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He is prepared to be the second-most popular Queenslander in his group on Thursday yet Jason Day hopes to win back a legion of Aussie fans as he makes his long-awaited return to the BMW Australian PGA Championship.
Day will tee off alongside Cameron Smith and defending champion Min Woo Lee from the 10th tee at 6:10am on Thursday morning, his first competitive round on Australian soil since the 2017 Australian Open.
It is his first Australian PGA Championship since he finished tied for ninth at Coolum in 2011, the 37-year-old spending the past three days reacquainting himself with a Royal Queensland layout that has changed significantly in that time.
At No.31 in the Official World Golf Ranking, Day is the highest-ranked player in the field but knows he may not be No.1 amongst Queensland golf fans when the tournament begins.
“Obviously Cammy is a very big favourite being here and obviously got a lot of fans here,” Day said of the three-time Australian PGA champion.
“Even though I’m from here, it’s kind of hard to get the fan base when I haven’t been here as much.
“I’m looking forward to playing with Min, looking forward to playing with Cam.
“I’m really interested to see the crowds out there, seeing how many people will come out. Fingers crossed we have good weather. I know that rain is not ideal, but we’re going to have really good weather on the weekend and that should be fun. That should bring out a lot of people.”
With five children and a base in Ohio that he has held for more than 15 years, playing in his home country while competing on the PGA TOUR has been a constant to-and-fro.
He was close to returning 12 months ago but chose to stay in the US after wife Ellie gave birth to their fifth child, Winnie, in September.
Already on this trip he has spent time with his sisters for the first time since the passing of his mother, Dening, in March 2022 and reacquainted himself with meat pies from a bakery in Forest Lake west of Brisbane.
It is a taste of home that he intends to sample more regularly.
“Me being healthy and being able to bring my family down, that’s something that I want to do. To be able to come back a little bit more,” said Day.
“I would love to do that. My family has never been to Australia. I’d love to bring them down.
“The last time I played Royal Queensland was when we had I think one bridge and we literally had the golf course on the other side of the bridge, so it has been a while.
“What Cam Smith has done so well, he’s supported Australian golf since he’s turned professional, especially here in Brisbane and he’s done a wonderful job. Same with Adam Scott.
“It’s nice to see the guys come back.”
While this visit has been seven years in the making, it is something of a hit-and-run mission for the 2015 US PGA champion.
He was one of the first on course on Monday to kick-start his preparations, meticulously plotting a first major Australian victory that would allow him to join some of golf’s global stars to have had success in Australia.
“I know that I’ve always wanted to win in Australia,” he added.
“I’ve seen Jordan Spieth come down here, Rory (McIlroy) come down here and obviously they’re playing the Australian Open and winning the Australian Open. They’ve accomplished that and it’d be nice for me to be able to do that, especially here in Brisbane where part of my life I grew up, and especially at a place like Royal Queensland, very iconic.
“I grew up playing some tournaments here. It’s always nice to be able to win a tournament regardless of where you go, but to be able to win one on home soil and to know that you can come back and win one, that would be special.”
A determined Lucas Herbert has revealed how he intends to use the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia to propel himself towards more majors in 2024.
Fresh if not slightly sore from Sunday night’s celebrations in Bendigo after his NSW Open triumph at Murray Downs Golf and Country Club, Herbert arrives at Royal Queensland Golf Club second on the Order of Merit.
The 28-year-old will play this week, next week’s ISPS HANDA Australian Open and the Webex Players Series Murray River event early in the new year.
Four events will qualify Herbert for the Order of Merit and all the trappings that come with a top-three finish, not least of which is an exemption into The Open Championship for the Order of Merit winner.
The past two Order of Merit winners – David Micheluzzi and Kazuma Kobori – have also received exemptions into the US PGA Championship, going halfway towards Herbert’s goal of playing more major championships.
Now an integral member of Cameron Smith’s Ripper GC team on LIV Golf, Herbert played just one major in 2024 – the US PGA – and sees his home tour as a legitimate pathway to playing more of the game’s showpiece events.
