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Australian Cameron Smith made it five top-10s from eight starts as Cam Davis locked up his 2025 Masters invite on an enthralling final day at Augusta National Golf Club.
World No.1 and 2022 champion Scottie Scheffler further entrenched his status as the dominant figure in men’s golf with a four-stroke triumph, fending off the brave charge of Swedish debutant Ludvig Aberg (69) with a final round of 4-under 68 and 11-under total.
Exempt through until 2027 due to his 2022 Open Championship win, Smith’s tie for sixth added to his impressive record at The Masters, a hole-out eagle from the bunker at the par-5 second the highlight of his closing round of 1-under 71.
Playing in the group behind in just his second appearance at Augusta, Davis made bogeys at one and five to effectively end his charge before making the turn, a double-bogey on 17 an unfortunate end to his round of 3-over 75.
A tie for 12th ensures Davis will be in the field for the 2025 edition as Smith continued his love affair with a golf course that plays to his creative mindset.
Renowned as one of the world’s best putters, Smith endured a frustrating week with the flatstick, joining Scheffler and Tommy Fleetwood as the only players in the field not to post an over-par round all week.
“It’s just a frustrating week I think. Can’t really say much more than that,” Smith told Fox Sports.
“I hit the ball how I know I needed to and put my ball in the right spots, the putts just didn’t fall this week.
“It was very frustrating. I feel like that’s as good as I’ve played around here.
“It’s a creative golf course and I’d love to think I play my best golf when I’m creative.
“There’s so many shots that you get around here that you don’t get the rest of the year.
“It’s just such a cool place.”
ICYMI: Cam Smith is doing Cam Smith things Sunday at Augusta.#themasters pic.twitter.com/jx1XKCvzdk
— PGA of Australia (@PGAofAustralia) April 14, 2024
Like Smith, Min Woo Lee eagled the par-5 second on his way to a final round of 3-under 69 and tie for 22nd, level with fellow Australian Adam Scott (72) at 4-over for the championship.
Given he came into the week nursing a broken finger, it was another step forward in Lee’s ultimate ambition of one day donning the green jacket.
“There’s a couple things I need to clean up, but overall I think it’s a solid sign,” said Lee.
“Obviously not the best prep with the finger and the flu. I guess I can kind of say that one good week of practice there I couldn’t really do, so it was a bit of rest for me.
“Hopefully I can prep better for the next one.”
“If I’m in, I’ll play for sure.”@JDayGolf has put any conjecture to bed, confirming he wants to represent the @AUSOlympicTeam at @Paris2024, writes @TonyWebeck.https://t.co/nChw613BqI
— PGA of Australia (@PGAofAustralia) April 14, 2024
Declaring his desire to represent Australia at the Paris 2024 Olympics publicly for the first time, Jason Day also left Augusta with a positive mindset after a round of 3-under 69 on Sunday.
“The short game’s nice. Putting’s nice,” Day surmised.
“I just made too many cheap errors out there, not enough capitalisation on the opportunities that I had, especially with the par-5s. And then just soft bogeys.
“Clean that up, tighten the swing up a little bit, and I should be good to go.”
Photo: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
Final scores
1 Scottie Scheffler 66-72-71-68—277
T6 Cameron Smith 71-72-72-71—286
T12 Cameron Davis 69-72-73-75—289
T22 Min Woo Lee 74-74-75-69—292
T22 Adam Scott 76-74-70-72—292
T30 Jason Day 75-73-76-69—293
MC Jasper Stubbs (a) 80-76—156
Darcy Brereton was rewarded for his decision to push through a bout of tonsilitis by taking out the Leeton Golf Club SunRice Pro-Am by one stroke.
Chasing his first victory on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series, Brereton made the trip up to the New South Wales Riverina from Melbourne despite battling illness early in the week.
Although he struggled at the two-day pro-am at Griffith, his health improved, and so did his scores.
