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Four Australians have made it through to the first week of the FedEx Cup playoffs at the St. Jude Championship on the PGA TOUR, with Min Woo Lee needing a solid week to advance further in the playoffs.
With only the top-50 on the standings advancing to next week’s BMW Championship, Lee is currently sitting 62nd, needing a T17 or better at the very least at Memphis to keep his season alive.
Both Cam Davis and Adam Scott sit just inside the safe zone at 44th and 46th respectively, and will be keen to lock in their BMW spots as well as move closer to the top 30 who qualify for the Tour Championship.
Leading Australia Jason Day (26th) is very safe for the BMW Championship but needs to consolidate his place in the Tour Championship over the next fortnight.
With all the focus on Minjee Lee and Hannah Green at the Olympic Games last week, some may have forgotten Steph Kyriacou’s performance in the most recent major championship.
Kyriacou’s runner-up performance at The Amundi Evian Championship announced to the world that she has the game to compete on the biggest stages.
While this week’s ISPS HANDA Women’s Scottish Open is not a major itself, many will be using it as preparation for next week’s AIG Women’s Open at St Andrews, the final women’s major for 2024.
Outdone by an eagle-finish by Evian winner Ayaka Furue, Kyriacou has had two mixed results since her runner-up finish, but a few weeks off, soaking up the European sun has her ready to regain that form.
“Obviously, a lot of stuff worked well for me this week, so just trying to keep the same mindset going forward and hopefully I can win,” said Kyriacou following the Evian.
Seven Australians, including world No.15 Minjee Lee, and one Kiwi, Olympic gold medallist Lydia Ko, will be teeing it up at Dundonald Links for the ISPS HANDA Women’s Scottish Open.
Elsewhere, Five Australians are teeing it up at the Czech Masters on the DP World Tour, with all three players who topped the 2022/23 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit — David Micheluzzi, Thomas Power Horan and Andrew Martin — getting the chance to move up the Race to Dubai standings.
*All times AEST
PGA TOUR
FedEx St. Jude Championship
TPC Southwind, Memphis, Tennessee, USA
10:50pm Cam Davis
12:55pm Min Woo Lee
2:00am Adam Scott
2:40am Jason Day
Defending champion: Lucas Glover (USA)
Past Aussie winners: Bruce Crampton (1970), David Graham (1976), Wayne Grady (1989), Adam Scott (2013), Jason Day (2015).
Prizemoney: US$20,000,000
TV times: Thursday and Friday 10:15pm-8am Fox Sports 503 and Kayo. Saturday and Sunday 10:30pm-8am Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
LPGA TOUR/LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR
ISPS HANDA Women’s Scottish Open
Dundonald Links, Ayrshire, Scotland
4.32pm: Lydia Ko (NZ)
5.38pm: Grace Kim
5.49pm: Whitney Hillier
5.49pm: Hira Naveed
9.10pm: Steph Kyriacou
9.32pm: Minjee Lee
10.05pm: Gabi Ruffels
10.49pm: Kirsten Rudgeley
Defending champion: Celine Boutier (France)
Past Aussie winners: Rebecca Artis (2015)
Prize money: $2 million
TV times: Live 11pm Thursday on Fox Sports 506 and Kayo; Live 11pm Friday on Fox Sports More 507 and Kayo; Live 10pm Saturday on Fox Sports More 507 and Kayo; Live 9pm Sunday on Fox Sports More 507 and Kayo.
DP WORLD TOUR
D+D REAL Czech Masters
PGA National OAKS Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
3:30pm Andrew Martin
5pm Jason Scrivener
4:20pm* David Micheluzzi
5:30pm* Thomas Power Horan
8:30pm* Sam Jones (NZ)
10:30pm* Haydn Barron
Defending champion: Todd Clements (ENG)
Past Aussie winners: Nil.
Prizemoney: €2,000,000
TV times: Thursday and Friday 9pm-2am Fox Sports 505. Saturday 9pm-1am Fox Sports 505 and Kayo. Sunday 7:30pm-10pm Fox Sports 503 and Kayo, 9:50pm-12:30am Fox Sports 505 and Kayo.