“I think I’ve got a really good opportunity to finish a long way up in that Order of Merit and reap the benefits that come from that,” said Herbert, who has been grouped with French star Victor Perez and fellow PGA TOUR winner Cam Davis for rounds one and two at RQ.
“It’s just a long way to go, only one event in. Just got to focus on my stuff and playing well, and I think the rest will probably take care of itself.
“That is the advantage of coming back and playing in Australia. We have some good pathways through the Australian tour to get to some of these bigger events, bigger tours.
“Hopefully it all goes well and it’s something that I can use.”
Fuelled by the response from the response that Adam Scott, Jason Day and Smith have received from Australian fans after major championship success, Herbert knows the impact playing well in majors has on the game at home.
He emerged as the emotional lightning rod in Ripper GC’s team championship win this year, his love of the arena encapsulated with a new nickname of ‘Gladiator’.
The Victorian took the bit between the teeth in difficult conditions to run down Smith a week ago and wants to influence the game in the way other Australian major champions have done.
“The impact of playing in those major championships – winning them, playing well – ultimately had a big impact on Australian golf,” said Herbert.
“I look at the impact Cam’s had from winning The Open Championship in 2022. It feels like golf has not been in a position this good in a long time.
“We’ve got so many people playing the game. You look at events like LIV Adelaide last year with how many people are there. You look at the buzz around these two weeks, how much it means in Australia.
“I look at driving ranges around the country, they’re all packed at various random times throughout the day. It seems like golf is thriving incredibly in Australia and us playing well in those major championships ultimately has that impact on Australia.”
Defending champion Min Woo Lee will have to fend off a field full of Australia’s best talent and an array of international raiders when the BMW Australian PGA Championship tees off at Royal Queensland Golf Club on Thursday.
Co-sanctioned between the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and the DP World Tour, the first of Australia’s two majors marks the start of the 2025 DP World Tour season and a crucial week for those with local Order of Merit aspirations.
Among those returning to Royal Queensland are three-time champion Cameron Smith, who, off the back of an uncharacteristic missed cut in 2023 will be out for redemption, while Jason Day will be teeing it up in Australia for the first time since 2017.
Smith’s Ripper GC teammates Marc Leishman and Lucas Herbert are also among the headliners, Herbert hot off his recent Ford NSW Open win, his first on home soil. While Cam Davis rounds out the contingent of returning international playing stars, the 2024 Rocket Mortgage Classic winner keen to add a Kirkwood Cup to go alongside his Stonehaven Cup.
Twelve months ago, it was Lee who broke through and hoisted the Joe Kirkwood Cup, cruising to a three-stroke victory over Japan’s Rikuya Hoshino, and he is back and ready to defend.
The young West Australian comes in at the tail-end of an exciting year that includes selection in the Australian Olympic and Presidents Cup teams and two runner-up finishes on the PGA TOUR.
“Obviously amazing memories,” Lee said of his 2023 win. “It seems like it was only a few months ago. The year’s gone really quick. I can’t believe it’s been a whole year but amazing feelings coming back.”
Despite a solid year on the PGA TOUR and DP World Tour, Lee is yet to notch a win this season and would love for one – or two – to come in the next two weeks.
“I know there’s a lot of skill and a little bit of luck that goes on during a tournament, but it seems like a couple of times it’s gone the other way,” he said of his near misses.
“Just being in a tournament that you are coming back to defend is a special feeling and especially being here on the grounds now, it’s cool.
“I’m going to go and try play as good as I can and hopefully get another trophy.”
DEFENDING CHAMPION: Min Woo Lee (WA)
PRIZEMONEY: $2,000,000
LIVE SCORES: www.pga.org.au
TV COVERAGE: The BMW Australian PGA Championship is available live on Channel 9 and 9Now, as well as Fox Sports, available on Foxtel and Kayo.
*All times AEDT.
