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Kazuma Kobori shot his best round of the week, a six-under 66, to expand his lead heading into the final round of the Vic PGA at Moonah Links.
The young Kiwi now leads by six shots heading into Sunday, as he continues to put on a masterclass around the Peter Thomson designed layout.
“I’m pretty tired so I’m looking forward to a good rest,” he said after his efforts.
“I got some good breaks today … but took advantage of those breaks as well.
“I hit 17 greens (in regulation), so it was pretty stress free for the most part.”
Kobori’s round really got going at the turn, with four consecutive threes from holes 9 through 12, before almost holing out for eagle on 13.
“Spewing! That would’ve been unreal … I’ll take birdie there any day though,” he said.
Kobori’s closest challenger is last year’s Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winner David Micheluzzi, who stands alone in second place at 10-under.
Micheluzzi’s order of merit win from last season has granted him status to play on the DP World Tour in 2024, something Kobori hopes to do in the future.
“Doing what he did, through a pathway that hasn’t existed before, so I’m looking forward to hopefully doing the same thing he did,” said Kobori.
Micheluzzi started his Saturday round relatively slowly, but got it going on the back-nine to card a five-under 67.
The Victorian is happy to be playing back home in Australia, and after coming agonisingly close at the Queensland PGA Championship a few weeks back, he’ll be hungry to chase down Kobori and go one better tomorrow.
“On the back-nine I said to myself I just got to trust it (the wind),” Micheluzzi said.
“We holed some putts which was nice. I did that a little bit on the back-nine yesterday as well.
“I don’t think the gameplan will change at all tomorrow, but at the same time, it is freedom golf because you are chasing.”
Micheluzzi is playing with Hawthorn star Mitch Lewis in the pro-am team event this week, and says the pair feed off each other well.
“It just makes it more chilled out and we kind of rallied off each other,” he said.
“He made a great birdie on, I think it was 11 … then I birdied my next three.”
There are three players in a tie for third at nine-under par, with Ben Eccles, Darcy Brereton and Maverick Antcliff all in hot pursuit of the leaders.
Eccles matched Kobori’s 66 on Saturday, racing up the leaderboard with a bogey-free penultimate round.
There are new leaders after round three in the teams section, with Brett Coletta and amateur partner Rick Watson on top at 27-under-par.
Full scores HERE.
Kiwi Kazuma Kobori has shot a second consecutive 5-under 67, this time on the Open course at Moonah Links, to stand alone atop the Vic PGA leaderboard at the halfway mark.
Kobori is at 10-under, and leads by three, with James Gibellini and Maverick Antcliff tied second at 7-under.
The 22-year-old rookie pro was happy to be back on the Open course, where he won twice as an amateur.
The Open course this week has been altered slightly, set up in the original Peter Thomson designed routing.
As he points out though, it’s still the same course.
“It was a lot nicer conditions than yesterday, so I probably got the good side of the draw and made good use of it too,” he said.
Kobori made dive consecutive birdies from hole 12 through 16 and it looked like he might go really low, but a bogey on 17 brought him back down to earth, slightly.
“Yeah the putter got hot. I hit it close on 12, four-feet and hit it close on the next (6-inches).”
Kobori then got the putter going, rolling in three lengthy birdie putts on his way to carding 67.
Earlier in the year, Kobori claimed the Australian Men’s Amateur title in strong winds at New South Wales Golf Club, and seems to thrive on the tough conditions.
“I’m not the longest hitter, but if you take the positives out of that, it means my golf ball’s in the air for less right, so the wind’s not going to affect it as much,” he laughed.
“I don’t necessarily enjoy playing in the wind, but I think it does suit my game.”
In only his second event since turning professional, Kobori is still settling in.
“The first two rounds definitely feel a bit different… if you don’t make the cut you don’t get paid!
“If you don’t make the cut as an amateur you just caddie for your buddies.
“I think I enjoy it, there’s a bit more meaning to every round I play, whereas in amateur golf I was starting to lose that a bit.”
Kobori has already qualified for both the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship, and the ISPS Handa Australian Open in the next two weeks, but his focus this week is firmly on securing his first win as a professional.