LIV GOLF LEAGUE
LIV Greenbrier
The Old White at The Greenbrier, Greenbrier, USA
3:15am Lucas Herbert, Matt Jones, Danny Lee (NZ), Marc Leishman, Cameron Smith
Defending champion: Bryson DeChambeau (USA)
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prizemoney: US$20,000,000
TV Times: Saturday, Sunday and Monday 3:15am 7plus.
EPSON TOUR
Wildhorse Ladies Golf Classic
Wildhorse Resort and Casino
Pendleton, Oregon
Australasians in the field: Amelia Garvey, Cassie Porter, Fiona Xu, Maddison Hinson-Tolchard,
Defending champion: Xiaowen Yin (China)
Past Aussie winners; Nil
Prizemoney: US$262,500
KORN FERRY TOUR
Magnit Championship
Metedeconk National Golf Club, Jackson Township, New Jersey, USA
8:56pm Karl Vilips
9:18pm Rhein Gibson
3:10am Brett Drewitt
Defending champion: Chan Kim (USA)
Past Aussie winners: Nil.
Prizemoney: US$1,000,000
PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
Rogers Charity Classic
Canyon Meadows Golf and Country Club, Calgary, Canada
Australasians in the field: Steven Alker (NZ), Steve Allan, Stuart Appleby, David Bransdon, Greg Chalmers, Richard Green, Jason Norris, Rod Pampling, Cameron Percy, Vijay Singh (FIJI), Michael Wright.
Defending champion: Ken Duke (USA)
Past Aussie winners: Nil.
Prizemoney: US$2,400,000
TV times: Monday 7am-9am Fox Sports 505 and Kayo.
EUROPEAN LEGENDS TOUR
Zambia Golf Legends Championship
Bonanza Golf Club, Lusaka, Zambia
Australasians in the field: Michael Campbell (NZ), Michael Long (NZ)
Defending champion: Inaugural event
PGA TOUR AMERICAS
Elk Ridge Saskatchewan Open presented by Lake Country Co-Op
Elk Ridge Resort – Tournament Course, Waskesiu Lake, Sask, Canada
11:50pm* Grant Booth
1:20am* Charlie Hillier (NZ)
6:10am Harry Hillier (NZ)
Defending champion: Inaugural event
Prizemoney: US$225,000
CHALLENGE TOUR
Vierumäki Finnish Challenge supported by Finnish Golf Union
Vierumäki Resort, Vierumäki, Finland
3:40pm Hayden Hopewell
7:50pm Blake Windred
7:50pm* Connor McKinney
8:10pm* Zach Murray
Defending champion: Lauri Ruuska (FIN)
Past Aussie winners: Marcus Fraser (2003)
Prizemoney: €250,000
LET ACCESS
Ahlsell Nordic Golf Tour
Destination Gotland Ladies Open
Gumbalde Resort, Stanga, Sweden
Australasians in the field: Wenyung Keh (NZ); Munchin Keh (NZ)
Defending champion: New event
Prize money: 45,000
Just days ago, Lachlan Barker was strolling the lush green fairways of Foxhills Country Club in England, and after a missed cut, many would have forgiven him for taking a week off, even if his next event was just down the road and not on the other side of the planet.
As it turns out, the South Australian embarked on a gruelling 39-hour journey to make sure he made it to Port Moresby for the PNG Open, and his reason why shows how much this event means to him.
“You don’t know how many times you’re going to be able to try and defend a title,” said Barker after the Wednesday Pro-Am at Royal Port Moresby ahead of the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia’s season opener.
“This was my first pro win, so I have to come back and defend it.”
Barker’s win at last year’s PNG Open got his second season on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia off to the perfect start, and he was able to carry that momentum throughout, finishing tenth on the Order of Merit standings.
While many may shudder at the thought of playing in England and Papua New Guinea in consecutive weeks, Barker admits he didn’t think twice about making the trip.