He opened with a superb 7-under 65 on day one at Leeton and then backed it up with a 4-under 68 on Sunday to pip Blake Windred (68-66) by a shot.
“The start of the week was pretty ordinary but I thought given that I was up here, I might as well try,” Brereton said of his decision to play.
“I needed to blow some rust off after three or four weeks off after the end of the Tour season so I thought just gut it out and go play.”
Kick-started by an eagle at the par-5 eighth, Windred made a charge around the turn, picking up six strokes in the space of six holes to pile the pressure on Brereton.
But the tying birdie proved elusive over his final five holes, Brereton hanging on with Kyle Michel (67-69) closing with two straight birdies to snare outright third.
HOW THE WINNING ROUND UNFOLDED
Four birdies and an eagle in his final six holes in Round 1 gave Brereton a two-shot buffer heading into the final round.
He had a birdie and six pars to start his second round before making bogey at the par-5 eighth for the second day in succession.
Brereton got that shot back and then some with an eagle at the par-4 10th and then picked up three birdies in the space of four holes from the 12th to keep the chasing pack at bay.
A bogey on 16 gave the likes of Windred and Michel a glimmer of hope but Brereton was able to close out a maiden win with two pars to finish.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
“I actually played OK at Griffith – a little sloppy here and there – but the game was still OK.
“Obviously yesterday and today it tidied up a little bit. Every day I started to feel five to 10 per cent better where now I’m feeling a lot better than when I got here.
“I drove it really well and cleaned up all my putts inside six feet pretty well.
“Never going to have many long putts but tidied up and drove it well.
“I finished the Tour season scraping into 50th on the Order of Merit so that was lucky and sets me up for next year.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
1 Darcy Brereton 65-68—133
2 Blake Windred 68-66—134
3 Kyle Michel 67-69—136
T4 Tim Hart 69-68—137
T4 Aiden Didone 68-69—137
6 Alexander Simpson 70-68—138
T7 Cameron Kelly 72-69—141
T7 Adam Henwood 69-72—141
T7 Jayden Cripps 71-70—141
T7 Marcus Fraser 67-74—141
NEXT UP
The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series heads to Tasmania this week for the 54-hole Men’s Tasmanian Open, starting Friday at Launceston Golf Course.
Australia’s No.1-ranked male golfer has confirmed that he “made a mistake” by not competing at the 2016 Olympic Games and wants to make amends at Paris 2024.
Currently ranked No.21 in the world, Jason Day closed out his 2024 Masters Tournament with a round of 3-under 69 that is projected to see him finish in a tie for 30th.
It may be enough to move back inside the top 20 in the Official World Golf Ranking and, barring something extraordinary from his fellow countrymen, ensure he will don the green and gold at Le Golf National in August.
Since his resurgence the past 18 months, Day’s status as a potential Olympian has been a point of conjecture.
He was among a number of Aussie male golfers who chose to skip golf’s Olympic return in Rio eight years ago, citing concerns over the Zika virus and family.
The 36-year-old has been in regular contact with Australian Olympic Golf Captain, Karrie Webb, without publicly declaring his availability.
Less than four months before competition begins, that conjecture has now been put to bed.
“I’ll play. If I’m in, I’ll play for sure,” confirmed Day, pictured after winning the 2013 World Cup with Adam Scott at Royal Melbourne.
“I’m looking forward to it. I think I made a bit of a mistake not going down to Rio, even though part of it was family related.
“I kind of missed out on that, and I probably should have gone. But if I get the opportunity, I’m looking forward to going.”
If the Australian Olympic golf team were to be selected this week Min Woo Lee would be Day’s teammate in Paris.
The former world No.1 said that he has no preference for who he pairs with in Paris, acknowledging that Cameron Smith is reliant on strong showings in the majors given his commitment to LIV Golf.
“Whoever is playing the great, that would be great,” said Day.
“Min Woo is playing good solid golf, too. And obviously ‘Smithy’, playing in LIV, you don’t get World Ranking points. He needs to play well in the major championships, trying to shoot himself up the leaderboard.”