Gibellini shot up the leaderboard today with a bogey-free 65 on the Legends course today, following an even-par 72 on the Open yesterday.
“Just a couple (putts) that just shaved the edge. Could’ve been a couple better but it’s always like that isn’t it,” he said.
“I’ve been playing well, so hopefully we can finish it off over the weekend, but it’s going to be pretty contested.”
Maverick Antcliff and amateur partner Phil Bannister are leading the team’s event at 19-under.
Notable players to miss the cut were defending champion Andrew Martin, Dimi Papadatos, and last week’s champion Kerry Mountcastle.
Full scores HERE.
The PGA of Australia and Golf Australia announce industry conference to help shape the future of Australian Golf.
Golf in Australia is booming. With more than 3.2 million people playing some form of golf, the future has never been brighter for our sport.
To ensure the entire golf industry takes advantage of this boom, Golf Australia and the PGA of Australia are working together to deliver a combined event for the entire industry to help shape the future of the sport.
The Golf Summit is an innovative golf thought leadership conference that will connect and inspire the diverse range of PGA Professionals, golf clubs and facilities and organisations across the industry to help shape the future of Australian Golf.
SAVE THE DATE – 16 – 17 October | Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre.
This is the destination to meet other golf business professionals, expand your knowledge through learning from world-class industry leaders, be inspired by new ways of thinking and develop the tools to improve performance, whatever your role in the industry.
“As the golf industry continues to grow, we are seeing both the number and variety of roles our PGA Members successfully fulfilling increasing every year, and the Golf Summit 2024 will provide everyone in the industry the opportunity collaborate, network and learn,” explained PGA General Manager – Membership and Education, Geoff Stewart.
“PGA Member delegates will have the opportunity to hear from a variety of world class presenters across multiple streams to complement their expanding roles within the industry.”
The social and networking event will bring together delegates, industry leaders and partners in a welcoming and relaxed environment to foster the connections that ensure engagement continues well beyond the event.
With over 700 expected to attend – the Golf Summit is not to be missed.
BE THE FIRST TO KNOW – Golf Summit
Looking to exhibit or showcase your products to the golf industry? Exhibitor partnership opportunities will be available soon. Please reach out to Matt McBain – [email protected] for more information.
Who will be there?
We welcome everyone involved in the golf industry and beyond – including a collection of global and domestic leaders:
Find out more here http://www.golfsummit.com.au
Callaway Golf, an industry leader in golf equipment design, performance, and innovation has joined the growing list of organisations to partner with all three of Australian golf’s national bodies – Golf Australia, the PGA of Australia and WPGA Tour of Australasia.
Whilst Callaway has long been a partner of all three organisations, this new three-year agreement extends this commitment further and sees Callaway become the first golf equipment partner to undertake an Australian Golf partnership.
This new agreement will include an official partnership with both the men’s and women’s professional tours; the ISPS HANDA Australian Open; the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship; The Athena and other future tournaments.
Callaway will also provide investment into the PGA Women in Golf Scholarship Fund which was launched late 2021 with the goal of increasing the number of female golf professionals and growing female leaders within the golf industry in Australia.
On the amateur and community side of the sport, which continues to experience record-setting participation numbers, Callaway Golf will continue as a partner of the PGA’s long-running Scramble teams event and has linked with junior golf community program Tee Mates which encourages kids to have fun and go play.
Callaway Golf will also be a major partner of the golf industry’s leading national event, the Golf Summit, in 2024.
PGA of Australia Commercial Director Michael McDonald said Callaway Golf was providing a long-term commitment that underpinned the growth of the game in Australia.
”Callaway Golf has been a wonderful supporter of Australian golf for many years and a great supporter of both PGA Member and industry initiatives with our highly skilled PGA Professionals, who are at the forefront of promoting and growing golf in the places that we play.” he said.
“With this new agreement, they are taking their long-term commitment to the next level by becoming the sixth partner overall to sign an Australian Golf Partnership, this is a great show of support and confidence in the sport across professional and amateur golf.”