“I’m all for having four, five, six weeks in a row, and practising that, because that’s one of the arts of pro golf,” he said.
“Yes you’ve got to be a good golfer, but there’s a lot of those other parts to it that a lot of people don’t understand.
“You’ve got to travel halfway across the world four times in a row and get up and be ready to go. This week was another good chance to practise that.”
Barker admits the course is playing quite different this week than it was last year, with the change to the schedule meaning that Royal Port Moresby is significantly drier.
“We were here in May last year, and it was lot greener and a lot more grass around, so then driving was paramount. To win you had to drive it well,” he explained.
“Because if you hit it in the trees you had to chip out, you were in this thick cow grass.
“But now it’s a lot drier, so I hit it in the trees a couple of times today and was able to get a lot of spin on the ball, hooks and cuts to get it back into play.
“Normally if you keep it in play and putt well, you’re always going to be up near the top, but I’m not too sure what to expect and I think it’ll be different to last time.”
A winner by four-shots last year, Barker recalls a special moment that he hopes to replicate on Sunday.
“Knowing that I’d won on the 18th green was pretty special,” he said.
“I was standing there and I looked over at Liam Georgiadis who was standing off to the side of the green and sort of gave him the ‘how are we looking?’, and he just nodded his head.
“I noticed I was looking down, in my own internal thoughts, so I just lifted my head up and thought ‘Yep, this is pretty cool’.”
The Chase Is On when the 2024/25 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia begins this week in the South Pacific as players descend on Royal Port Moresby Golf Club for the PNG Open.
Last year’s tournament, won by Lachlan Barker, marked a successful return of professional golf in Papua New Guinea after complications with Covid-19 saw three years go by without a PNG Open being staged.
Barker is back to defend his title after last year’s four-stroke victory provided the perfect start to his second year on tour, giving him the confidence to know he belongs.
“I’d say the first year I always felt on edge in my rookie season,” Barker reflected in an interview earlier this year.
“I suppose even if I was playing well and my game was great, I still felt like I was on edge and not that comfortable.
“So first event of the season. Papua New Guinea. Win. I just felt a lot more settled … and it’s allowed me to know that when I’m hitting it well I’ll play better.”
Joining Barker is 2019 PNG Open winner Peter Cooke, who used his driving accuracy on the tight fairways of Royal Port Moresby to claim the title five years ago.
Another player looking to use his experience in PNG to his advantage this week is Brett Rankin, who won the 2019 Morobe Open at Lae Golf Club, and was runner-up in the 2017 PNG Open.
While prior experience is a huge bonus in the hot conditions, a strong group of young players are out to follow in Barker’s footsteps and notch their first career win at Port Moresby.
Josh Greer, Max Charles, Jye Pickin, and Jack Buchanan are just some of the next wave looking to make on early splash.
Players will be competing for $200,000 prize fund, and to get an early advantage on the Order of Merit standings.
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 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia’s social media channels.
Instagram: @pgatouraus
Twitter: @PGAofAustralia
Facebook: @PGAofAustralia, @PGATourAus
Official hashtags: #PNGOpen #ChaseIsOn
FORMER CHAMPIONS
2023: Lachlan Barker
2022-2020: No tournament
2019: Peter Cooke
2018: Daniel Gale
2017: Cory Crawford
2016: Brad Moules
COURSE RECORD
61, Daniel Gale: 2018
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Lachlan Barker: 2023 PNG Open winner
Austin Bautista: 2023 Webex Players Series South Australia winner
Andrew Campbell: 14th on last season’s Order of Merit
Brett Rankin: 2019 Morobe Open and NT PGA Championship winner
Peter Cooke: 2019 PNG Open winner
Nathan Barbieri: 2024 Qualifying School winner
Louis Dobbelaar: 2023 NZ PGA Championship winner
Joshua Greer: Hunting his first win after a strong first Tour season
Native Queenslander Dillon Hart has fired a 4-under 68 to claim the Powers Lager Kooralbyn Valley Pro-Am for the second year in a row today.