Round 1: Thursday, 12pm-5pm
Round 2: Friday, 12pm-5pm
Round 3: Saturday, 12pm-5pm
Final Round: Sunday, 12pm-5pm
THE COURSE
Home to this tournament for the last three years, Royal Queensland Golf Club was originally designed by three-time Australian Open champion, Carnegie Clark in 1920 with several modifications including advice from Dr Alistair Mckenzie on his visit in 1926.
More extreme changes to the course were required in 2007 when the construction of a new Gateway Bridge over the river meant Royal Queensland lost a large part of its original layout, with Mike Clayton the designer charged with the task of delivering a new and very different course in the banks of the Brisbane River.
A relatively flat piece of land, players are afforded width off the tee at ‘RQ’ and the opportunity to decide for themselves the best way to play each hole, which all feature sloping greens and tightly mown surrounds. Large bunkering a consistent feature throughout the par-71.
Measuring 6,479 metres, the short par-3 17th “Party Hole” will certainly deliver drama and excitement over the weekend.
HEADLINERS
Min Woo Lee — Defending champion and multiple DP World Tour winner
Cam Smith — 2022 Open Champion, captain of the 2024 season winning Ripper GC team on the LIV Golf League
Lucas Herbert — 2024 NSW Open champion, PGA TOUR and DP World Tour winner, member of the 2024 season winning Ripper GC team on the LIV Golf League
Jason Day — Former World no.1, 2015 US PGA Championship winner and 13-time PGA TOUR winner
Cam Davis — 2017 Australian Open champion and multiple PGA TOUR winner
Victor Perez — Three-time DP World Tour winner
David Micheluzzi — 2022/23 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winner
Harry Higgs — Three-time Korn Ferry Tour winner and 2024 graduate to the PGA TOUR
Marc Leishman — Six-time PGA TOUR winner and member of the 2024 season winning Ripper GC team on the LIV Golf League
Kazuma Kobori — 2023/24 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winner
Daniel Hillier — DP World Tour winner
Geoff Ogilvy — 2006 US Open champion, 2008 Australian PGA champion and 2010 Australian Open champion
Jack Buchanan — 2024 WA PGA and Webex Players Series South Australia champion
Phoenix Campbell — 2023 and 2024 Queensland PGA champion
Elvis Smylie — 2024 WA Open champion
He was handed a golf club after being plucked from the surf on the New South Wales South Coast and now Wil Daibarra will join a line-up of some of the world’s best golfers at the BMW Australian PGA Championship.
Daibarra arrived at Royal Queensland Golf Club on Monday still in something of a daze, granted a place in the field courtesy of his come-from-behind victory at last week’s PGA Associate National Championship at Cobram Barooga Golf Club.
It’s not unlike his introduction to the sport, invited to give it a go by then Kiama Golf Club Professional Shaun O’Toole as he walked through the golf course surfboard tucked under his arm.
So taken was O’Toole by this surfer kid with a natural swing that he had him playing junior pennants in a matter of weeks.
That season, Daibarra went through undefeated.
“He was walking past the tee with the surfboard under his arm,” O’Toole recalled.
“Two of his mates were playing and I said, ‘You going to have a hit?’ He said, ‘I haven’t had a hit.’
“He had a go and I thought he had a good swing without even ever being shown.”
Under the guidance of first O’Toole and Elle Sandak and, most recently, Toby McGeachie at Links Shell Cove, Daibarra’s game flourished.
In a region that has produced the likes of Jordan Zunic and Travis Smyth in recent years, Daibarra was projected to follow a similar path.
Recruited to play pennants at Bonnie Doon Golf Club in Sydney, COVID stalled his playing opportunities, the now 22-year-old option to begin the PGA’s Membership Pathway Program.
He is now in his final year as an Associate and has a renewed belief that his game could be good enough to mix it with the best in the game.
