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Eighteen outstanding individuals and organisations were honoured at the 2023 NSW Golf Industry Awards at The Crown Barangaroo overnight.
Golf NSW, Jack Newton Junior Golf (JNJG), the NSW Golf Course Superintendents Association, Golf Management Australia – NSW, and the PGA of Australia – NSW/ ACT Division celebrated the finest contributions to the sport over the past 12 months.
Two of the State’s foremost prospects, Cameron Davis and Grace Kim, are the 2023 Golf NSW Male and Female Players of the Year.
Kim, a member of Avondale Golf Club, secured her first win on the LPGA Tour with a breakout performance in the Lotte Championship at the Hoakalei Country Club in Oahu, Hawaii, to claim Female Player of the Year.
Impressive finishes in the Women’s PGA Championship (13th) and the Women’s US Open (14th) saw the 22-year-old from Greenacre climb to a career-high 55th place on the Rolex Rankings.
US-based Cameron Davis claimed the Male Player of the Year award for his impressive run, which began with his appearance in the 2022 Presidents Cup.
The former Roseville local and an ambassador for Monash Country Club also made the finals of the US PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup Playoffs this year.
Jim Byrnes received the Golf NSW Volunteer of the Year Award. As a team manager, organiser and benefactor, Mr Byrnes has been a stalwart of the St. Michael’s Golf Club’s representative scene for many years. A one-time director of the Little Bay Club, Mr Byrnes also readily volunteered time to support national events at the Club, including this year’s Australian Amateur and the Interstate Teams Championship.
The Services to Golf in NSW was awarded to retiring Golf NSW Board Member and universally respected Rules Official, Mr Frank Gal. The award honours his tireless contribution to the sport as an administrator and untiring dedication to the game as a rules official at events ranging from junior competitions and interclub Pennant to State and National Championships.
The complete list of 2023 NSW Golf Industry Award Winners are:
Golf NSW
Club of the Year – Metropolitan, presented by Nano Bubble Technology: Long Reef Golf Club
Club of the Year – Country, presented by Australian Super: Charlestown Golf Golf Club
Volunteer of the Year: Jim Byrnes
Player of the Year – Male: Cameron Davis
Player of the Year – Female: Grace Kim
Services to Golf in NSW: Frank Gal
Jack Newton Junior Golf
Junior Club Of the Year: Club Catalina Country Club.
PGA NSW
PGA NSW/ACT Tournament of the Year: Hawks Nest Beachside Pro-Am.
PGA NSW/ACT Coach of the Year – Game Development: Jason Laws (Jason Laws Golf Academy).
PGA NSW/ACT Coach of the Year – High Performance: Khan Pullen (Golf NSW).
PGA NSW/ACT Management Professional of the Year: Ben Russell (Long Reef Golf Club).
PGA NSW/ACT Club Professional of the Year: David Northey (Concord Golf Club).
GMA NSW
Future Leaders Scholarship: Geoff Black (Elanora Country Club).
Women’s Management Scholarship: Karah Chapman (Oatlands Golf Club).
Manager of the Year, Supported by MiClub: Andrew Laplain (Cumberland Country Golf Club).
Fellowship of GMA NSW Recipients: Kieran Semple (The Coast Golf Club) and Cathy Neagle (Elanora Country Club).
NSWGCSA
Outstanding Achievement Award, Sponsored by Living Turf: Dean Hopper (Lakeside Camden).
Assistant Superintendent of the Year, Sponsored by Waterwise Consulting: Charlie Bolte (Cromer Golf Club).
Superintendent of the Year, Sponsored by Australian Turf Projects: Malcolm Harris (Northbridge Golf Club).
Two tournaments for the price of one. That’s the unique position the Gippsland Super 6 holds on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia schedule.
Now in its fifth year, the Gippsland Super 6 at Warragul Country Club 90 minutes south-east from Melbourne starts out as a 54-hole stroke play event over three days before morphing into a final day of six-hole knockout matches culminating in a two-man finale.
Two-time champion Tom Power Horan is not in the field this year and neither is 2021 champ Jack Thompson or 2020 victor Marcus Fraser, opening the door for a new winner to be crowned in 2023.