On a wet day where only three players managed to navigate the Kooralbyn Valley course under-par, Hart had no trouble finding scoring opportunities, with five birdies and only one blemish on his card.
Fellow Queenslander Jack Munro was runner-up after a 2-under 70, while Dylan Gardner rounded out the podium with a 1-under 71.
This is Hart’s second win on the adidas PGA Pro-Am series for 2024, and further solidifies his place in the top-10 on the Order of Merit list.
HOW THE WINNING SCORE UNFOLDED
Starting his day on the second at Kooralbyn Valley, Hart birdied his opening hole, but gave that shot straight back at the long par-3 fifth.
After that it was all smooth sailing however, Hart managing four more birdies coming in, including two in his last four holes.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
“Obviously started on the second hole and got away with a birdie, just sort’ve saw the rain coming in and thought if we can just get a couple of birdies for the day in the wet we can see what happens and managed to do that,” said Hart.
“Generally hit a lot of greens which saved me, and holed a few putts.
“It’s always good to win in Queensland, back home you feel like you should get one or two so it’s nice to finally get one.
“Obviously played well here last year, won here last year, and came back again. It feels really comfortable for me, obviously you have to strike the ball well, being long you just have to.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
68 Dillon Hart (QLD)
70 Jack Munro (QLD)
71 Dylan Gardner (QLD)
72 Gavin Fairfax (QLD), Nicklaus Rogers (QLD), Matthew Rogers (QLD), Steven Jeffress (QLD)
NEXT UP
The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series next heads to Gunnedah Golf Club for the Gunnedah Golf Lion Co Pro-Am on Friday.
If he’s being honest, Matt Portelli himself may not have known exactly how he was going to make it happen.
A PGA Professional since 2003, Portelli was one of the first to complete the 20-hour All Abilities Accreditation course that is a joint initiative by the PGA of Australia and Golf Australia.
Seeing an opportunity to expand his coaching business and bring a whole new realm of golfers into the game, Portelli completed the course in 2016. Shortly thereafter he reached out to local disability organisations to offer golf as an activity.
One of those to take up the offer was the Sale and District Specialist School, a school that caters specifically to children aged 5-18 with an intellectual disability. The school brought more than 40 kids out to Maffra Golf Club to try golf, including a boy with cerebral palsy who was confined to a motorised wheelchair.
As kids moved forward to try their hand at golf, the boy found himself at the back of the class, until Portelli asked the teachers whether he might like to try, too.
“They sort of looked at me blankly like, Oh, I’m not quite sure how this is going to work,” recalls Portelli, who has been coaching at Bairnsdale Golf Club for the past four years.
“I asked him first if he was able to have a go and he could communicate with me in what I would say was fairly non-verbal. He would grunt and nod to let me know he understood what I was saying.
“I pushed an alignment stick into the ground, put a rubber driving range tee on top with a ball so it was probably three feet off the ground.
“We used one of the bigger-headed All Abilities kit clubs which he could hold with his right hand and put a hoop out five metres out on front as a target.
“I got him to swing the club and hit the ball towards the target. His eyes lit up like a Christmas tree.
“You could see the teachers react like, Oh cool, he can have a go. He can participate.’”
Given close to a decade of experience coaching All Abilities golf it is just one example of how Portelli is not only changing the lives of those he coaches, but also those who are witness to what is possible.
Seb McCormick is a Special Olympics athlete that Portelli has coached for the past two years at Bairnsdale Golf Club.
McCormick has represented both Queensland and Victoria in Special Olympics competition and regularly plays in the member comps at Bairnsdale.
The relationship between Portelli and McCormick has developed so much in the past 18 months that where Portelli would once get only one word answers to his questions, now when they play the coach struggles to get a word in.
“He just yaks to me now the whole time. He just talks to me the whole time,” says Portelli.
“He’s completely come out of his shell. He loves his golf, he’s always excited to be there.”