Entering the week feeling the effects of a broken finger, Min Woo Lee also signed off from The Masters with a round of 3-under 69.
Shortly after completing his round, he was told of his potential pairing with Day in Paris.
“When you’re a professional, you don’t really get to represent the Australian side,” said the world No.32.
“Obviously every week, week in and week out you represent Aus, but when you’re an amateur, I got to play for Australia a lot of times. I do miss putting on the green and gold.
“Jason as a playing partner and a teammate, that will be really special.
“My sister (Minjee Lee) is going to be in there, too, so it will be an unbelievable experience.
“Hopefully it can stay this way and I can play.”
Day had four birdies and a lone bogey in his final round of the 2024 championship at Augusta National, the highlight a near ace at the par-3 16th.
He hopes it will provide the foundation for a strong summer of majors and, ultimately, Australia’s first Olympic golf medal.
“The short game’s nice. Putting’s nice,” Day added.
“I just made too many cheap errors out there, not enough capitalisation on the opportunities that I had, especially with the par-5s. And then just soft bogeys.
“Just kind of clean that up, tighten the swing up a little bit, and I should be good to go.”
Photo: Robert Prezioso/Getty Images
Gold Coast’s Dillon Hart has claimed the biggest win of his career with a one-stroke win at the B&C Plumbing Griffith Charity Pro-Am at Griffith Golf Club.
Third on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series Order of Merit in his rookie season in 2023, Hart edged fellow Queenslander William Bruyeres by a shot after the pair ended day one tied on top with rounds of 5-under 66.
After a slow start to the second round, Hart came to his final hole tied with Bruyeres, a closing birdie at the par-5 17th enough to come out on top with a round of 2-under 69 and 7-under total. Bruyeres (70) claimed outright second at 6-under, one clear of Marcus Fraser (69-68) with Aiden Didone (72-66), Mark Panopolous (70-68) and Alex Simpson (67-71) sharing fourth at 5-under.
HOW THE WINNING ROUND UNFOLDEDBoth Hart and Bruyeres dropped a shot at their opening hole in Round 2 – Hart at the 18th, Bruyeres at one – but it was Hart who would steady the ship best.He made birdies at one and three to get to 6-under, Bruyeres dropping four shots back at 2-under after a bogey on one and double bogey at the par-4 fourth.Back-to-back birdies at five and six saw Bruyeres claw his way back into contention, drawing level with Hart again when he made birdie at the par-5 ninth.The lead changed hands again when Hart dropped a shot at the par-3 11th but he soon regained control, making birdies at both 12 and 13 to edge ahead at 6-under.Birdies at 15 and 16 earned Bruyeres the outright lead at 7-under but a bogey at the par-5 17th would prove fatal, Hart’s birdie on his final hole securing a one-shot victory.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID“I played well last year through the pro-ams so it’s nice to come back in 2024 and kick-start the way I did last year.“Drove the ball really well and short game saved me a lot of times.“I struggled a bit with the wedges but when the short game’s on that can keep you going along.“I’ll be back up in Queensland for the Mining Towns Series so it will be nice to play again having seen the courses for the first time last year.” LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
1 Dillon Hart 66-69—135NEXT UP
The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series remains in the Riverina region of New South Wales for the Leeton Golf Club SunRice Pro-Am where Darcy Brereton takes a two-stroke lead into Sunday’s final round.
Lucas Herbert completed the Bendigo region double on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series with a runaway win in the Symes Motors Axedale BMW Pro-Am today.
A day after shooting an equal course record 9-under-par 61 to claim the pro-am at his junior club, Neangar Park, Herbert flirted with a 59 before carding a 7-under-62 to beat fellow Victorians Cameron Kelly and Euan Walters by four shots.
The Axedale victory was a first for the 27-year-old who ran third and seventh in his previous appearances.