Last week’s Queensland PGA champion, Phoenix Campbell, has opted not to turn professional so is not in the field but fellow Victorian amateur and recent Asia-Pacific Amateur champion, Jasper Stubbs, will pit his game against the pros after taking up one of six ‘Elite Amateur’ invitations.
Coffs Harbour’s Jack Pountney and Orange’s James Conran played their way into the field this week by virtue of their top-10 finishes at Nudgee Golf Club, Pountney finishing one back of Campbell in a tie for second while Conran shot 67 in the final round to earn a share of ninth.
Leading by one with four holes to play, a bogey at the par-5 17th would see Pountney finish one shot shy of forcing a playoff yet the 25-year-old was proud of how his game held up playing in contention for the first time.
“It was pretty cool to be honest,” Pountney said of his Sunday in the hunt.
“I was quite comfortable out there, just a couple of errors coming home.
“Definitely a huge boost going forward knowing that you can get yourself into those situations.
“Now it’s just wanting to get back in there more and more.
“Hopefully I can take the form into Gippsland and go one better.”
Three of this season’s winners – Lachlan Barker, Ben Eccles and Austin Bautista – will be out to further strengthen their positions as the top three on the Order of Merit as the likes of Pountney, Lawry Flynn, Blake Proverbs and Nick Voke look to build on their runner-up finishes in Brisbane.
At the completion of 54 holes on Saturday, the top 24 players advance to the match play section. A playoff will be used if there is a tie for the 24th and final spot.
The top eight players after 54 holes receive a bye in the first round of match play and must then win four matches to be crowned champion.
In the four previous editions of the Gippsland Super 6, Jack Thompson is the only winner to come from outside the top eight after the stroke play section.
In 2021, Thompson finished tied for 17th after 54 holes and needed extra holes to defeat Jackson Bugdalski in the first round of match play.
He knocked off No.1 seed Michael Sim in the second round and then defeated Brett Rankin and Rohan Blizard on his way to facing Jordan Zunic in the final, again requiring a playoff to clinch his maiden win on Tour.
You can watch the Gippsland Super 6 live and free on Kayo Freebies, available on Foxtel on Fox Sports.
Coverage starts at 4pm on Saturday with the excitement of the knockout matches to begin from 2pm on Sunday AEDT.
HOW TO FOLLOW
For live scoring and the latest news visit www.pga.org.au. Exclusive content and tournament updates will also be posted regularly on the PGA Tour of Australasia’s social media channels.
Instagram: @pgatouraus
Twitter: @PGAofAustralia
Facebook: @PGAofAustralia, @PGATourAus
Official hashtag: #GippslandSuper6
HOW TO WATCH
Catch the action of the third and final rounds on Saturday and Sunday, broadcast live, on Foxtel (Channel 505) and Kayo Sports.
Round 3: Saturday, 4pm-7pm AEDT
Round 4: Sunday, 2pm-7pm AEDT
FORMER CHAMPIONS
2022 Tom Power Horan
2021 Jack Thompson
2020 Marcus Fraser
2019 Tom Power Horan
COURSE RECORD
61 Chris Wood (Round 2, 2021)
COURSE DESIGNER
Syd Bennett (1926)
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Austin Bautista, 2023 Webex Players Series SA champion
Brett Coletta, 2023 Webex Players Series Hunter Valley champion
Ben Eccles, 2023 WA PGA champion
Michael Hendry, 2023 Vic Open champion
Lachlan Barker, 2023 PNG Open winner
Jasper Stubbs, 2023 Asia-Pacific Amateur champion
Nick Voke, 2023 Queensland PGA runner-up
A birdie at the first playoff hole at Second Stage of Qualifying School has taken Australian Matias Sanchez a step closer to securing a DP World Tour card in 2024.
Only one of the four Second Stage venues were able to finalise qualifiers for Final Stage in Spain later this week, Sanchez and fellow Victorian Andre Lautee both advancing from Isla Canela Links.
While Lautee booked his place with a tie for 13th, Sanchez was forced to go extra holes, securing the final of 24 spots with a birdie under pressure.