So excited is McCormick to be at the golf club that he has told Portelli that he is getting a job there; news that he hadn’t yet shared with his parents.
“I’ve learned too, that he can be quite creative sometimes,” Portelli adds.
And when Sebastian rips a drive 180 metres down the centre of the fairway, it’s not only a thrill for coach and player but a demonstration to members of golf’s enormous reach.
“There’s a lot of members that know him now and will say g’day to him,” says Portelli.
“It’s opened up those members’ eyes that people with those disabilities can get out there and play golf.
“We can make it possible.”
To find an All Abilities accredited coach near you, visit www.pga.org.au/find-a-pga-pro/
One of the PGA Legends Tour’s most prolific winners, Queenslander Chris Taylor, wasn’t deterred by a rain-enforced change of format to claim the Rowes Bay Legends Pro-Am today.
His ninth victory in 2024, and a repeat of his 2021 success at the Townsville course, was a convincing one, with a 10-under-par total in the two-day event giving him a three-stroke margin over Adam Henwood (Vic) and Murray Lott (Qld).
More than 100mm of rain on Sunday and Monday forced the closure of the front nine at Rowes Bay, leading to the field receiving plenty of exposure to the much drier back nine which the profressionals covered twice on each day.
Order of Merit leader Andre Stolz held top spot after an opening day 66 but fell away to fifth following a second round of 74.
HOW THE WINNER’S SCORE UNFOLDED
Taylor, No.2 in the Order of Merit standings, put himself in contention with a 3-under-par 69 on day one that included just the solitary bogey on the par-5 18th.
He blitzed his opening nine holes on day two to seize the lead, taking just 31 strokes on the way to an event-best round of 65, featuring eight birdies.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
Christopher Taylor: “The last couple of days I played some really good golf. It was nice to get out there today and make a few more putts. A lot of the boys, from what I’ve heard, have struggled with their putting even though the greens were immaculate.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
-10: Christopher Taylor (Qld)
-7: Adam Henwood (Vic), Murray Lott (Qld)
-6: Mark Boulton (Vic)
-4: Andre Stolz (Qld)
-1: Brendan Chant (WA), Peter Senior (Qld), Simon Tooman (Qld)
Even: Chris McCourt (Qld), Nigel Lane (Qld)
NEXT UP
The PGA Legends Tour has its second leg of the Townsville double at Tropics (August 15-16).
With a new season of the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia getting underway in Port Moresby on Thursday, not many players can say they are in as rich a vein of form as Brett Rankin right now.
The Queenslander leads the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series Order of Merit list and enters this week at the PNG Open hot off a playoff win at the North Coast Open at Coffs Harbour in his last start, but he says he still has room to grow.
“My iron play has been a bit average the last few weeks and I didn’t feel it was that great last week either, but I’m driving the ball really well and I’m putting well,” Rankin said.
Also in his favour this week is the experience he has gained across previous trips to PNG, including a victory at the Morobe Open, the 36-year-old admitting the Tour’s most northerly stop can be a bit of a shock to the system – even in winter.
“I’m feeling quite comfortable and pretty confident … I’ve played well in PNG in the past,” he said.
“I think the biggest battle is just where you are, and the heat. You have to go in with a strong mental game and just accept it’s different.
“If I just go off and play my game, I’ve had good results here in the past, there’s no reason why I can’t have more good results.”
Rankin successfully went back to Q-school this year to improve his category after finishing outside the top-50 on last season’s Order of Merit, and says that has been a positive springboard heading into this year.
“Last year it was a pretty frustrating season. I actually felt like it was one of my best ball striking seasons, but I just was nowhere with the putter,” he said.
“To play at Moonah Links, I haven’t really played well there in the past, so to play well there and basically know that I’ll get every start, or I should get most starts anyway, is very encouraging.
“I’ve basically got a full schedule, so I’m just excited to get back into playing the Tour season and having a crack.”
While his most recent win grants him entry into the New South Wales Open, Rankin has another big event in his sights.
“The Australian Open is probably the one I’m really looking forward to,” he said.