“I felt like my first couple of years I wasn’t kind of maximising what I thought I was capable of,” said Daibarra, who was unable to opt into the Playing stream of the Membership Pathway Program at the start of the year but will play with Kiwi Sam Jones and fellow Aussie James Conran in rounds one and two.
“I kind of just always found myself feeling a bit bummed-out at the end of tournaments.
“Last week was really good, to finally play one that I felt like that’s how I should be playing.
“I’ve still got enough time to try practise and really try to push the playing stuff now. And then if it doesn’t work out, I’ve got coaching or something to fall back on.”
Having seen the raw talent and freedom with which he played as a junior, O’Toole’s only advice is for Daibarra to tap into the laidback attitude that made him such a prolific winner.
“I had kids in state teams and Australian teams and whatever – I worked a lot with good kids – and he just had something in the swing that looked good to me,” said O’Toole.
“It was like there was no pressure on him at all because he had no expectations.
“He just went out and played and he just kept winning. And he thought it was the easiest game in the world.
“He can hit every shot they can hit. If he can go in and play like he used to play, like a big kid with no pressure, that would be great to see.”
Prestige liquor brand Moutai and Australia’s premier garden and lawncare specialist Scotts Lawncare have signed on as first-time partners of Australian golf’s major championships.
Known as China’s “national liquor”, Moutai will be an event partner at both the 2024 BMW Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland (November 21-24) and the ISPS HANDA Australian Open on the famed Melbourne Sandbelt (November 28-December 1).
As part of their presence at the Open, the company’s flagship “Flying Fairy” baijiu will be available to sample at both Royal Queensland and Kingston Heath golf clubs across the four days of competition in Brisbane and Melbourne.
Dan Zhao, Brand and Marketing Manager of Moutai Australia, said: ‘Moutai is excited to deepen its presence in the Australian market, where an increasing number of consumers are discovering the unique craftsmanship of our 2000-year-old spirit.
“As Moutai continues to grow globally, we are proud to sponsor the BMW Australian PGA Championship and ISPS HANDA Australian Open, a partnership that reflects our commitment to excellence, precision, and tradition.
“Much like the game of golf, Moutai embodies the artistry and dedication that goes into mastering one’s craft. Through this collaboration, we aim to connect with Australians who appreciate both fine spirits and the rich cultural heritage that Moutai represents.
“This is just the beginning of a new chapter for Moutai in Australia, and we look forward to creating unforgettable experiences with our community.”
Meanwhile, Scotts Lawncare will be taking golf fans to their “happy place” at the ISPS HANDA Australian Open.
The on-site activation from Australia’s premier garden and lawncare specialist will be a feature of the elevated fan experience at the Open this year.
Scotts Happy Place, located in The 19th precinct at Kingston Heath, will reflect how much Aussies appreciate relaxing in their garden and highlight the synergies between taking care of your lawn and playing golf which both bring mental and physical wellbeing benefits.
Scotts Marketing Director Kerry Sephton said: “We’re excited to be a part of the Australian Open because we know that the golf community appreciates a beautiful healthy lawn.
“This world-class sporting event on the magnificent courses of Kingston Heath and The Victoria golf clubs is a demonstration of lawns at their very best and Scotts is here to help the home gardener to get a lush, healthy lawn to create their own Happy Place.”
Native New South Welshman Peter Jones has mastered the short but tricky layout at Bondi Golf Club to claim the Bondi Legends Pro-Am to notch his first win on the Legends Tour this year.
With only three players managing to go under-par on the day, Jones finished with a 4-under 52 to triumph by one over Queenslander David Fearns, with West Australian Stuart Beament in third at 1-under.
HOW THE WINNING ROUND UNFOLDED
Jones started his day with birdie on the 163-metre par-3 seventh, and added another at Bondi’s ninth. Further birdies at 17, one and two had the Sydneysider 5-under on his day with four holes to play.
An untimely bogey on his final hole, the stout 110-metre sixth dropped him back to four however, which still proved enough for the outright win.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
“It was really solid today. Hit quite a few greens and if I did miss, I only just missed them, was able to putt up and I putted solidly and made quite a few birdies,” he said.