Sanchez and Lautee finished 1-2 at First Stage of Qualifying School at Rosebud Country Club and will be joined at Infinitum Golf by West Australian Hayden Hopewell.
With heavy winds wreaking havoc across all four Spanish venues, Hopewell will have to wait for official confirmation but, sitting in a tie for fourth at Fontanals Golf Club, he is guaranteed to advance.
It will be an anxious wait for a number of Aussies though, who will play an extra day to state their claim for a spot at Final Stage.
West Australian Connor McKinney has a share of the lead heading into the final round at Las Pinaillas, James Marchesani (T21) and Haydn Barron (T45) also in the hunt for one of the 23 qualifying positions.
New South Welshman Blake Windred has completed 72 holes but will have to tee it up in an eight-for-five playoff to determine the 23 qualifiers from Desert Springs Golf Club.
Elsewhere over the weekend, evergreen Brad Kennedy finished sixth at the Mynavi ABC Championship in Japan, Jack Thompson’s tie for 11th was the best of the Aussies at the Volvo China Open and Lucas Herbert’s tie for 31st was our best at the PGA TOUR’s World Wide Technology Championship in Mexico.
Results
DP World Tour Q School
Second Stage – Isla Canela Links
Isla Canela Links, Huelva, Spain
1 Philipp Katich 68-65-66-68—267
T13 Andre Lautee 71-66-67-71—275
T19 Matias Sanchez 70-70-69-68—277
Second Stage – Golf Las Pinaillas
Golf Las Pinaillas, Albacete, Spain
Through 54 holes
T1 Connor McKinney 72-71-64—207
T21 James Marchesani 71-72-72—215
T45 Haydn Barron 77-72-70—219
70 Cooper Eccleston 79-78-78—235
WD Lucas Higgins 84-81
Second Stage – Fontanals Golf Club
Fontanals Golf Club, Girona, Spain
1 Hamish Brown 69-70-63-69—271
T4 Sam Jones (NZ) 67-68-70-70—275
T4 Hayden Hopewell 74-69-65-67—275
T29 Kade McBride 72-71-70-70—283
Second Stage – Desert Springs Resort
Desert Springs Golf Club, Almería, Spain
1 Jannik De Bruyn 67-67-66-67—267
T19 Blake Windred 67-69-68-76—280
T68 James Hydes (NZ) 75-73-76-70—294
PGA TOUR
World Wide Technology Championship
El Cardonal at Diamante, Los Cabos, Mexico
1 Erik van Rooyen 68-64-66-63—261 $US1.476m
T31 Lucas Herbert 69-67-66-70—272 $46,916
T59 Cameron Percy 62-72-70-72—276 $18,204
MC Harrison Endycott 69-74—143
LPGA Tour
Toto Japan Classic
Taiheiyo Club (Minori Cse), Omitama, Ibaraki
1 Mone Inami 64-68-65-69—266 $US300,000
T40 Hannah Green 70-68-68-70—276 $9,594
T63 Sarah Kemp 71-67-75-69—282 $4,397
Asian Tour
Volvo China Open
Hidden Grace Golf Club, Shenzhen, China
1 Sarit Suwannarut 70-70-65-64—269 $US270,000
T11 Jack Thompson 67-70-72-71—280 $27,412.50
T19 Ben Campbell (NZ) 69-70-72-71—282 $16,637.50
T25 Scott Hend 75-69-71-68—283 $13,650
T50 Douglas Klein 70-72-75-70—287 $6,750
53 Travis Smyth 74-69-71-74—288 $6,150
T54 John Lyras 72-69-67-81—289 $5,700
T64 Todd Sinnott 70-74-76-75—295 $4,200
MC Sam Brazel 75-70—145
MC Zach Murray 74-72—146
MC Marcus Fraser 73-73—146
MC Terry Pilkadaris 71-75—146
MC Kevin Yuan 72-76—148
MC Tom Power Horan 75-75—150
MC Andrew Dodt 75-78—153
MC Kieran Muir (NZ) 79-81—160
Japan Golf Tour
Mynavi ABC Championship
ABC Golf Club, Kato, Hyogo, Japan
1 Keita Nakajima 63-69-66-66—264 ¥24m
6 Brad Kennedy 68-67-68-68—271 ¥4.32m
T40 Brendan Jones 70-71-71-71—283 ¥480,000
T51 Anthony Quayle 70-73-72-71—286 ¥308,400
T55 Dylan Perry 70-71-74-72—287 ¥284,160
PGA TOUR Champions
TimberTech Championship
The Old Course at Broken Sound Club, Boca Raton, Florida
1 Padraig Harrington 67-66-64—197 $US350,000
T14 Rod Pampling 70-72-67—209 $37,400
T25 Steven Alker (NZ) 69-72-71—212 $20,064
T25 Stuart Appleby 72-65-75—212 $20,064
T39 Richard Green 73-72-71—216 $10,780
Legends Tour
Farmfoods European Senior Masters
La Manga Club (South Cse), Spain
1 Patrik Sjoland 67-70-68—205
T6 Michael Long (NZ) 72-70-72—214
T22 Michael Campbell (NZ) 76-73-69—218
T42 Peter Fowler 76-74-73—223
One of the stars of Europe’s recent Ryder Cup victory, Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre, has joined the star-studded fields for Australian golf’s two majors – the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship and ISPS HANDA Australian Open.