“I love Kingston Heath, and I love Victoria Golf Club, and I love the Sandbelt”.
The PNG Open, with a field of 108 professionals and amateurs, starts on Thursday morning, and is the first event of the 2024/25 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia season. Follow the live scores HERE.
Queensland’s Katelyn Must been selected as captain of a five-strong Australian team that is targeting a top-three finish in the Women’s PGA Cup in Oregon in October.
A teams competition for women PGA Professionals from around the world who are not regular Tour players, the Women’s PGA Cup sees Australia take on PGA teams from the United States, Canada, Sweden, Great Britain and Ireland, and South Africa.
This is the third edition, with the hosts USA taking out the previous two cups in 2019 and 2022 and favourites to complete a hat-trick at Sunriver Resort with a team laden with former LPGA players.
The Australian team was decided after state rounds culminated in a national two-day qualifying final at Sandhurst Club, and has three players with previous Women’s PGA Cup experience – captain Must, Royal Canberra Golf Club teaching professional Lisa Jean and Barham Golf Resort general manager Sienna Voglis.
They are joined by former Athena champion Grace Lennon, who works as a teaching professional at Melbourne Golf Park, and Jessica Cook, who is an assistant professional at Maroochy River Golf Club.
A PGA of Australia member for the past 12 years, Must is looking forward to a new experience as captain of her country.
“When I was told I was going to be captain, I was gobsmacked. I’m extremely honoured to be the captain and represent all the women who are PGA of Australia members,” Must said.
“Our team is doing a lot of work on and off the golf course to get ready. We’ll have the best preparation possible, have had great support already and then we’ll see how we go in the US.
“Hopefully we can get a top-three finish. That would be a great achievement, especially considering the calibre of players in the other teams, and would be a step up from what we have achieved previously in this event.”
Conceived by then PGA of America president Suzy Whaley, the Women’s PGA Cup is a 54-hole strokeplay competition with the best three individual scores counting to the team’s daily total.
“This event celebrates the women of the PGA,” PGA of Australia CEO Gavin Kirkman said.
“The players are all women who make their living working in golf and promotes the versatility of what is available to women who take up a career in a golf as a PGA Professional.”
The Australian Women’s PGA Cup team has been supported by adidas, Callaway and Uswing Golf Sunglasses.
Team Australia:
Katelyn Must: Captain
The lowdown: Must is the online creator for Professional Golf Services, she has been a PGA Member since 2012 and is captain of the 2024 Women’s PGA Cup Team. This will be Must’s second Women’s PGA Cup, competing too in 2022. As a player, Must has competed in multiple ISPS HANDA Australian Opens including at Sydney last year, and still plays in some WPGA Tour of Australasia events.
Grace Lennon
The lowdown: This is Lennon’s first Women’s PGA Cup. She works as a Teaching Professional at Melbourne Golf Park and has been a PGA Member since 2020. Lennon was a star amateur who was once part of a team with Minjee Lee and Su Oh who took out the Queen Sirikit Cup, but after finding life on tour was not for her, completed the Bridging Program (now known as the Tour Articulation). Lennon showed everyone she still has the competitiveness and game when she took out the 2023 Athena, and will be a valuable asset to the team.
Lisa Jean
The lowdown: Jean was a part of the inaugural Women’s PGA Cup Team in 2019, and is currently the Head Teaching Professional at Royal Canberra Golf Club. She has been a PGA Member since 2011, and turned pro in 2004. As a player, Jean competed on the Ladies European Tour for six years before injury sent her into early retirement. Tied for the final team spot on the last hole of qualifying, Jean made a clutch birdie to secure her spot on the 2024 team. That experience and level-headedness will be vital in Oregon.
Sienna Voglis
The lowdown: Also a part of the inaugural Women’s PGA Cup Team in 2019, Voglis is the General Manager at Barham Golf Resort and has been a PGA Member since 2015. Voglis was recognised as Management Professional of the Year at the 2023 Victorian PGA awards. Holding steady in the playoff for the last spot on this team, Voglis demonstrated she still has the nerve to perform under pressure.