Golf Australia General Manager Commercial Anthony Everard said: “Callaway Golf shares our purpose in the Strategy for Australian Golf – to have more Australians playing more golf and discovering and enjoying all the benefits of being a golfer.
“This new partnership supports juniors who are starting off in the sport, hopefully beginning a lifetime in the game, through to our elite professionals and major Summer of Golf events which are the front window of Australian golf.”
WPGA Tour of Australasia CEO, Karen Lunn said “We are delighted to be able to add a quality brand like Callaway Golf to our portfolio of sponsors.
“We have worked closely with the team at Callaway Golf on both The Athena and the Women’s Golf Network over the last three years, and it is really exciting for us to be able to expand our relationship across all areas of the WPGA Tour.
“Collaborating closely with the PGA of Australia and Golf Australia on commercial opportunities is proving to be a game changer for the women’s arm of professional golf in Australia, and we are thrilled to welcome Callaway Golf as the first golf equipment partner to undertake an Australian Golf partnership.
Matt Meredith Managing Director of Callaway Golf South Pacific said: “Callaway Golf are proud to be an official partner of Golf Australia, the PGA of Australia and the WPGA of Australia, and to collaborate with their teams on outstanding events and initiatives to continue the great progress the game is making.
“Callaway Golf has a proven history of supporting golfers of all abilities and backgrounds all over the world.
“Being able to contribute to both amateur and professional male and female golfers all together is testament to the great work Australia is doing bringing the game together.
“We look forward to many more years supporting the sport we all love and the benefits it provides to all of us that play”.
ABOUT CALLAWAY GOLF
Callaway Golf is the leading manufacturer of premium golf clubs, balls, performance gear and accessories worldwide. Through an unwavering commitment to innovation, Callaway pushes the limits of performance and creates demonstrably superior products designed to make every golfer a better golfer. For more information, please visit www.callawaygolf.com.au
The spectacular setting and stern challenge posed by New South Wales Golf Club brought the best out in Stephen Allan as he recorded his maiden win on the PGA Legends Tour.
Allan, who turned 50 in October, is using the Legends Tour in Australia as preparation for the PGA TOUR Champions Qualifying School in Arizona from December 5-8.
There’s no form like winning form and Allan was able to recall on past tournament performances at NSW Golf Club to post 3-under 69 and record a one stroke win in the New South Wales Golf Club Legends Pro-Am presented by Porsche Centre Sydney South.
“Once the schedules all came out and the dates for the Champions Tour Q school came out, I looked to come down and play as much as I can,” Allan said of his appearances on the PGA Legends Tour.
“The last couple of years I haven’t played as much as I would like but with these in the lead-up it’s a great preparation to try and sharpen up your game.
“Hopefully I can join some of the other Aussies over there on the Champions Tour.”
Now a highly-regarded PGA Professional in Western Australia, Scott Barr (70) continued his recent good form to finish outright second with former Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia tournament winner Scott Laycock and four-time Order of Merit winner Brad Burns sharing third at even par 72.
HOW THE WINNING ROUND UNFOLDED
Out in the second group off the first tee in the afternoon wave, Allan was forced to contend with the ever-present winds that buffet the NSW Golf Club layout.
He went out in 1-under thanks to a birdie at the par-5 fifth and eight pars but dropped back to even par with a bogey on the par-4 10th.
It would be his only step backwards, though, picking up birdies on the par-5 12th and 18th holes as well as a birdie at the par-4 15th to finish one clear of Barr.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
“It was tough; it’s just hard work. Just keep grinding, keep hitting good shots and make pars and hopefully snag a couple of birdies.
“Coming in, luckily I was able to do that.
“It’s just an enjoyable place to play and I think you really have to get focused on your shots. There’s a few shots out there where you have to hit great shots.
“You stand on the fifth tee and that wind is blowing straight into you, it’s pretty nerve-wracking.