Ranked 54th on the Official World Golf Ranking, MacIntyre will come to Australia with two major goals – a third DP World Tour career victory and regaining a place in the world top 50 which would guarantee his place in all four of golf’s major championships in 2024.
The 27-year-old made a memorable debut Ryder Cup appearance against the United States in Italy in September, going undefeated as an automatic selection, including a win in his final-day singles match against US Open champion Wyndham Clark.
Earlier in the year, he was involved in one of golf’s best final-round duels in 2023 when he went head-to-head with Rory McIlroy over the finishing holes at the Scottish Open, eventually losing to the former world No.1 by a shot after closing with a sensational round of 64.
With six top-10s this year, MacIntyre is currently ranked eighth on the DP World Tour’s season-long Race to Dubai standings.
“I’ve always loved Australia and have family there, so I’m really looking forward to the fortnight playing in Brisbane and Sydney,” MacIntyre said.
“The Australian PGA and Australian Open are two tournaments with great history and I’d love to be up there in both.
“There’s been some great examples in the past of players winning in Australia and then going on to big things in the following year.”
The Fortinet Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland (November 23-26) and ISPS HANDA Australian Open at The Australian and The Lakes (November 30-December 3) are co-sanctioned by the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and DP World Tour.
Joining MacIntyre as part of an impressive Scottish contingent from the DP World Tour in both tournaments will be Grant Forrest, currently ranked 36th on the Race to Dubai; Connor Syme (44th); and Calum Hill (51st).
A winner of the 2021 Hero Open in his homeland, Forrest has six top-10 finishes in 2023, highlighted by a tie for third at the Irish Open, while Syme had a great run during August-September, picking up four top-10s, including an equal third at the European Masters.
Hill, a DP World Tour winner in 2021 at the Cazoo Classic in England, was third at this year’s ISPS HANDA Championship won by Australia’s Lucas Herbert and fourth at the British Masters claimed by New Zealand’s Daniel Hillier.
The new additions for the Summer of Golf join a star-studded list that includes leading Australians Cam Smith, Cam Davis, Adam Scott, Min Woo Lee, Lucas Herbert and Marc Leishman; US PGA TOUR players Patrick Rodgers and Nick Hardy; and defending ISPS HANDA Australian Open champion Adrian Meronk, of Poland.
Tickets and premium experiences for both the ISPS HANDA Australian Open and Fortinet Australian PGA Championship are available via ticketek.com
The Fortinet Australian PGA Championship is proudly supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland, and Brisbane City Council via Brisbane Economic Development Agency.
The ISPS HANDA Australian Open is proudly supported by the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency Destination NSW and naming rights partner ISPS HANDA
For a long time on Sunday, the shot that would win the Queensland PGA Championship proved elusive. In the end, it would be the decision of 22-year-old Victorian amateur Phoenix Campbell to take dead aim at the flag on the 72nd hole that would prove the difference.
As overnight leader Andrew Kelly faded from view over the back nine at Nudgee Golf Club in Brisbane, a pack of potential champions jostled for top spot on the leaderboard.