Jessica Cook
The lowdown: After originally just missing out in the qualifying playoff, Cook secured the final spot on the team after Jenna Hunter was forced to pull-out through injury, this is Cook’s first Women’s PGA Cup, who is the Assistant Professional at Maroochy River Golf Club. Cook is the youngest member of the team and the youngest team member to ever represent Australia. At just 25, Cook has only been a full PGA Member since early 2024.
The 2024 Women’s PGA Cup will take place at Sunriver Resort in Sunriver, Oregon from 1–5 October, 2024.
Jack Wright and Reilly Wunderlich are the new Queensland PGA Foursomes Championship titleholders thanks to a final-hole birdie at Kooralbyn Valley today.
Wunderlich, from Yamba in New South Wales, hit the duo’s final approach shot of the day – at the 337m par-4 11th hole – to inside a metre from 90 metres out giving Wright, from the Gold Coast, a virtual tap-in to post the only even-par round of the event.
Their 72 gave was one shot clear of two teams – Michael Sim/Jack Munro and Tiger Boontang/Yevin Samararatne.
“It was a battle. We got off to a good start and then had to grind a few tough bogeys out,” Wunderlich said.
“To hit it to about a foot on the last to get the win was pretty special.”
Inclement weather in the Gold Coast Hinterland forced the event to be cut from 36 holes to just 18.
HOW THE WINNERS’ ROUND UNFOLDED
Starting their round on the 12th, Wright and Wunderlich moved to 1-under with a birdie at their second hole, the par-5 13th.
They were -2 following a birdie on the first before hitting trouble with a trio of bogeys on the third, fourth and fifth. Five straight pars steadied the round before the title-winning birdie came at the 11th.
LEADERBOARD
72: Jack Wright/Reilly Wunderlich
73: Michael Sim/Jack Munro; Tiger Boontang/Yevin Samararatne
74: Stephen Klease/TJ King
75: Barrie Manning/Neville Hogan; Christopher Crooks/Zach Ion; Kane Streat/Corey Jeucken
David Bransdon has posted his best finish so far in his rookie season on the PGA TOUR Champions, finishing in a share of eighth at the Boeing Classic in Washington.
The NSW professional fired rounds of 67-72-71 to finish alongside fellow Australian Richard Green (68-73-69) at 6-under-par, five shots behind the winner, Canada’s Stephen Ames.
It’s the third top-10 of the season for Bransdon who has moved up to 48th place in the Charles Schwab Cup standings, while Green, the owner of six top-10s in 2024, has consolidated his fourth position.
Queenslander John Senden produced the low round of the tournament on the final day, a 7-under-par 65, to climb 39 places into a share of 13th.
On the PGA TOUR, all three Australians – Min Woo Lee, Cam Davis and Aaron Baddeley – and Kiwi Ryan Fox didn’t make it through to the final 36 holes as England’s Aaron Rai claimed the Wyndham Championship title.
Jason Day, who didn’t play following his Olympic Games campaign, remains the leading Australia on the FedEx standings at No.26, while Cam Davis (No.44), Adam Scott (No.46) and Min Woo Lee (No.62) are also safely through to the first Playoffs event, the St Jude Championship, which features the top 70 players.
Last week’s Korn Ferry Tour, Karl Vilips, jumped from 15th to 13th, on the secondary tour’s points list with a T21 finish in the Pinnacle Bank Championship presented by Woodhouse.
