Want to recieve exclusive news, videos, tournament highlights, golf important tips and more ?
Want to recieve exclusive news, videos, tournament highlights, golf important tips and more ?
Today marks a new dawn for the PGA Tour of Australasia, with Australian investment management firm Challenger signing on as exclusive naming rights partner – its first partnership in Australian sport.
The breeding ground for Australian golf’s champions and home tour of our current superstars will now be known as the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia.
The new three-year partnership forms part of a wide-ranging Australian Golf collaboration, with Challenger also becoming a partner of Golf Australia, the WPGA Tour of Australasia, PGA Legends Tour, and Golf Management Australia.
The partnership will also play an important role in promoting golf across Australia’s local communities, cities and internationally while continuing to elevate professional golf across the wider region.
PGA of Australia CEO Gavin Kirkman said the partnership with Challenger represented a union of shared values and a commitment to fostering growth and innovation.
“We are thrilled to join forces with Challenger and look forward to achieving our joint goals over the next three years,” he said.
“We will be focused on offering even greater opportunities for our aspiring golf professionals to hone their skills and achieve their dreams, as well as creating captivating golf events across Australasia.
“This partnership is another great example of the Australian Golf Strategy generating opportunities for our sport with quality brands.”
Challenger is Australia’s leading retirement income brand, playing an important role helping Australians achieve financial security for a better retirement.
Challenger Managing Director and CEO, Nick Hamilton said: “Challenger is delighted to partner with the PGA of Australia, WPGA and Golf Australia.
“With over nine million passionate golf fans in Australia, and a sport of choice for over 45s, this partnership represents an exciting opportunity to showcase our brand and retirement credentials as we focus on taking a broader stance in retirement.
“The partnership also aligns with Challenger’s commitment to supporting Australia’s communities, investing at the grass roots to ensure that talented players can thrive at the highest level.
“We look forward to bringing this partnership to golf fans, customers and the wider community.”
In addition, Challenger will also be a part of some key vocational PGA Member initiatives to increase their connection with the highly skilled PGA Professionals, who are at the forefront of promoting and growing golf at the club level.
The full Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia schedule for 2023/24 will be announced tomorrow.
The Challenger PGA Tour of Australia will visit six Australian states and territories in 2023/24, as well as New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. Eight Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia events will be played in the lead-up to the end of the year, including the two Aussie majors – the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship and the ISPS HANDA Australian Open. As well as an increased events schedule for 2023-24, the Tour features live broadcasts of almost all tournaments via Fox Sports and Kayo, with Nine and Nine Now also simulcasting the two Australian majors.
Challenger Limited (Challenger) is an investment management firm focused on providing customers with financial security for a better retirement. Challenger operates a fiduciary Funds Management division, an APRA-regulated Life division and an APRA-regulated authorised deposit-taking institution. Challenger Life Company Limited (Challenger Life) is Australia’s largest provider of annuities.
About the PGA of Australia
The PGA of Australia is a not-for-profit Member-based organisation representing both Tournament Professionals and the Club Professionals who form the cornerstone of the industry, working in golf facilities throughout Australia and overseas. Our PGA Members play an integral role in servicing more than 1.5 million Australians who hit the fairways each year. The PGA of Australia also owns and manages the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia which is a member of the International Federation of PGA Tours.
It is a tournament rich in 110 years of history but all eyes will be on generation next when the Nexus Advisernet/Bowra & O’Dea WA Open tees off at Joondalup Country Club on Thursday.
The third event of the season and the first in a three-week stretch of tournaments, the WA Open serves as the start to the PGA Tour of Australasia’s Summer of Golf and will showcase a host of former champions hoping to hold off a rising batch of rookies eager to make their mark.
One of those, Hayden Hopewell, was the WA Open champion in 2020 but is playing his home Open for the first time as a professional having left the amateur ranks in November last year.
Hopewell is not the only WA player to have turned professional in the past 12 months.
Connor McKinney turned pro the same week as Hopewell and Josh Greer will play his home Open at his home course this week having come through the junior ranks at Joondalup.
Excited at the prospect of showing off his home track to his fellow Tour players, Greer believes local knowledge will come in handy over the course of the four rounds.
“I know the course really well and I’m just looking forward to playing to be fair,” said Greer, who first played the WA Open as a 14-year-old in 2015.
“I know how good the course is and I’m also looking forward to everyone I know playing a tournament there.