Queenslander Lawry Flynn went out in 5-under 31 to enter the frame, Coffs Harbour product Jack Pountney led by one stroke with four holes to play, rookie Harrison Crowe (66) matched the day’s best score to post 8-under in the clubhouse and reigning Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winner David Micheluzzi gave himself a 10-foot putt for birdie on the final hole to match Campbell’s 9-under total.
Micheluzzi’s putt took a piece of the left side of the hole as it slipped by, leaving Campbell to create history as the first amateur winner of the Queensland PGA Championship.
And it was a 7-iron with a jolt of extra adrenaline that got it done.
“I knew the 7-iron was a good club,” Campbell said of his tee shot on the par-3 18th that was playing 164 metres.
“Walking up there, it was never going to be anything other than that.
“I said to Ben, my caddie, on the tee, we were talking about line and I said, ‘I’m going dead at it. Let’s have a crack.’
“I was a little bit amped up. It definitely went a bit further but it was good to come back and have a crack at the putt.”
Three strokes in front as he teed off in driving rain on Sunday morning, Kelly missed a short putt for par at the first hole to set an ominous tone for the round.
A double-bogey at the par-4 14th would be the fatal blow, leaving the stage for a host of contenders to step into the spotlight.
A Monday qualifier who builds concrete pools when he’s not playing golf, Pountney made eagle on five and birdie on seven to stake his claim.
He showed no signs of nerves until his tee shot on 17 drifted left on the wind, finding the penalty area left of the fairway. He failed to get up-and-down from left of the green and then missed a long-range birdie try on 18.
Micheluzzi was left to rue a couple of short putts that lipped out while Kiwi Nick Voke three-putted for par at the par-5 15th and then made bogey on 16 to also fall one shy.
Not selected in the 13-strong Australian contingent that played the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship a week ago, Campbell admitted that he drew inspiration from Jasper Stubbs’ thrilling playoff win at Royal Melbourne.
“It was awesome for Jasper to get up last week but it kind of brought home that’s anything possible and I can give myself a chance if I play well,” said Campbell, who became the first amateur winner of the Queensland PGA in the tournament’s 97-year history.
“For him to go and do what he did, definitely motivated me to bring my game this week.”
A member of the Golf Australia High Performance Squad the past two years, Campbell will now sit down and decide whether to turn professional and make immediate use of the winner’s category now at his disposal.
“I’m definitely leaning towards turning pro,” said Campbell, who won the Riversdale Cup earlier this year.
“With winner’s category now it’s definitely heading that way.
“I’ll talk to my team, see what they say, what they recommend and we’ll take it from there.”
With Campbell ineligible for the winner’s prize money, the seven players who finished second each earned $18,085.71 while Kiwi Kazuma Kobori banked $6,070.83 for his tie for ninth in his first start as a professional.
More to come
A birdie from 10 feet on the final hole has clinched Simon Tooman a drought-breaking victory at the 36-hole Cowra Lamb Legends Pro-Am at Cowra Golf Club.
Playing in the final group with NSW Senior Open champion Adam Henwood, Tooman made it consecutive rounds of 4-under 67 for an 8-under total to finish one clear of Andre Stolz (66), Steven Conran (66), Grahame Stinson (66) and brand new PGA Legends Tour member, David Bransdon (67).
Tied for sixth a week ago at Thurgoona Country Club Resort, Tooman was thrilled to close out his first win in more than three years.
“It’s been three-and-a-half years since I’ve had a win. Last time it was at Cape Schanck and that was a long time ago, so I’m rapt.”
HOW THE WINNING ROUND UNFOLDED
Two shots back of Henwood at the start of the final round, Tooman had not bridged the deficit at all through the first five holes.
As Henwood made his move with three straight birdies from the sixth hole, Tooman not only kept pace but moved to within one courtesy of two birdies and an eagle at the par-5 eighth.
A birdie at 11 got Tooman to 8-under for the tournament only to drop back to 7-under with a bogey at the par-3 16th.
Courtesy of a gentle reminder from Henwood on the tee, Tooman arrived at the 18th knowing that a birdie would be enough to win, holing a tricky downhill putt from 10 feet to seal the deal.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
“I’d played the course three times so I had an idea (on the final putt).