“I three-putted the last. I thought that might’ve blown it, but it was still good enough to get up for the win, so very happy with today.
“This year has been a bit of a struggle with my game. I’m a bit stubborn. I’m out here to try and find a bit of a game and see if I can get back to some form again and again.
“It shows glimpses, I’ve just been a bit inconsistent, but this win might hopefully boost me onto bigger things.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
52 Peter Jones
53 David Fearns
55 Stuart Beament
56 Rodney Fox, Simon Tooman, Dell Bain
NEXT UP
The PGA Legends tour heads to Elanora Country Club next on Friday.
Hannah Green’s ascension into the elite of world golf has been further acknowledged with a second Greg Norman Medal at the PGA Awards Gala Dinner on Tuesday night.
More than 350 guests attended the glittering awards ceremony at Brisbane City Hall that serves as a precursor to the BMW Australian PGA Championship, with Green’s Greg Norman Medal win among a total of 10 awards presented throughout the evening.
The West Australian climbed to a career-high No.5 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Ranking on the back of three LPGA Tour wins in 2024, the 27-year-old’s greatest single-season yield in her career to date.
Green won the Greg Norman Medal in 2019 when she had two wins – including the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship – and was honoured to once again receive Australian golf’s highest accolade.
“It has undoubtedly been one of the best years of my career and to cap it with a second Greg Norman Medal makes it all the more special,” said Green, who was unable to attend the PGA Awards as she is playing the season-ending LPGA event in Florida this week.
“Any year in which you have a win is a good year so to have three in the one season is very satisfying – and I’d love to finish off with another one at the ISPS HANDA Australian Open next week.
“I would like to thank everyone in my team, my husband Jarryd, my family and friends for their support this year.
“I feel like I have taken a major step forward in 2024 and hope that I can finish off the year well and take that into 2025 and beyond.”
It took just two starts for Green to earn her first win of 2024, storming home to win the HSBC Women’s World Championship in Thailand in March.
She staged a successful defence of her JM Eagle LA Championship crown in April and became the first Australian since Karrie Webb in 2006 to notch three wins in a single LPGA season with a wire-to-wire win at the BMW Ladies Championship in Korea.
On hand to accept the Greg Norman Medal on Green’s behalf was her coach, Ritchie Smith, who himself was named PGA National Coach of the Year – High Performance.
It is a fourth national win for Smith, who also received the High Performance gong in 2014, 2019 and 2021.
The Brisbane Golf Club’s Asha Flynn won the PGA National Coach of the Year – Game Development gong for the second year in succession while Catalina Club’s Rodney Booth was named 2024 PGA National Club Professional of the Year.
General Manager at Eastlake Golf Club, Robert Blain was awarded PGA National Management Professional of the Year and Ashley Marsay was named International Member of the Year for his contribution as Head Professional at San Francisco Golf Club.
Three-time winner and Order of Merit champion Kazuma Kobori was named Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Player of the Year, LPGA Tour-bound Cassie Porter received her first Margie Masters WPGA Tour of Australasia Player of the Year award and Andre Stolz was named PGA Legends Tour Player of the Year for the fourth straight year.
2024 PGA Awards winners
Greg Norman Medal: Hannah Green
PGA National Coach of the Year – High Performance: Ritchie Smith (Royal Fremantle GC)
PGA National Coach of the Year – Game Development: Asha Flynn (Brisbane GC)
PGA National Club Professional of the Year: Rodney Booth (Catalina Club G&CC)
PGA National Management Professional of the Year: Robert Blain (Eastlake GC)
MyGolf Deliverer of the Year: Jake Newbery (KDV Sport)
International Member of the Year: Ashley Marsay (San Francisco Golf Club)
Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Player of the Year: Kazuma Kobori
Margie Masters WPGA Tour of Australasia Player of the Year: Cassie Porter
Legends Tour Player of the Year: Andre Stolz
Past 5 Greg Norman Medal winners
2023: Minjee Lee
2022: Cameron Smith
2021: Minjee Lee
2020: Cameron Smith
2019: Hannah Green
Cam Davis’s week at the BMW Australian PGA Championship didn’t get off to the perfect start – his luggage went missing following his flight from the United States – but it’s how he finishes his week in Queensland that really counts.