HOW THE WINNING SCORE UNFOLDED
Preparing for the LIV Adelaide event later this month, Herbert was 7-under through 11 holes but his bid for a 59, to match the Axedale record held by Kris Mueck, was halted by pars on 12, 13, 14 and 16.
A bogey on the par-4 17th ended up costing him back-to-back 61s to celebrate his return home.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
“Today was solid. Similar to yesterday I thought I played reasonable enough and made some pretty good putts,” Herbert said.
“It’s tricky around here. You can get yourself in some tough positions very easily.
“I managed to avoid as many of those as possible and put some numbers on the board which was nice.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
-7: Lucas Herbert (Vic)
-3: Cameron Kelly (Vic), Euan Walters (Vic)
-2: Michael Choi (Vic)
-1: Roland Baglin (Vic)
NEXT UP
The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series stops off in Leeton in NSW for the two-day Leeton Golf Club SunRice Pro-Am this weekend.
Nathan Barbieri clinched the 2024/25 Challenger PGA Tour of Australia Qualifying School’s Final Stage by running down all-the-way leader Max Charles before winning a three-man sudden-death playoff at Moonah Links today.
The Sydney professional went birdie-birdie-birdie-birdie-eagle over his final five holes on the Open Course to card an 8-under-par 64 and finish the 72 holes at 16-under, level with Victorian Charles (69) and New Zealand’s Denzel Ieremia (65).
Ieremia birdied the par-5 final hole, while Charles could only manage a par.
After the first two playoff holes were squared with pars, Barbieri clinched the win by rolling in a metre-long birdie putt after a pinpoint gap wedge approach on the par-4 10th hole.
By winning Q-School, the 27-year-old from Monash earns a start in all Challenger PGA Tour of Australia tournaments next season, including the big three – the Australian Open, Australian PGA and New Zealand Open.
.@barbieri_nathan is victorious at the 2024-25 PGATA Q School following a three-hole playoff 🐤👏 pic.twitter.com/yQP2G3raAf
— PGA of Australia (@PGAofAustralia) April 12, 2024
Although he has been a regular on leaderboards since turning professional in 2020, Barbieri was coming off a disappointing season on the 2023/24 campaign, falling to 54th place on the Order of Merit.
After losing his place in the top 50 on the final day of season, his Tour status for 2024/25 received a significant upgrade thanks to today’s success.
“I hadn’t been playing too good but I felt like it clicked maybe the second round in New Zealand and then I played well in the last event at The National,” Barbieri said.
“Winning here is massive.
“I can plan my schedule now which is awesome.
“I came here for one reason – to win it – and I’ve done it so that’s very good.”
Charles will consider himself very unlucky to miss out on the rewards that top spot offers after starting the day with a four-shot lead and shooting a steady 3-under 69.
He only dropped shots on three of the 75 holes he played, the majority of them as the joint or outright leader.
“Max and Denzel played great all day. It was a good battle,” Barbieri said.
“There were a few nerves on that final putt. I didn’t actually think I’d be that nervous and it almost went right on me as well. I was happy to get it.”
Thirty-six players gained Tour cards for 2024/25 – and inclusion in Category 14 – by finishing at 2-over-par or better, including amateurs Tyler Duncan (Qld), Segunda Oliva Pinto (Argentina), Siddharth Nadimpalli (Vic), Jordan Doull (WA), Ben Henkel (Vic), Jye Pickin (NSW) and Ryan Ang (Singapore).
Lucas Herbert returned home to Bendigo and treated a big local following to a day to remember, equalling the course record on the way to a four-shot win in the Evolution Neangar Park Pro-Am.
The winner at Neangar Park on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series last year, Herbert’s round of 10-under-par 61 started with a bang when he holed a wedge shot for an eagle on the opening hole, a 367m par-4.
Although he only arrived back in Australia yesterday from overseas duties with LIV Golf, the 28-year-old added nine birdies, and had just a solitary bogey, to match the course record set only a few days earlier by a young club member, Morten Hafkamp.