“Adam said to me going up the 18th, ‘You’ve got to birdie this to win’, because we weren’t looking at the scoreboards.
“I am looking forward to the Senior PGA Championship next week and I like that golf course.
“Hopefully I’ll play well.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
1 Simon Tooman 67-67—134
T2 Andre Stolz 69-66—135
T2 Steve Conran 69-66—135
T2 Grahame Stinson 69-66—135
T2 David Bransdon 68-67—135
6 Adam Henwood 65-72—137
NEXT UP
The next stop on the PGA Legends Tour is the Moss Vale Legends Pro-Am on Monday at Moss Vale Golf Club followed by the $150,000 Nova Employment Australian PGA Senior Championship at Richmond Golf Club.
The reigning Order of Merit winner and a part-time pool builder from Coffs Harbour loom as Andrew Kelly’s greatest threats heading into the final round of the Queensland PGA Championship in Brisbane.
The 36-year-old Victorian is 12-under and three strokes clear through three rounds at Nudgee Golf Club, 54-hole co-leader Nick Voke (72) joint second at 9-under with David Micheluzzi, whose 6-under 66 was Saturday’s best round.
Monday qualifier Jack Pountney (68) is outright fourth at 8-under with Daniel Beckmann playing his way into the top five with a round of 5-under 67.
Kelly (69) required physio treatment on a back complaint prior to teeing off on Saturday but took until his penultimate hole to record a bogey, just his second of the week.
A sand save at the first hole set the tone for the day as Kelly played within himself and expertly navigated his way around Nudgee’s Kurrai course.
Kelly was the 54-hole leader at the NT PGA Championship in August before finishing tied for third and will embrace another opportunity to play in the final group on Sunday at Nudgee.
“This is what I’ve been working for so I’m really looking forward to it,” said Kelly, who is based at Peninsula-Kingswood Golf Club and coaches part-time at Rossdale Golf Club in Melbourne.
“I’ll be nervous, of course, and you don’t know what can happen tomorrow.
“If I wake up feeling a bit nicer tomorrow, my game’s fine.
“A lot of the birdies I made today were from hitting good wedges and short irons and that suits me, especially at the moment.”
Looming large in Kelly’s rearview mirror is Micheluzzi.
A three-win season earned Micheluzzi the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit crown last year, opening the door to play two majors and events on both the PGA TOUR and DP World Tour.
Highlighted by a 61 in the final round to win Webex Players Series Sydney, Micheluzzi came from behind in all three wins last season and is poised to strike again in Brisbane.
“Hopefully I’m in with a fighting chance and hopefully I can draw on some experiences,” Micheluzzi said of his three-shot deficit.
“I’m in a good frame of mind knowing that I can come from behind.
“I’ve played enough golf now to know to not worry about the situation and just worry about what I can control, which is hitting good golf shots.
“If I’m in with a fighting chance I feel like I can do that.
“I’m just glad to be back. I’m just happy to be back playing tournaments in Aus.
“I’ve missed it.”
The most unlikely contender to emerge is Pountney.
He made national headlines for making a hole-in-one in a club competition at Coffs Harbour Golf Club as an eight-year-old in 2007 and was on the bag when close mate Blake Windred won the Victorian PGA two years ago.
He has won less than $2,500 in prize money in the past two years himself, supplementing his golf career by building concrete pools in Coffs Harbour.
But rather than pouring concrete or tying steel, Pountney hopes to turn the screws on Kelly and take a crucial step in solidifying his professional golf career.
“It’s good to be able to get a pay cheque from here this week instead of slogging it out,” said the 25-year-old, who shot 68 on Monday to lead qualifying.
“I felt like all the pressure was on the Monday and then now, whatever happens, happens.
“Today was a good test. I was a bit nervy on the first tee shot but once I settled in it was fine.”
Four-over through his first seven holes on Thursday, Victorian Cameron John (67) climbed into a share of sixth on day three with Gold Coast rookie Mitchell Varley (74).
Darcy Brereton played his way into the top 10 with a round that could only be described as colourful.