“Not everyone has played it so I feel like they’ll enjoy it.
“The greens are really slopey so you have to leave it on the right parts of the greens. The fairways are wide-ish but the greens are the toughest part of the course.”
The WA Open also marks the first appearance for New South Welshman Harrison Crowe since he joined the professional ranks last month.
The winner of the 2022 NSW Open and 2022 Asia-Pacific Amateur champion, Crowe turned pro to make use of his tournament winner’s category before it expires and is eyeing off a big summer to play his way onto a world tour in 2024.
Other prominent names seeking to kick-start their Order of Merit aspirations include Jake McLeod, Louis Dobbelaar, Blake Windred, Jarryd Felton and Brett Rumford.
Designed by acclaimed American architect Robert Trent Jones Jnr, Joondalup Resort boasts three separate and distinctive nines with the WA Open to be played across the Quarry and Lake nines.
Fans can follow all the action of the opening two rounds via pga.org.au and the PGA of Australia app.
The final two rounds will be broadcast live on Fox Sports and Kayo Sports starting from 4.30pm on Saturday and 2.30pm Sunday AEDT.
HOW TO FOLLOW
For live scoring and the latest news visit www.pga.org.au. Exclusive content and tournament updates will also be posted regularly on the PGA Tour of Australasia’s social media channels.
Instagram: @pgatouraus, @golfwestaust
Twitter: @PGAofAustralia, @golfwestaust
Facebook: @PGAofAustralia, @PGATourAus, @GolfWA
Official hashtag: #WAOpen
HOW TO WATCH
Catch the action of the third and final rounds on Saturday and Sunday, broadcast live, on Foxtel (Channel 505) and Kayo Sports.
Round 3: Saturday, 4.30pm-7.30pm AEDT
Round 4: Sunday, 2.30pm-7.30pm AEDT
RECENT CHAMPIONS
2022 Deyen Lawson (Western Australian GC)
2021 Braden Becker (Royal Fremantle GC)
2020 Hayden Hopewell (a) (Royal Fremantle GC)
2019 Michael Sim (Cottesloe GC)
2018 Zach Murray (a) (Mount Lawley GC)
2017 Stephen Leaney (Royal Perth GC)
2016 Curtis Luck (a) (Western Australian GC)
2015 Daniel Fox (Royal Fremantle GC)
2014 Ryan Fox (Cottesloe GC)
COURSE RECORD
63, Matthew Habgood (2000 WA PGA)
Photo: Courtesy of Joondalup Resort
Australia’s superstar golf siblings, Minjee and Min Woo Lee, will join forces to host a new professional golf tournament at their home club, Royal Fremantle, in 2025.
The Webex Players Series Perth hosted by Minjee and Min Woo Lee will be part of both the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and WPGA Tour of Australasia and is locked in for an initial period of three years in a massive boost for golf in Western Australia.
The first edition, officially launched by Minjee and Min Woo at Royal Fremantle Golf Club today, will be played from January 9-12, 2025.
It takes to six the number of Webex Players Series events that will be played around Australia under the first-of-its-kind format of having women and men compete against each other on the same course at the same time for the same trophy and prizemoney.
Royal Fremantle GC played a huge role in the early development of both Minjee and Min Woo’s golf games, making it an obvious choice to host WA’s first Webex Players Series event.
Minjee has won two major championships as part of her nine LPGA Tour victories, while Min Woo, one of the most exciting young talents in world golf, has now graduated to the PGA Tour and already has two DP World Tour titles on his résumé.
PGA of Australia Tour Development Manager Kim Felton said: “Minjee and Min Woo are great ambassadors for the game of golf in Australia, and particularly WA, and our thanks go to both of them for jumping at the opportunity to host the Webex Players Series Perth.
“The Webex Players Series is all about providing opportunities to our future stars of the game and to have both Minjee and Min Woo host this special event, share their knowledge on how they got to this point is invaluable and something that will no doubt assist our young players follow their footsteps.
“Being hosts of this new event in our Summer of Golf takes their on-going support and promotion of Australian golf to a new level.”
WPGA Tour of Australasia CEO Karen Lunn said: “The inclusive format of the Webex Players Series has been a fantastic success since it was introduced in 2021.
“Having Minjee and Min Woo, two of our highest-profile current Australian professionals, involved as hosts of our new Perth event is new ground for the Webex Players Series as it continues to grow into being a key part of our professional tours.