“I managed to hit some good ones today and rolled a couple of putts in.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
1 Stephen Allan 69
2 Scott Barr 70
T3 Scott Laycock 72
T3 Brad Burns 72
NEXT UP
The PGA Legends Tour continues in Sydney on Friday with day one of the $25,000 Roseville Golf Club Mashie & Pro-Am at Roseville Golf Club.
Kiwi pair Kazuma Kobori and Tyler Hodge are tied at the top of the Vic PGA leaderboard after both shooting 5-under 67s today, albeit on different courses.
The first two days of the Vic PGA are played across both the Legends and Open courses at Moonah Links, with Hodge taming the Open, while Kobori looked after the Legends.
It’s been a good couple of weeks to be a Kiwi golfer, with Kerry Mountcastle’s win in Gippsland last week seeming to be the catalyst for further success worldwide including Ben Campbell’s win on the Asian Tour last Sunday.
“Yeah it was cool, I stayed with Kerry (Mountcastle) a couple of weeks ago… Kiwi golf’s going pretty good, with him and Ben (Campbell), and we had a Kiwi Sam Jones who got his DP World card last night,” said Hodge.
Playing in the morning, Hodge navigated the cold and windy weather on his way to the top of the leaderboard, and stood there alone for most of the day with Kobori in the afternoon groupings.
“It wasn’t easy conditions, so definitely a good score out there,” he said.
“This is only my third event on the Aussie tour this year, I’ve been playing mostly in New Zealand.
“I’ve been going good in New Zealand, I’m ranked second on our order of merit so it’s been a good season so far.”
With is 67 on the Legends course, Kobori’s love affair with Moonah Links continues. During his decorated amateur career, he won both the 2018 Victorian Junior Amateur round here, and later won the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia qualifying school at Moonah.
In only his second event after turning professional, it hasn’t taken Kobori long to find his feet, and his way back to the top of the leaderboard, where he spent the majority of his amateur career.
“I put a couple new clubs in the bag: driver, 3-wood, and 4-iron, and they worked out pretty good so I’m happy,” he said.
“For me, the Legends course was a bit tricky because I’ve played Open quite a few times but I’d never played Legends in a tournament before.
“I’m looking forward to the Open course tomorrow as I’m pretty familiar with it.”
Victorian Darcy Brereton shot 4-under on the Legends course, and sits alone at third, with six players in a tied-fourth at three-under.
Defending champion Andrew Martin shot a steady one-under on the Legends, while star David Micheluzzi finished at two-under after his round on the Legends.
In the amateur teams event, Tyler Hodge and Greg Mitchell are tied at the top on 11-under with Maverick Antcliff and Phil Bannister.
PHOTO: Kazuma Kobori on his way to a 67 in the wind at Moonah Links today. Image: Daniel Pockett
Harrison Endycott knows that even a new putter might not be enough to produce the form reversal he needs to keep his PGA TOUR card at The RSM Championship this week in Georgia.
He also has enough perspective to know that whatever the outcome this week, there will be exciting opportunities awaiting him on the other side.
The PGA TOUR rookie from Sydney enters the final event of the FedEx Cup Fall Series 140th on the FedEx Cup standings and with a wide array of possibilities ahead of him:
It’s a lot to take in for a player with just one top-30 finish in his past 11 starts yet Endycott is thinking long term.
He and his team want to build a career on the PGA TOUR and, for a young man who has known tragedy of his own, Endycott got a recent reminder of the importance of perspective.
Two weeks ago at the World Wide Technology Championship, Endycott stayed with Colombian Camilo Villegas.
Villegas, who lost his daughter to brain cancer three years ago, finished in a tie for second that week to climb from 223rd to 147th in the FedEx Cup rankings which meant he could skip Second Stage and be exempt into Final Stage of Q School.
This past Sunday, Villegas won the Butterfield Bermuda Championship, his fifth on Tour and first in nine years.
In all that the pair discussed that week in Los Cabos, it was what Villegas showed Endycott that will stick with the Aussie for the remainder of his career.
“The first thing that Camilo did coming off that golf course on the Sunday, he was in the gym,” Endycott reveals.
“He was working, and there was one other person in there with him and it was Matt Kuchar (who also finished tied for second).