Brereton had seven birdies, an eagle, two bogeys and two double-bogeys for 3-under 69 and 5-under total, tied with Queensland’s Chris Wood (71).
The final round of the Queensland PGA Championship will be broadcast live on Foxtel and Kayo from 12:30pm-5:30pm Sunday AEDT.
Photo: Candice High Photography
Victorian Konrad Ciupek is ready to step up in class after recording a one-stroke win at the Gorilla Ladders Box Hill Pro-Am at Box Hill Golf Club.
The maiden victory of Cuipek’s young career on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series, Ciupek set up his day with birdies at each of his opening two holes.
Starting from the fifth tee, Ciupek made birdie at the par 5 and then followed it with a birdie at the par-3 sixth.
Three birdies and a bogey in the space of five holes on the back nine moved Ciupek out to 3-under, coming up with what would be the deciding birdie at the short par-4 first for a round of 4-under 67.
That was good enough to finish one clear of Caleb Bovalina (68) and Carl Smedley with Ben Ford (69) and Michael Choi rounding out the top five.
The 25-year-old’s next start will be the Monday qualifier for the Gippsland Super 6 tournament starting Thursday, the first of four Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia qualifiers he hopes to advance from.
“The next four weeks I’m entered for the pre-qualifying for the four Tour events,” Ciupek said.
“Fingers crossed I can get through a few of those, play well and make the most of it.
“This win does give me a lot of confidence. It’s been an up and down start to my pro career over the last year or so but this definitely gives me a lot of confidence to see that my good golf can stand up.”
Despite his strong start, Ciupek resisted the temptation to monitor the leaderboard until an unintended glance close to home.
“I didn’t really know where I sat all day, to be honest,” said Ciupek.
“I accidentally had a look on one hole and saw that I was maybe second or third but after that I tried to stay away from it and stick to my process.
“I had some tricky holes coming in but I kept my head and I was really happy to finish it off.”
Although he shot 79 to finish in a tie for first, Kew Golf Club Director of Golf Simon Angliss produced one of the highlights of the day with a hole-in-one on the sixth hole, hitting 6-iron from 159 metres.
The next event on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series is the Bite Me Bakehouse Asquith Pro-Am at Asquith Golf Club in Sydney.
Kiwi Nick Voke birdied his final three holes to shoot 10-under 62 and earn a share of the lead at the halfway mark of the Queensland PGA Championship at Nudgee Golf Club.
Smarting after a double-bogey and bogey in his final four holes for 73 on Thursday, Voke set Nudgee alight in overcast conditions on Friday morning.
Teeing off from the 10th hole, Voke’s first birdie came at the par-3 11th and he would add seven more along with an eagle at the par-5 fourth to smash the previous course record of 7-under 65 shared by 2021 champion Anthony Quayle and Haydn Barron.
His 36-hole total of 9-under was matched late on Friday afternoon by Victorian Andrew Kelly (66) with Monday qualifier Mitchell Varley (64) just one stroke off the lead.
Heavy rain lashed the course late in Round 2 with the cut-line moving out to 1-over as the final groups completed their rounds, 61 players including four amateurs advancing to the weekend.
West Australian Ben Ferguson (69) is the next best at 6-under followed by New Zealand’s Kerry Mountcastle (65), Jake Hughes (69) and New South Wales pair Harrison Crowe (70) and Andrew Campbell (71).
Voke only flew into Brisbane from the United States on Monday and, as fifth alternate, faced the possibility of flying straight to China for the Volvo China Open.
Instead, he has bunked in with fellow Iowa State alumni and current Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winner, Lachlan Barker, and played his way to the top of the leaderboard with a career-best round.
It was during his stint at Iowa State that Voke shot 10-under 61 but left his run late to claim a slice of history at Nudgee.
“I eagled the par 5, the fourth hole, and that got me to seven (under) and then I missed a short one (for birdie) on the next hole,” said Voke.
“I was thinking anywhere around 7 or 8-under would be a really good score but then I got on the driveable par 4, the seventh hole, and I’ve just ripped this 3-wood just over the green.
“That was a really big moment, up-and-down there. Chipped in on the next and then I’m 9-under with one to go.