“With the introduction of Webex Players Series Perth, we will now have six Webex Players Series events, allowing us to showcase the best of Australian women’s and men’s golf on the same stage in four different states.”
General Manager of Royal Fremantle GC Lucy Guppy said: “It was very exciting to be approached to host the inaugural Webex Players Perth to once again showcase our great course but also to be aligned with two stars of the current game and members of our club.
“They grew up playing at Royal Fremantle GC and still practice here when they take a break from Tour life.
“We are very proud of what they have done on course and we look forward to having them host their event here at their club.”
Minjee Lee bio
Minjee started out at Royal Fremantle as a junior, working her way through the cadet system. She had a clear gift for the game as she piled on junior tournament victories, and started to win women’s events. After being part of multiple Australian and WA State girls and women’s teams, Minjee turned professional in 2015
Min Woo Lee profile
Much like his sister, Min Woo joined Royal Fremantle at a young age to start his quest for golfing greatness. Quickly working his way through the ranks, Min Woo was selected on multiple WA State Boys and Men’s Teams before progressing to Australian amateur teams. He also added “youngest Royal Fremantle club champion” to his list of achievements. With two WA State Amateur wins, as well as Interstate Amateur Events, Min Woo turned professional in 2019.
PGA Professional Craig Stickling knew that the 25 women who were coming to Forster-Tuncurry Golf Club for the six-week Get Into Golf program would have some preconceptions about walking into a golf club for the first time.
He knew they might be nervous. He suspected some apprehension. He expected them to be anxious about trying a sport for the first time.
So he played into it.
Stickling presented himself in the most professional way possible and took them straight to the practice bunker to show them how a PGA Professional played arguably the most feared shot among newcomers to the game.
And duffed it. Barely moved it six inches.
Deliberately, of course, but Stickling wanted to do two things: Release the tension and show that bad shots happen to every golfer at any level.
“Once I start to laugh, they all laugh and then I tell them that it doesn’t matter who you are, at times you’re going to hit a bad shot,” Stickling shared.
“All of a sudden that big sense of stress that you can feel is gone because everyone is laughing.
“I did that at the start of every lesson.”
With her two children at an age where time was more available, Natalie McQuillan signed up for the Get Into Golf program at Forster in June.
With no prior history in the game, McQuillan said the atmosphere created by Stickling and members at the club made her entry into golf one of fun and enjoyment.
“I was a little bit shy because I was unsure of the skill level of everyone else but the club was very welcoming and Craig made sure we were all relaxed and ready to have fun,” McQuillan said.
“He’s a really good teacher. He makes everyone feel really comfortable and explains things really well.
“By the end of the six-week course we all had the basic skills of the game and enough confidence to organise a social game on a Saturday.
“It also gave us some of the etiquette and a sense of feeling more comfortable at a golf course.”
A former board member of the PGA of South Africa, Stickling has recently joined New South Wales Golf Club as Director of Golf. He says programs such as Get Into Golf are crucial in establishing a pathway into the game.
He previously ran Get Into Golf and junior programs alongside Evan Droop at Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort and says such entry points help to dispel any myths that people may have.
“It’s about coming out and socialising, being in nature, getting some exercise and having fun,” adds Stickling, who sourced financial support from Wiseberry Real Estate in Forster to sponsor the first 25 women to sign up for the program.
“There are tremendous mental and physical health benefits that come from it and that was really the main reason I wanted to run those programs at Yarrawonga and Forster.
“Often new people who come to a golf club are overwhelmed. They don’t know where to go, they feel uncomfortable so you need to make sure that they can get that welcome and positive experience from start to finish.
“People come to the golf club to spend their recreational time so they want to have fun and enjoy it.
“You don’t need to reinvent the wheel, just make it more accessible and easier for people to access the game in different ways.
“The whole idea was to get these ladies involved in golf and hopefully they will love it so much that they want to come back.”
Peter Lonard returned to the golf course he played and made even more happy memories by clinching the Hahn Shelly Beach Legends Pro-Am.
The multiple PGA Tour of Australia winner, who was a junior member at Shelly Beach Golf Club, shot a round of five-under-par 67 to beat Roland Baglin and Euan Walters by a single shot on the final leg of the PGA Legends Tour’s NSW Central Coast swing.
The win was Lonard’s first for the year, although he’s only had seven starts during 2023, including two runner-up finishes.