The only Aussie to be victorious on the PGA TOUR this year would love to end 2024 by claiming the Joe Kirkwood Cup for the first time at Royal Queensland or add his name to the Stonehaven Cup for a second time at the ISPS HANDA Australian Open in Melbourne next week.
In the opening two rounds at the PGA he will get an up-close look at two of the other expected key contenders in a feature group with NSW Open champion Lucas Herbert and France’s Victor Perez
“I want to play my best,” the Sydneysider said of his approach to two big weeks back in his homeland.
“I feel like every tournament I tee it up in, I want to play my best, but there’s just a little extra desire to play well at home.
“I don’t try and put any extra pressure on myself, but I’m definitely trying to bring my best golf to each week that I play, whether it’s this week or next week.
“I’m really looking forward to two weeks with familiar accents around me and familiar golf courses. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”
Davis finished T7 at Royal Queensland last year, nine shots behind Min Woo Lee, and plans to be as aggressive as possible off the tee this week.
“There’s a lot of little bunkers that if you find them it’s a lot of trouble, but if you are aggressive off the tee and by hitting the driver pretty long, it really opens this place up to a lot easier shots into the greens,” he said
“Because the fairways are very wide I don’t feel like it’s super difficult to hit them, but you just want to avoid the little pot bunkers around the fairways and then it’s just putting.
“The last few years I’ve actually hit the ball pretty well, but you just have a couple of days where the putts don’t go in.”
Davis tees off at 11.10am (Qld time) in round one.
Three of the biggest names in Australian golf will go head-to-head from day one in a mouth-watering match-up to kick off the BMW Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland Golf Club.
Defending champion Min Woo Lee, three-time champion Cameron Smith and the returning Jason Day will tee off in the second group off the 10th tee at 6:10am (Qld time) on Thursday morning.
It’s a dream draw for Brisbane golf fans and a tantalising heavyweight showdown that could go a long way to identifying who will raise the Joe Kirkwood Cup come Sunday afternoon.
Tied for second at last week’s Ford NSW Open and third at the Queensland PGA a fortnight ago, Smith is seeking redemption at Royal Queensland after missing the cut 12 months ago.
The 31-year-old was almost brought to tears as he made an early exit on Friday a year ago, the 2022 champ as motivated as ever to perform in front of his adoring fans.
“It was completely disappointing to play how I did last year,” said Smith.
“It was terrible. It was a terrible feeling. I think being a Brisbane boy probably even hurt a little bit more and it’s not very often I get to play in front of a home crowd.
“We have a few events here in Australia but I like to think this is my home event.
“It was a terrible feeling so that was definitely part of the motivation to get up and get ready for this week.”
Lee’s 2024 international campaign came to a close on Sunday at the DP World Tour Championship, his year highlighted by two runner-up finishes on the PGA TOUR and an Olympic debut in Paris.
His victory at RQ 12 months ago marked the start of his ‘Let him cook’ phenomenon that spawned chefs hats and took the golf world by storm.
With the prospect of a million-dollar hole-in-one for fans on Saturday, the 26-year-old is excited to bring his infectious enthusiasm to Aussie golf fans once again.
“It’s a cool feeling to be back at the tournament where it first started, but I’m just trying to make the game cooler and fun,” said Lee, whose social media following has exploded in the past year.
“It can be boring at times but I’m trying to make it as fun as possible.
“There’s a lot of kids that look up to me and that’s one of the things that drives me to play good golf.
“The crowd here is amazing and I know there’s a lot of kids that come out, especially on the weekends.
“The best crowds all year round so just try to make it fun and cool and try to play good golf.”