Ironically the teenager was in Herbert’s group today.
“I’m not sure whether he was cheering for me to knock that putt in on the last. But it was nice to tie that record with him because he’s obviously played a great game of golf last weekend,” Herbert said of his younger playing partner whose 61 sealed the 2024 club championship.
“It was good to play with him today and see where his game is at.”
Fellow Victorian Josh Younger, fresh off his 2023/24 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia campaign, shot a 6-under 65 to take second spot.
HOW THE WINNING SCORE UNFOLDED
After his magical two on the first, Herbert dropped a shot on the second but that was his only setback for the day.
A trio of birdies came from the fourth to sixth and after making his way to -7 after 13, he closed off his round with another three in row, including a three-metre putt for birdie on the last.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
Herbert’s availability for Neangar Park only became possible after the club changed its pro-am date to accommodate the local favourite.
“The jet lag has been hitting me pretty hard but I managed to hold it off for as long as I could to get through that round of golf,” he said.
“I’m not used to being back here this time of year. It’s odd to be here when it’s not really hot. Usually summer is our time and you’re sitting around outside, hoping for a cool breeze.
“For me, being able to give back to Australian golf, and give back to my local community as much as I can, has been something I’ve enjoyed doing over the last few years when I’ve had the chance.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
-10: Lucas Herbert (Vic)
-6: Josh Younger (Vic)
-4: Wade Lowrie (Vic)
-3: Finlay Bellingham (Vic), Adam Burdett (Vic), Levi Burns (Vic)
NEXT UP
Herbert will again be the star attraction at the second leg of the Bendigo region double, the Symes Motors BMW Axedale Pro-Am, on Friday before the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series stops off in Leeton in NSW for the two-day Leeton Golf Club SunRice Pro-Am
Ulverstone Golf Club Professional Darren Spencer has booked his spot for the PGA Professionals Championship National Final with a one-stroke win at the Tasmanian PGA Professionals Championship at Claremont Golf Club.
The top three finishers earned a place in the National Final at Heritage Golf and Country Club in October, Spencer’s 1-under 68 giving him the victory from Daniel Smith (69).
The third and final spot required a playoff, with Scott Priest, two-time Dan Cullen Cup winner Scott Laycock, David Tapping and Steve Frith all finishing at 1-over 70.
Consecutive pars at the first and second playoff holes would prove to be good enough for Priest to join Spencer and Smith at The Heritage.
The next qualifying tournament is the PGA Professionals Championship of North Queensland, to be played at Townsville Golf Club on Monday, April 22.
Six All Abilities golfers will receive scholarships to pursue their golf dreams in a new funding program titled the Webex Golf Scholarship.
An expansion of the Webex Players Series All Abilities program, the scholarships have been made available due to additional funding provided by Webex in partnership with the PGA of Australia and Golf Australia.
Four players will receive full scholarships to the value of $6,000 each and two players will receive a development scholarship worth $3,000 each.
In addition to funding for coaching and tournament support, scholarship holders will receive clothing courtesy of adidas and technology support to continue to elevate their performances.
The program is the brainchild of PGA Academy Coaching Programs Manager Nick Bielawski who believes sustained support will give Australian All Abilities golfers the best chance to succeed internationally.
“The Webex All Abilities High Performance Camp that we staged last year was a great success, but we acknowledged that the support needed to be more ongoing,” Bielawski said.
“Thanks to the additional funding provided by Webex, we have been able to structure a scholarship program that provides not only coaching support but practical financial support to travel to tournaments.
“Australia has a number of players that have proven that they can compete with the best All Abilities golfers in the world.
“We hope that a program such as this will allow others to become the best golfers they can be and to pursue opportunities both in Australia and overseas.”
Glenn Smith, Regional Manager, Collaboration for Cisco-Webex, was thrilled to see the extension of the Webex All Abilities Players Series into a scholarship program that will provide further opportunities for athletes.