“Those are the one per centers that those top guys do so well.
“Rookie year, you’ve got to relearn all that.
“What he had to go through was absolutely awful. No one should ever have to deal with that.
“To see how he handles life and talk about how golf is and how life is, he deserves that win last week a million per cent.
“I’m trying to draw off that energy into this week.”
Ever honest, Endycott doesn’t shy away from how his 2023 season has panned out.
With two top-15 finishes in his first four starts it began with such promise but he would record just one more – at the RBC Canadian Open – prior to this week.
Yet the 27-year-old knows that this is just the beginning.
“It’s not the position I wanted to be in, obviously,” Endycott added.
“We all want to win out here but I think the outsider can forget just how hard this is. I’ve been away for close to 60 weeks these past two years so that’s a lot of different weeks of ups, downs, whatever you want to call it.
“It’s been a great learning curve. As much as I want to go and play well this week and do my job, we still have a job next year.
“We’re going to have a lot of opportunity next year and I’ve got another opportunity this week.”
This week also marks the final event of the season on both the DP World Tour and LPGA Tour.
Min Woo Lee has already done enough to secure his PGA TOUR card for 2024 and enters the DP World Tour Championship ninth in the Race to Dubai Ranking.
His sister, Minjee Lee, is one of five Aussies who can win the $US2 million winner’s cheque at the CME Globe Tour Championship in Florida while Asia-Pacific Amateur champion Jasper Stubbs is one of 15 Aussies teeing it up at the BNI Indonesian Masters.
Photo: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
Round 1 tee times AEDT
DP World Tour
DP World Tour Championship
Jumeirah Golf Estates, Earth Course, Dubai, UAE
4:20pm Sepp Straka, Lucas Herbert
5:15pm Pablo Larrazabal, Daniel Hillier (NZ)
7:05pm Nicolai Hojgaard, Min Woo Lee
7:35pm Ryan Fox (NZ), Adrian Meronk
Defending champion: Jon Rahm
Past Aussie winners: Nil
TV times: Live 6pm-12am Thursday, Friday; Live 7pm-12am Saturday; Live 7pm-11:30pm Sunday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
PGA TOUR
The RSM Classic
Sea Island Golf Club (Seaside Cse), St Simons Island, Georgia
12am* Ryan Moore, Aaron Baddeley, MJ Daffue
12:11am Sean O’Hair, Justin Lower, Harrison Endycott
12:22am Kevin Chappell, Greg Chalmers, Eric Cole
2:12am* Cameron Percy, Doc Redman, Ben Taylor
Defending champion: Adam Svensson
Past Aussie winners: Nil
TV times: Live 1am-7am Friday, Saturday; Live 5am-8am Sunday, Monday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
LPGA Tour
CME Group Tour Championship
Tiburón Golf Club (Gold Cse), Naples, Florida
11:55pm Sarah Kemp, Patty Tavatanakit
12:05am Stephanie Kyriacou, Bianca Pagdanganan
2:15am Grace Kim, Maja Stark
2:25am Carlota Ciganda, Hannah Green
4:15am Jin Young Ko, Minjee Lee
Defending champion: Lydia Ko
Past Aussie winners: Nil
TV times: Live 6am-9am Friday, Saturday, Sunday; Live 5:15am-8am Monday on Fox Sports 506 and Kayo.