Chairman and Life Member of the PGA of Australia, Rodger Davis, took out the Super Seniors with a round of +5, one shot ahead of Greg Hohnen, and presented a signed poster to the Shelley Beach club as a small token of appreciation for hosting the Legends Pro Am.
HOW THE WINNING SCORE UNFOLDED
Lonard’s round included seven birdies and two bogeys. He started with back-to-back birdies at the first and second to set the tone for the day and sealed his win with two birdies in his final four holes.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
”The course was incredible. It was in perfect condition and we got very lucky because there was no wind which doesn’t happen too often here,” Lonard said.
“The whole week has been incredible. We’ve played a lot of good courses and winning here is a nice way to finish.
“All week I’d played okay but there were a couple of disasters each day that cost me so I wasn’t very happy going home last night.
“But today I didn’t make that one big number to stifle me during the round.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
-5 (66): Peter Lonard
-4 (67): Roland Baglin, Euan Walters
-2 (69): Anthony Summers, Lucien Tinkler, Michael Graham
-1 (70): Adam Henwood
NEXT UP
It’s a short break for the PGA Legends Tour with the next event, the Tooheys St Georges Basin Legends Pro-Am, coming up on October 10-11 as the start of the NSW South Coast swing.
Hannah Green continued her excellent US form finishing seventh at the LPGA Tour’s Walmart NW Arkansas Championship in Arizona today.
The 26-year-old Perth star began the final round in the last group and had a share of the lead on the front nine before South Korean rookie Hae Ran Ryu scooted to a three-shot lead with a stunning 66 and a back nine of just 29.
Green closed with a 2-under par 69 as she works towards the tour championship in November.
This was her first start on tour for more than a month having made her usual trip back to Perth for a break. She is currently ranked just outside the top 20 on tour having won the LA Championship in April, her fourth career win on the main tour.
Australian rookie Grace Kim also had a good week, conjuring an outstanding final-round 65 to vault into a tie for 18th.
Both Kim and Green, along with Minjee Lee will be in the field for the tour championship in Florida from November 16, but Stephanie Kyriacou (currently ranked 62nd on tour) and Sarah Kemp (72) also have a chance with six tournaments remaining to qualify. The top 60 players on the points list automatically qualify for the season-ender which boasts a $US2 million winner’s cheque.
Meanwhile in Taiwan, Australian Travis Smyth enjoyed a good week with a big finish giving him a tied-third result and $US60,000 in the Asian Tour’s Taiwan Masters.
Smyth’s closing 69 was the equal-best of the day at Taiwan Golf and Country Club, and he is second on the Order of Merit.
IMAGE: Hannah Green blasts from a greenside bunker today. Photo: Getty
Results
LPGA Tour
Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, Pinnacle Country Club, Arizona
1 Hae Ran Ryu 64-64-66 – 194 $US345,000
7 Hannah Green 65-65-69 – 199 $67,110
T18 Grace Kim 69-68-65 – 202 $27,366
T34 Karis Davidson 68-69-68 – 205 $12,278
T62 Su Oh 69-69-71 – 209 $5,700
T69 Stephanie Kyriacou 71-68-71 – 210 $5,344
MC Sarah Jane Smith 73-69 – 142
MC Sarah Kemp 72-75 – 147
Epson Tour
Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic
Ol’ Colony Golf Course, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
1 Isabella Fierro (MEX) 69-66-68—203 US$30,000
T14 Hira Naveed 70-70-69—209 US$2,882
T14 Amelia Garvey 67-71-71—209 US$2,882
T22 Robyn Choi 73-68-69—210 US$2,257
MC Cassie Porter 70-75
Asian Tour
Mercuries Taiwan Masters
Taiwan Golf and Country Club, Tamsui, Taiwan
1 Jaco Ahlers (RSA) 69-74-72-69—284 US$200,000
T3 Travis Smyth 71-75-72-69—287 US$60,000
T11 Scott Hend 71-74-73-72—290 US$15,000
T22 Todd Sinnott 70-75-74-73—292 US$9,725
T29 Jack Thompson 74-72-75-73—294 US$8,200
T54 Josh Younger 73-75-72-80—300 US$2,500
MC Zach Murray 73-76
MC Andrew Dodt 73-77
MC Terry Pilkadaris 78-72
MC Kevin Yuan 74-76
MC Marcus Fraser 79-73
MC Tom Power-Horan 80-74
MC Douglas Klein 73-81
Japan Golf Tour
Vantelin Tokai Classic
Miyoshi Country Club, Miyoshi, Aichi
1 Yuta Kinoshita 64-70-68-67—269
MC Brad Kennedy 71-74
MC Anthony Quayle 76-69
MC Dylan Perry 70-76
MC Adam Bland 73-77
MC Brendan Jones 76-76
Ladies European Tour
Lacoste Ladies Open De France
Golf Barriere, Deauville, Normandy
1 Johanna Gustavsson (SWE) 66-66-65—197 €52,500
T55 Kirsten Rudgeley 68-73-75—216 €1,102.50
Matt Millar isn’t sure how much of the upcoming Summer of Golf his body will allow him to tackle, but he showed he’s in great form by winning the Stockland The Gables 2023 Pro-Am at Lynwood Country Club.