While Smith and Day last played together in a practice round at The Masters in April, it will be an Olympic reunion of sorts for Day and Lee.
The pair forged a strong bond during their time together in Paris, Lee drawing on Day’s experience as a major champion and former world No.1 in order to elevate his own game.
“Jason’s been a very good friend and a good role model over the last few months since the Olympics and Presidents Cup,” said Lee, currently world No.48.
“I’ve learned a lot from him and I owe a lot. Just things that you would kind of learn down the road. He’s telling me what he’s done over the last, how many years he’s played and a lot of wisdom I guess.
“It’s great to have him in Australia. It’s been a while and hopefully we get to play together and show off.
“I really love and appreciate that he is down in Australia playing.”
Simth joked at the Queensland PGA that it had been “about 123 years” since Day last played in his home state but is also excited to have such a quality addition to the field.
“Jason and I are still relatively close. We talk a little bit,” said Smith.
“As a competitor, you want to compete against some of the best in the world. I feel like this week and next week we’ve got a really good field, so it is going to take a lot to win.
“Having those guys in the field that are known winners, when they’re there or thereabouts on Sunday definitely gives you something else to think about.
“It’s great. That’s really what you want.”
Other morning marquee groups announced on Tuesday are Australian Marc Leishman, American Harry Higgs and rising Danish star Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen (6:20am) and Scotland’s Richie Ramsay and Aussie pair Anthony Quayle and Harrison Crowe (6:30am).
The afternoon groups are highlighted by French star Victor Perez and PGA TOUR winners Lucas Herbert and Cam Davis (11:10am), Kiwi duo Kazuma Kobori and Daniel Hillier with England’s Todd Clements (11am) and West Australians Jason Scrivener and Curtis Luck with Belgium’s Nicolas Colsaerts (11:30am).
For BMW Australian PGA Championship tickets, go to ticketek.com.au
The Australian PGA Championship is supported by the Queensland Government, through Tourism and Events Queensland’s Major Events Program and Brisbane City Council, through Brisbane Economic Development Agency.
Photos: Dan Peled/PGA of Australia (Smith, Leishman); Scott Davis/PGA of Australia (Lee)
Queenstown local Ben Campbell is looking to make the most of his home-course advantage when the New Zealand Open, presented by Sky Sport, returns to Queenstown next year.
Campbell hopes his intimate knowledge of the two Millbrook Resort courses will give him the edge to claim the championship.
Campbell, who plies his trade across the Asian Tour and LIV Golf, has played some of his best golf at the New Zealand Open in recent years but has yet to see his name on the trophy and says he’s hoping to lean on his past experiences and local knowledge to gain a competitive edge over the rest of the field.
“It’s great having the New Zealand Open here in Queenstown. It’s my home, and it’s a real honour to be able to play in an internationally recognised event on my home course,” he said.
“I’ve gone really close on a few occasions, which has really helped push my game, mentally and technically, to the next level. It’s now about preparation and leaning on my knowledge of the course to hopefully be in the running once again.”
Campbell was part of the dramatic three-way playoff in 2017 when eventual winner Michael Hendry became the first Kiwi in 14 years to claim the title. Since then, international players have dominated the top spot on the leaderboard, a streak that Campbell is looking to break.
“There is always a good local crowd out supporting me and I am really looking forward to teeing it up again next year. The goal is to have my name as the next Kiwi on the trophy and I will be doing everything I can to make that happen.”
Tournament Director Michael Glading believes Campbell has the talent and experience to be the next New Zealand Open champion, and is excited to see him attack the championship courses at Millbrook Resort come February.
“Ben is a fantastic ambassador not only for Queenstown but for the New Zealand Open. He is always promoting the region and our event wherever he goes. To have him committed to the event is a real plus for us as an exciting player who will no doubt have a huge amount of local support.”
The 104th New Zealand Open will tee off at Millbrook Resort in Queenstown between February 27 and March 2, 2025. For more information, please visit nzopen.com