Meanwhile, Olympians Hannah Green and Minjee Lee will make their next appearance at the AIG British Open at St Andrews on Thursday week after Green just missed the medals in Paris
Olympic Women’s Golf
Le Golf National, France
1 Lydia Ko (NZ) 72-67-68- 71 – 280
T4 Hannah Green 77-70-66-69 – 282
T22 Minjee Lee 71-74-71-71 – 287
PGA TOUR
Wyndham Championship
Sedgefield Country Club, Greensboro, North Carolina
1 Aaron Rai (Eng) 65-65-68-64 – 262 – US$1.422 million
MC Ryan Fox (NZ) 67-71 – 138
MC Min Woo Lee 69-71 – 140
MC Cam Davis 69-73 – 142
WD Aaron Baddeley 71
ASIAN TOUR
International Series England
Foxhills Country Club (Longcross Course), Chertsey, UK
1 Peter Uihlein (US) 71-69-61-63 – 264 – US$360,000
T30 Travis Smyth 69-72-70-69 – 280 – $15,433
T30 Ben Campbell (NZ) 69-72-69-70 – 280 – $15,433
T43 Kazuma Kobori (NZ) 69-72-73-68 – 282 – $10,875
T51 Sam Brazel 70-71-73-70 284 – $8050
T55 Wade Ormsby 68-73-74-70 – 285 – $7100
T55 Jordan Zunic 71-71-71-72 – 285 – $7100
T62 Scott Hend 68-72-82-65 – 287 – $5800
73 Aaron Wilkin 69-71-74-81- 295 – $4000
MC Nick Voke (NZ) 69-74
MC Jack Thompson 73-70
MC Jed Morgan 70-74
MC Deyen Lawson 70-75
MC Maverick Antcliff 70-76
MC Jeff Guan 73-74
MC Kevin Yuan 78-69
MC Todd Sinnott 76-71
MC Andrew Dodt 73-74
MC Justin Warren 78-71
MC Harrison Crowe 74-76
MC Douglas Klein 77-73
MC Zach Murray 74-79
MC Lachlan Barker 77-77
PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
Boeing Classic
The Club at Snoqualmie Ridge, Washington, USA
1 Stephen Ames (Can) 71-67-67 – 205 – $US330,000
T2 Steven Alker (NZ) 66-72-68 – 206 – $161,333
T8 Richard Green 68-73-69 – 210 – $58,080
T8 David Bransdon 67-72-71 – 210 – $58,080
T13 John Senden 73-73-65 – 211 – $39,600
T13 Stuart Appleby 71-70-70 – 211 – $39,600
T18 Rod Pampling 74-67-71 – 212 – $26,229
T18 Michael Wright 72-69-71 – 212 – $26,229
T44 Greg Chalmers 69-74-73 – 216 – $8140
T44 Mark Hensby 72-71-73 – 216 – $8140
T44 Steve Allan 72-73-71 – 216 – $8140
T68 Cam Percy 77-71-75 – 223 – $2068
T68 Vijay Singh (Fiji) 74-76-73 – 223 – $2068
KORN FERRY TOUR
Pinnacle Bank Championship presented by Woodhouse
The Club at Indian Creek, Omaha, Nebraska, USA
1 Matt McCarty (US) 69-67-67-67 – 270 – $US180,000
T24 Karl Vilips 68-72-71-68 – 279 – $8616
T29 Brett Drewitt 71-68-70-71 – 280 – $5930
MC Rhein Gibson 75-68
WD Dimi Papadatos 71
CHALLENGE TOUR
Farmfoods Scottish Challenge supported by the R&A
Newmachar Golf Club, Aberdeenshire, Scotland
1 Brandon Robinson Thompson (Eng) 67-67-62-66 – 262 – €46,720.20
T25 Hayden Hopewell 72-67-67-71 – 277 – €2,598.81
T36 Elvis Smylie 70-67-72-70 – 279 – €1,868.81
MC Connor McKinney 71-72
MC Sam Jones (NZ) 77-68
LET ACCESS SERIES
Ahlsell Nordic Golf Tour
Ahlsell Trophy by Destination Jonkoping
Gränna Golfklubb, Gränna, Sweden
1 Patricia Isabel Schmidt (Germany) 69-67-70 – 206
T15 Munchin Keh (NZ) 72-71-72 – 215
T22 Kelsey Bennett 74-69-73 – 216
T35 Stephanie Bunque 74-71-73 – 218
T44 Kristalle Blum 72-71-77 – 220