The PGA Tour of Australasia veteran, who has been battling on-going back issues, shot back-to-back 67s to score a four-shot win ahead of a group of five players in the $50,000 event.
Returning to competition after a layoff and an MRI on his back in the week of the Lynwood event, Millar is unsure what his future holds for this summer.
“It’s my first win after some time out again,” Millar said.
“(This summer) is a little bit up in the air to be honest. If I’m able to play, I’m confident I can do the right things myself.
“It’s just a matter of what this is going to let me do.
“I’ve played seven of the last eight days, including today, and today I was really, really sore. That’s not a great sign.
“We’ll wait and see what the MRI turns up and go from there.”
HOW THE WINNING SCORE UNFOLDED
After his 67 in round one, Millar trailed Jordan Zunic by one shot and was tied with Neven Basic.
But while Zunic dropped back with a 73 on day two, Millar showed his consistency with another 67 to put a gap in the field despite a bogey on the long par-four final hole.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
“I was really blown away by the layout,” Millar said of his first visit to Lynwood.
“There’s some really quality holes that ask a lot of you, particularly No.8 which is a very intimidating hole.
“I can imagine this place would be quite a monster in a 30kph wind that’s for sure.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
-8: Matt Millar
-4: Neven Basic, William Bayliss, Darcy Boyd, Drew Herbert, Jonathan Pepper
-3: Jordan Zunic, Dillon Hart
-2: Aaron Townsend
NEXT UP
The next adidas PGA Pro-Am Series event is at Wagga Wagga Country Club in the NSW Riverina with a $50,000 prize purse up for grabs on October 12-13.
Lachlan Barker’s strong 2023 has continued, with the South Australian finishing on top of the first stage of Asian Tour Qualifying School held at Mt Derrimut Golf Club in Melbourne.
Marking the first time Asian Tour qualifying had been held in Australia for 17 years, the Mt Derrimut event is the first of six stage one qualifying sites where top finishers earn a place at final stage to be held in Thailand’s Lake View Resort and Golf Club from January 16-20.
The top-35 after five rounds at final stage earn cards on the Asian Tour for 2024.
Andre Lautee, Nathan Barbieri, amateur Max Charles, Kyle Michel, William Bruyeres, Maverick Antcliff and Kiwi amateurs Jared Edwards and Sam Jones secured their spot in Thailand this week behind Barker.
The winner of the PNG Open on the PGA Tour of Australasia in May this year, Barker opened the four-round Q School with the equal low round of the week, an eight-under 64 that saw him take a lead he would never relinquish.
“Bit of a hiatus on the Aussie Tour, and a good chance to try and find some more status, so took the opportunity at stage one this week. Played some really good golf to take it out and get a spot in stage two come January,” Barker said from his car driving back home to Adelaide.
A former Iowa State University standout, Barker followed up his opening round with a 66 to reach 14-under, meaning he could take a more cautious approach over the final two rounds to ensure himself one of the spots at final stage on offer.
“You run through scenarios in your head of ‘What’s the worst case that can happen?’ and you need to accept those thoughts that come through, but I was in a very comfortable position where I didn’t have to push,” Barker said.
“I could play quite smart golf and still get the result I was looking for.”
Barker followed a Thursday 71 with the same score during Friday’s final round, when he made the turn with two birdies in his account to sit at 17-under before back-to-back bogeys to start the closing nine likely would have heightened nerves for some.
Not Barker it seemed, the 24-year-old birdieing the par-5 13th for a 16-under tournament total that he maintained till the end of his round.
Barbieri and Lautee were two shots back, the New South Welshman and Victorian closing with matching rounds of 66 to share runner-up honours and punch their ticket to Thailand with Charles and Michel a further shot adrift and one in front of Antcliff and Bruyeres on 12-under.