“Webex is excited to support the Webex Golf Scholarship program for All Abilities athletes,” said Smith.
“The addition of the All Abilities trophy during the 2022/23 Webex Players Series has seen it become the most inclusive series of tournaments in golf.
“We are very proud to be partnering with the PGA of Australia to continue supporting development initiatives and showcase the exceptional talent of these athletes to a wide audience.”
To be considered for a Team Webex scholarship, athletes must meet the following criteria:
Athletes that meet the above criteria will then be assessed on:
Applicants must complete an application form to apply for Team Webex. After applications have closed, athletes will be shortlisted with further interviews arranged to determine the final recipients of the scholarships and whether it be a full or development scholarship.
Full scholarship recipients will receive:
Development scholarship recipients will receive:
To apply for a Team Webex scholarship click here
Mark Panopolous earned his first adidas PGA Pro-Am Series win as Tim Hart celebrated his 100th career victory at the Orora Yenda Pro-Am at Yenda Golf Club.
Panopolous and Hart both posted rounds of 4-under 44 at the 12-hole layout to finish one clear of Marcus Fraser (45), Jayden Cripps (45) and Kyle Michel (45) in the first event of the 2024/2025 season.
The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series Order of Merit winner in 2021 and 2022, Hart was shocked to find out post-round that it was 100th tournament win across pro-am and Associate events.
“I didn’t think I was that old,” said Hart.
“If that is the case, that’s awesome.
“That’s something good to look back on and know that my game’s in pretty good stead year in, year out.
“Just going to build off that and hopefully start doing it in bigger events.”
HOW THE WINNING ROUNDS UNFOLDED
Playing in consecutive groups, Hart set a cracking pace with birdies at his opening two holes.
He made his only bogey of the day at the par-4 third but picked up shots at six, nine and 11 to get into the clubhouse at 4-under.
Hart would soon have company as Panopolous came in with a score of 4-under in the group behind.
Like Hart, Panopolous birdied the par-5 first and then made birdies at five and six to be 3-under at the halfway mark of his round.
The Concord Golf Club Assistant Professional made bogey at the par-3 ninth but back-to-back birdies at 10 and 11 enabled him to join Hart at the top of the leaderboard.
WHAT THE WINNERS SAID
Mark Panopolous: “Playing here last year definitely helped, understanding where you can hit it and where you can’t. There are quite a few holes where you have to take on the boundary line, so just trying to be aggressively conservative.
“I was talking to a good mate John Lyras this morning and just really working on some pre-shot routine processes to try and get me more into the shot. Just got me a bit more locked into the shot I’m trying to hit, really visualising it and really just trying to be really tight with my routine, keep it repeatable.
“I wasn’t doing it very well so I was happy to listen and try and make it better and obviously it’s worked for me today.”
Tim Hart: “It was nice to go out there and shoot a score. I know it’s only 12 holes but I hit it pretty well and good signs leading into the next few pro-ams at Griffith and Leeton.
“I found something the last six months on tour, done a lot of mental work, mental side of the game just to stay calmer out there.
“I struggled a bit with injuries and stuff the last few years, so it’s good to sort of understand that a bit more and understand my body more.
“Been hitting it a lot better the last few months in the tour events and it’s good to see some results in four-rounders.
“We’ll just use the middle part of this year to play a few more pro-ams and get it all ready for the tour events later in the year.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
T1 Tim Hart 44
T1 Mark Panopoulos 44
T3 Kyle Michel 45
T3 Jayden Cripps 45
T3 Marcus Fraser 45
T6 Alexander Simpson 46
T6 Toby Walker 46
T6 Dillon Hart 46
NEXT UP
Two-time DP World Tour winner Lucas Herbert is back home to defend his Neangar Park Pro-Am by Evolution Copy Print Solutions on Thursday and will also tee it up at Friday’s Symes Motors BMW Axedale Pro-Am.