Japan Golf Tour
Dunlop Phoenix Tournament
Phoenix Country Club, Miyazaki
10:40am Brad Kennedy, Ryo Katsumata, Yuta Uetake
11am Anthony Quayle, Daijiro Izumida, Taichi Nabetani
12:40pm Mitsumasa Tamura, Brendan Jones, Atomu Shigenaga
Defending champion: Kazuki Higa
Past Aussie winners: Graham Marsh (1976)
Asian Tour
BNI Indonesian Masters
Royale Jakarta Golf Club, Indonesia
10am* Wade Ormsby, Hung Chien-yao, Kosuke Hamamoto
10:30am Rashid Khan, Todd Sinnott, Ian Snyman
10:40am* Lee Chieh-po, Travis Smyth, Jaco Ahlers
11am Pavit Tangkamolprasert, Kevin Yuan, Bjorn Hellgren
11:10am Micah Lauren Shin, Terry Pilkadaris, Honey Baisoya
11:10am* Gaganjeet Bhullar, Jbe Kruger, Jasper Stubbs (a)
11:20am* Tom Power Horan, Bio Kim, Miguel Carballo
11:30am Chapchai Nirat, John Lyras, Shahriffuddin Ariffin
11:40am Rory Hie, Douglas Klein, Hanmil Jung
3pm Danthai Boonma, Taehee Lee, Zach Murray
3:20pm Richard T Lee, Scott Hend, Ben Campbell (NZ)
4:10pm Yongjun Bae, Jack Thompson, George Gandranata
3:20pm* Marcus Fraser, Pawin Ingkhapradit, Shiv Kapur
3:40pm* Andrew Dodt, Seungtaek Lee, Atiruj Winaicharoenchai
4pm* Ben Jones, Jeremy Gandon, Sam Brazel
4:10pm* Othman Almulla, Randy Abernata M Bintang (a), Nick Voke (NZ)
Defending champion: Sarit Suwannarut
Past Aussie winners: Nil
TV times: Live 5pm-6pm Thursday on Fox Sports 503; Live 6pm-9pm Thursday on Fox Sports 506; Live 5pm-6pm Friday on Fox Sports 503; Live 6pm-9pm Friday on Fox Sports 506; Live 3pm-7pm Saturday, Sunday on Fox Sports 507 and Kayo.
Ladies European Tour
Mallorca Ladies Open
Golf Son Muntaner, Spain
9:02pm Pauline Roussin, Kirsten Rudgeley, Meghan MacLaren
Defending champion: Inaugural event
Past Aussie winners: Nil
West Australian Haydn Barron will debut as a DP World Tour player at next week’s Fortinet Australian PGA Championship after securing a 2024 Tour card at Final Stage of Qualifying School in Spain.
Tied for fifth entering the final round of the gruelling six-round test at Infinitum Golf, Barron began the last day with three straight birdies from the second hole to set sail for one of the 33 cards that would be distributed by day’s end.
His lone bogey of the day came at the par-4 11th, parring his way safely into the clubhouse for a round of 2-under 69, 20-under par total, tie for 10th and one spot on the DP World Tour in 2024.
Barron was exempt into Final Stage by virtue of his finish on the 2022/2023 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit.
He played in this year’s Open Championship after finishing tied for fourth at the 2022 ISPS HANDA Australian Open and will now return home to start his rookie season on the DP World Tour at Royal Queensland Golf Club.
“Some of the toughest and most challenging golf I’ve ever played but we did it!” Barron said in a post to Instagram.
“Thank you to everyone who’s made this possible.”
Barron most recently finished tied for 25th at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship at St Andrews and was then runner-up to Ben Eccles at the CKB WA PGA Championship after only arriving in Kalgoorlie on the morning of the tournament.
While it was jubilation for Barron, it was heartbreak for fellow West Australian Hayden Hopewell.
A round of 2-under 69 meant that Hopewell finished two shots shy of the top-25 and ties cut-off, he and Connor McKinney securing Challenge Tour cards for next year by virtue of playing all six rounds.
Photo: Octavio Passos/Getty Images
DP World Tour Q School
Final Stage
Infinitum Golf (Lakes & Hills Cses), Tarragona, Spain
1 Freddy Schott 68-63-75-66-64-65—401
T7 Sam Jones (NZ) 68-69-70-65-68-66—406
T10 Haydn Barron 67-72-70-64-66-69—408
T42 Hayden Hopewell 73-65-69-69-71-69—416
T63 Connor McKinney 71-69-71-70-66-74—421
T79 Justin Warren 78-68-65-71—282
T79 Elvis Smylie 73-70-67-72—282
T98 Matias Sanchez 72-67-76-69—284
T128 James Marchesani 75-69-72-73—289
T135 Andre Lautee 73-71-72-75—291
WD Blake Windred 70-70—140
Victorian Andrew Martin has already locked away his DP World Tour playing rights for 2023/24 thanks to his strong Order of Merit finish last year, but he is still hungry for more Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia success.