New Zealanders Edwards and Jones signed for final rounds of 68 and 69 respectively to finish on 10-under and claim the final spots.
The chance to join the large Australian contingent in Asia will now await the group, but with months until the final stage, they will turn their attention closer to home, especially Barker, who currently sits second on the PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit.
He is one of the qualifying group teeing it up over the next three weeks at the Nexus Advisernet Bowra & O’Dea WA Open, CKB WA PGA Championship presented by TX Civil & Logistics and Webex Players Series South Australia to be played in his literal backyard of Willunga Golf Course.
“Really looking forward to it, getting the Aussie Tour back up and running,” Barker said.
“Off to Perth on Monday, so looking forward to the next swing that will run almost all the way through to the Aussie PGA and Aussie Open. So things are going to heat up here pretty quickly.”
TrackMan has teamed up with the PGA of Australia to provide a new virtual experience that could win you a trip to this year’s Fortinet Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland.
And it involves tackling the Ryder Cup course, Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Italy, which hosted the United States and Europe teams.
The Road to the PGA has been played at many golf clubs in a traditional golf format over the years, but this year it will be possible to enter via any Trackman simulator in Australia.
The Virtual Road to the PGA can be found in the TrackMan Golf app under tournaments and a low score at Marco Simone could send you all the way to Royal Queensland.
The winners of the three divisions of the Virtual Road to the PGA, running from October 1-31, will earn a place in the Road to the PGA Championship Final played at Royal Queensland on the Sunday before the professionals battle for the Kirkwood Cup at the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship.
The championship finalists not only get to play the PGA course under tournament conditions, they will also be competing for two sought after Kirkwood Club tickets to the first day of the tournament.
To find your nearest TrackMan location, go to TrackMan.com/locator.
For more on the Road to the PGA, go to https://championship.pga.org.au/road-to-the-pga-faqs/
Virtual Road to the PGA tournament format:
Sign-up and entry requirements
The tournament will be made available in all TrackMan simulators across Australia. You can sign up directly in the TrackMan software (under tournaments). The requirement to join is that you have a TrackMan handicap and has played at least two rounds of golf in TrackMan (it can be two rounds of 9 holes)
Tasmanian-born Victorian John Wade has won the inaugural Magenta Realty Legends Pro-Am at Magenta Shores Golf & Country Club after shifting from a traditionally conservative attitude to “keeping the foot down” on the Central Coast of New South Wales.
A fixture on the PGA Legends Tour, Wade claimed his first win in a number of years with a five-under round of 67 across a beautifully presented and challenging Magenta Shores layout.
Englishman Ben Jackson was two shots back in second, with Steve Conran third alone a further shot in arrears.
Despite 10 millimetres of rain overnight, the Ross Watson designed course was presented in magnificent shape by Course Superintendent James Newell and his team, with players and all involved keen to keep the new event on the schedule.
HOW THE WINNING ROUND UNFOLDED
Starting his day at the par-4 14th, Wade got under the card early with birdies at 15 and 16 before a bogey at the par-4 17th slowed his run. However, it was the front nine where the Victorian got hot, with Wade birdieing the 1st, 2nd, 4th, 7th and 8th holes for a five-under 31 total. The birdie at the 8th was his seventh of a day when he turned around some recent poor form.
Sitting six-under and a clear leader, Wade’s birdie run was finished for the day and even with a bogey at the 11th, Wade’s buffer allowed him to relax a little despite the pressure.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
Wade said: “It means a lot, because I haven’t played a lot of golf and the form wasn’t good the last three days. I was proud the way I turned it around, because as everyone knows golf is pretty fickle and when you are having a bit of a bad run you sort of wonder when it is going to end.
“I just got a really nice start. I hit some really nice shaped tee shots to get underway and I probably grew in confidence from there. On the par-5s, I gave myself some good chances for eagles.
“I was really happy with the course, the way it set up for me personally.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
67: John Wade
69: Ben Jackson
70: Steve Conran
NEXT UP
The PGA Legends Tour remains on the Central Coast for one more event at the Hahn Shelly Beach Legends Pro-Am at Shelly Beach Golf Club on September 29, before a break leading into a run of events on the South Coast of New South Wales.
Photo: Magenta Realty Legends Pro-Am winner John Wade with Magenta Shores General Manager Rob Hurley
