23rd position, one shot clear of New South Welshman Travis Smyth (69) who was tied for 32nd.

It was a disappointing title defence for Matt Jones at The Honda Classic as he failed to progress to the weekend while after shooting 64 in round one Blake Windred faded to finish tied for 57th at the Challenge Tour’s Jonsson Workwear Open in South Africa.

Results

PGA TOUR
The Honda Classic
PGA National (Champion Cse), Palm Beach Gardens, Florida
Winner Sepp Straka        71-64-69-66—270           $US1.44m
T55        Brett Drewitt     74-68-75-68—285           $18,160
MC        Lucas Herbert    72-71—143
MC        Matt Jones         73-74—147

Asian Tour
Royal’s Cup
Grand Prix Golf Club, Kanchanaburi, Thailand
Winner Chan Shih-chang             64-66-67-68—265           $US72,000
T23        Andrew Dodt     73-66-70-68—277           $3,648
T32        Travis Smyth      70-70-69-69—278           $2,920
MC        Ben Campbell    71-71—14
MC        Jake Higginbottom          73-70—143
MC        Todd Sinnott      71-73—144
MC        Cory Crawford  73-71—144
MC        Kevin Yuan         73-71—144
MC        Josh Younger     72-73—145
MC        Scott Strange     73-73—146
MC        Daniel Fox          74-72—146
MC        Scott Hend         73-74—147
MC        Ben Eccles          75-72—147
MC        Will Heffernan  77-75—152

Challenge Tour
Jonsson Workwear Open
Durban Country Club, Durban, South Africa
Winner JC Ritchie            61-63-65-71—260           €35,369
T57        Blake Windred  64-73-72-71—280           €1,048
MC        Daniel Hillier      69-71—140

Champions Tour
Cologuard Classic
Omni Tucson National, Tucson, Arizona
Winner Miguel Ángel Jiménez    66-67-65—198
T6          Rod Pampling    67-70-70—207
T20        Steven Alker      70-69-72—211
T29        Stuart Appleby  70-73-70—213
T43        Stephen Leaney 71-72-73—216
T54        Robert Allenby  74-72-73—219
T64        John Senden      75-75-71—221