One of the favourites for the Victorian PGA Championship at Moonah Links where he will defend his title starting on Thursday, the multiple Tour winner returned home last week following some overseas events for the Gippsland Super 6 in Warragul.
With a goal just to make it to the matchplay section on Sunday, Martin was pleased with how he performed on his return to Aussie soil, making the last 24 before being eliminated in the second round of six-hole match-play.
“After the first couple of rounds I probably surprised myself.. It was a lot better than I was expecting,” he said of his week in Warragul.
With his game in slightly better shape than he thought, Martin is primed to defend his Vic PGA title this week at Moonah Links.
“It’s sort of like a second home to me here (at Moonah), spending so much time living down here,” he said.
“It’s very familiar to me and it probably makes the week a little bit easier for me… very stress free lead-up.
“It’s probably a little bit softer underneath this year. I don’t think it’s going to run out as much on the fairways.”
Martin was made to work for his title last year, finally prevailing after a gruelling five-hole playoff down the challenging par-5 18th.
A short-game master, Martin is not known for his length on tour and was faced with not only the longest hole on the golf course in the playoff, but one of the longest hitters in Lincoln Tighe.
“Eighteen probably didn’t suit me as a hole,” he laughed.
“I knew if I got my drive away though, I’m very comfortable with the second shot… hopefully the putter gets hot like it did last year.”
In its over-100 year history, only a handful of players have won multiple Vic PGA championships, and even less have defended their title. One who has though is Moonah Links course designer, and five-time Open Championship winner, Peter Thomson.
With company like that, Martin is eager to add his name to the list.
“Being a Victorian, it’s up there. You look at the trophy and there’s a lot great names on it, so it’d be nice to get mine on there again,” he said.
The Vic PGA is played in conjunction with the Victorian Amateur Challenge, which sees a number of amateurs playing alongside the pros in teams, in a modified four-ball best-ball nett stroke format.
High-profile amateurs in the field include Sir Ian Botham, Andy Lee, Jess Hosking, and Brendan Fevola.
The Victorian PGA Championship kicks on Thursday, with the final two rounds live and free on Kayo Freebies, and on Fox Sports on Foxtel. Click HERE for Kayo Freebies.
Order of Merit leader Andre Stolz has broken free of some indifferent form to claim the inaugural Glenn Joyner Australian Golf Club Legends Pro-Am at The Australian Golf Club.
There wasn’t a dry eye in the house when Joyner triumphed at The Australian Golf Club 12 months ago in the midst of his fight against bowel cancer.
It would prove to be his final win on the PGA Legends Tour, Joyner passing away in August a week shy of his 59th birthday.
In a field boasting household names such as John Senden, Stephen Allan, Ian Baker-Finch and Rodger Davis, it was Stolz who came out on top, the former PGA TOUR winner finishing one clear of Scott Barr and Brendan Chant with a round of 2-under 70.
“I feel honoured to win the inaugural Glenn Joyner Pro-Am against probably the strongest field we’ve had all year,” said Stolz.
“I’ve never had much success around The Australian and, after the way I played last week at Richmond, I wasn’t expecting this.”
Stolz was also full of praise for the presentation of the golf course just two weeks out from the ISPS HANDA Australian Open.
“The course was amazing,” Stolz added.
“Probably the best fairways and slickest greens I’ve ever seen in Australia.
“I just wish I was playing the Australian Open this year.
“Thank you to Simon Jagot for running such a great event and to everyone that has helped me along the way.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
1 Andre Stolz 70
T2 Scott Barr 71
T2 Brendan Chant 71
T4 Nigel Lane 72
T4 Stephen Allan 72
T4 David Bransdon 72
T4 John Senden 72
NEXT UP
The PGA Legends Tour moves on to the New South Wales Golf Club on Wednesday for the New South Wales Golf Club Legends Pro-Am presented by Porsche Centre Sydney South.
