A spectacular 7-under-par 65 on the country Victorian course gave Henkel a two-shot margin over two of Australia’s most experienced touring professionals, Matt Griffin and Marcus Fraser, as well as fellow Victorian Bradley Kivimets and NSW’s James Gordon.

A  joint winner at Clermont and Maryborough in Queensland over winter, Henkel has been in solid form throughout 2024 with 12 top-10 pro-am finishes and he started the new Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia season with a tie for ninth at last month’s PNG Open.

HOW THE WINNER’S SCORE UNFOLDED

After starting his round on Cohuna’s eighth hole, Henkel went on a run of three straight birdies on nine through 11. Although he dropped a shot at the long par-4 14th, he was -5 by the time he rolled in birdie number six for the day on the first.

Another birdie on the fourth and then an eagle on the 465m par-5 fifth sent the 23-year-old clear of the field, with a bogey on his second last hole only reducing the winning margin.

WHAT THE WINNER SAID

Henkel said: “It feels great. Obviously most of these events don’t have playoffs and you really want to go out and win by yourself. Getting it done in an event solo, and shooting a good number to win by a couple, is a great feeling.

“Everything in my game has been really solid and I’m coming off some good results. Hitting the ball well off the tee was important here. It’s a pretty tight golf course. I also holed a couple of crucial par putts to keep the momentum going.”

LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN

65: Ben Henkel

67: James Gordon (NSW), Bradley Kivimets, Marcus Fraser, Matt Griffin

68: Ruben Lai, Harry Goakes, Andrew Kelly

69: Jake Fullerton, Steven Jones

(Vic players unless noted)

NEXT UP

The majority of the field that played at Cohuna will contest the 67th cluBarham Border Open at cluBarham Golf and Sports Club this weekend with 18 holes on both Saturday and Sunday.