“The nerves are there, you can feel the adrenaline, you can feel the moment and I was just really happy that I flushed my driving iron, hit an 8-iron to 10 feet and walked it in.
“It was a really nice way to handle that moment.”
Voke’s record round sent a shockwave through the field… not that Kelly noticed.
The 36-year-old who coaches part-time at Rossdale Golf Club estimates that he has quit playing professionally “three or four times” but was tied for third at the NT PGA Championship in August.
Like Voke, it was a late flurry of three straight birdies from the 12th hole that converted a good round into something more significant, his only bogey through two rounds coming at the par-4 16th.
“I thought, maybe it’s just better to have that out of the way,” said Kelly after going 33 holes bogey-free.
“It sounds a bit odd but I have a lot of bogey-free rounds. It doesn’t mean that I have 10 birdies when I do it, but I do have a fair few bogey-free rounds.”
Three-under overnight, Kelly was blissfully unaware as to the carnage Voke had wreaked just 20 minutes before he teed off.
“I didn’t look but 10-under is pretty ridiculous,” said Kelly.
“Nick has a lot of good results but I didn’t actually know that he’d 10. I’d just assumed he probably shot five and five or something like that.”
Varley’s round of 8-under 64 would have earned course record status had it come a day earlier.
As it is, the 23-year-old from Sanctuary Cove on the Gold Coast is grateful to be in the field after a near mishap in qualifying.
Although he shot 2-under 70, he signed for a 1-under 71, which would ultimately prove to be just enough to avoid a nine-for-one playoff.
A former junior pennants player at Nudgee, Varley made the turn in 3-under before catching fire with five birdies in six holes in just his third appearance in such company.
“It’s just trying to adapt to the new atmosphere,” said Varley, who turned professional at the start of the year.
“Obviously it’s a little bit different from amateur events but just trying to focus on what I can control and keep it going.”
The final two rounds of the Queensland PGA Championship will be broadcast live on Foxtel and Kayo from 2:30pm-5:30pm Saturday and 12:30pm-5:30pm Sunday AEDT.
The 2023 PGA Associate National Championship has finished in dramatic fashion with Levi Sclater winning in a playoff over Xander Basson at Cobram Barooga Golf Club.
The pair were tied at 9-under after 72 holes, and a sudden-death playoff that lasted three holes was required to decide a winner.
Sclater played steady golf all week, while Basson, an international entrant from South Africa, climbed the leaderboard on the final day with a 6-under 66.
Originally from Sale in Victoria’s south-east, Sclater is currently in his first year in the Membership Pathway Program (MPP), working out of Rossdale Golf Club in Melbourne.
A long par save on the second playoff hole from Sclater meant that a third hole was needed. Basson went long with his second shot and was unable to get up-and-down which handed the championship to Sclater.
“I think I had two bogey-free rounds, and really didn’t do a heap wrong the whole week,” he said.
“It’s awesome to win, I’m super stoked.
“At the start of the day, that’s all I really wanted, and I just believed in myself and finally got it done in a playoff.”
Sclater’s win books him a spot in the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland later this month, where he will be teeing it up alongside the likes of Cam Smith, Lucas Herbert, Min Woo Lee, Adam Scott and many more Aussie and international stars.
“I can’t wait to go up there and give it a crack with the best pros in Australia,” he said.
No stranger to pro events, Sclater has already competed against some of the country’s best, but admits the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship is a step up.
“I’ve played in a couple of Gippsland Super 6s, and played in a Vic Open.
“This will be a lot bigger than that.”
Another highlight from the final round was Avondale’s Linus Yip’s hole-in-one on the 156m fifth hole.
The PGA Associate National Championship brings together the best MPP students each year to battle it out.
A key part of the MPP is performing consistently in tournament golf throughout the year, and this week is the pinnacle.
PGA Australia Membership Manager Luke Bower was pleased with the course and the thrilling finish.
“Cobram-Barooga was in fantastic condition. The staff did an amazing job,” he said.
“On the third and final playoff hole, Levi had a tricky little pitch to a cut pin over the bunker and hit to about a foot.”
Sclater is in good hands at Rossdale Golf Club working under recently awarded Club Professional of the Year, Michael Moore.
