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The 2024 NSW Open is set to shine when it heads to the magnificent Murray Downs Golf and Country Club in the NSW south-west from November 14 to 17, with Australia’s best golfers competing for a record-setting purse of $800,000.
Last held in March 2023, the NSW Open will also return to the spring/summer window for the first time in five years. This tournament and the entire men’s regional Open series is proudly supported by the NSW Government’s tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW.
Stuart Fraser, CEO of Golf NSW, was thrilled to announce this year’s prize purse and tournament date. “This year’s NSW Open presents a fantastic opportunity for us to ensure the tournament maintains its standing as the most prestigious State Championship on the Australian golf calendar.”
“Rich River proved to be a fabulous venue for last year’s Championship, and the crowds we saw throughout the week proved how thirsty the public are for elite tournament golf. We know Murray Downs will be just as successful,” Mr Fraser added.
Defending champion, Victoria’s David Micheluzzi, confirmed his status as one of the sport’s rising stars with his victory at Rich River. The win propelled him to the 2023 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit crown and a DP World Tour card for 2024.
With the NSW Open returning to a pivotal date on the calendar, this year’s champion could easily end up following in the footsteps of the Victorian.
PGA of Australia CEO, Gavin Kirkman, said the NSW Open would be a major highlight of the 2024/25 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia season.
“The NSW Open has a wonderful history with an outstanding list of past champions, and we’re looking forward to seeing who adds their name to the trophy at Murray Downs, one of the wonderful courses we have in our regional areas,” Mr Kirkman said.
“It will kick off three huge weeks for our Tour, leading into the BMW Australian PGA Championship and the ISPS HANDA Australian Open.
“We are very appreciative of the NSW Government and Golf NSW’s outstanding ongoing support of our Tour and professional golf in general as we continue to grow the game across our region.”
Tournament Facts
Host venue: Murray Downs Golf and Country Club
Dates: 14 – 17 November 2024
Prize fund: AU$800,000 (Min)
Website: www.nswopen.com
The ISPS HANDA Australian Open will return to the famed Melbourne Sandbelt in 2024, Golf Australia announced today.
To be played from November 28 to December 1, the ISPS HANDA Australian Open will again feature its unique combined format with players in the men’s, women’s and all abilities tournaments over two courses, showcasing the best of Australian golf.
Kingston Heath Golf Club will host all four rounds, while The Victoria Golf Club will share the hosting duties for rounds one and two.
The Sandbelt region hosted the inaugural combined event in 2022, when The Victoria Golf Club was the primary host club with Kingston Heath in support. It was the first time in 20 years that the Sandbelt had hosted the men’s national Open.
The men’s ISPS HANDA Australian Open will again be co-sanctioned by the DP World Tour and the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, and will follow the BMW Australian PGA Championship in Queensland, providing two weeks of premium golf in Australia.
Meanwhile, the women’s Australian Open will be sanctioned by the WPGA Tour of Australasia and the 2024 event will include the fifth Australian All Abilities Championship (AAAC) featuring the top-12 ranked Golfers with a disability as part of the G4D Tour, with the event supported in its entirety by Visit Victoria.
“The Victorian Government have been tremendous supporters of golf, and after working with us to bring the inaugural men’s and women’s Australian open to Melbourne, we look forward to continuing that partnership with this return to Melbourne,” Golf Australia CEO James Sutherland said.
“The Melbourne Sandbelt is a unique treasure in world golf, with a long history of hosting tournaments and producing worthy champions.
“We are delighted that this year’s ISPS Handa Australian Open will showcase not only our best men’s and women’s players but two of the country’s finest courses in Kingston Heath Golf Club and The Victoria Golf Club.”
In 2024, the champions will emerge from fields of 156 men and 84 women, competing for prize money of $3,400,000 AUD.
As was the case in 2023, there will be one cut made to both the men’s and women’s fields after 36 holes of play. All players making the cut will earn a cheque, with male and female professionals earning the equivalent figure per finishing position, while the Australian All Abilities Championship is set to conclude on Saturday with the Stonehaven Cup and Patricia Bridges Bowl decided on Sunday.
“Returning to Kingston Heath and The Victoria Golf Clubs for the Australian Open will deliver a fascinating test for our players, both men and women, and offer a tremendous opportunity to welcome Australian and international players after successful campaigns around the world,” PGA of Australia CEO Gavin Kirkman said.
“Steeped in history and the sites for many great Australian golf moments, both courses will no doubt create interest at home and overseas, as will our fortnight of DP World Tour co-sanctioned events for our men where the best players from the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia can test their games against some of the world’s best.”
Broadcast on Foxtel, Kayo, Nine and 9Now, where record numbers were achieved during last year’s Australian Open, the 2024 tournament will also provide a preview for the 2028 Presidents Cup that will be held at Kingston Heath Golf Club.
This year’s tournament also marks the 120th anniversary of the first men’s event played and the 50th anniversary of the first women’s tournament held at Victoria, with a long list of some of the best players in the game and Australian legends on both honour rolls.
“It has been a magnificent year so far for our players competing both at home and overseas, and the Melbourne Sandbelt is a fitting location to celebrate the Women’s Australian Open’s 50th anniversary,” WPGA Tour of Australasia CEO Karen Lunn said.
“Maintaining the joint format allows great visibility for our players, while the field size ensures high quality competition for our historic national Open as we continue to grow the depth of players, with the hope of expanding the women’s field in years to come.”
Acting Minister for Tourism Sport and Major Events in Victoria Ros Spence said: “We’re proud to bring some of the world’s best golfing talent – and fans of this iconic tournament – back to Melbourne for the 2024 Australian Open – boosting businesses, jobs and our state’s economy.”
Visit Victoria CEO Brendan McClements said: “Golf is a major driver of activity in our sector with its capacity to drive year-round visitation, delivering approximately $1 billion with golfers from around the world wanting to experience Melbourne’s Sandbelt courses.
“Victoria is pleased to welcome the 2024 Australian Open and we look forward to seeing the tournament contribute to our visitor economy.”
Part of a two-week swing of DP World Tour events in Australia, following the BMW Australian PGA Championship, the ISPS HANDA Australian Open will help launch the new season for the Tour for the third straight year.
“We are delighted the DP World Tour will return to the world-renowned Melbourne Sandbelt for the ISPS HANDA Australian Open at the start of our 2025 Race to Dubai,” Chief Tournament & Operations Officer at the DP World Tour Ben Cowen said.
“My thanks go to ISPS HANDA for their continued commitment to Australia’s national open and to Golf Australia for their work in showcasing golf as a sport for everyone with the staging of the men’s, women’s and All Abilities events across the same week.
“Our Strategic Alliance with the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia helps to provide important global pathways for our memberships, allowing players to reach the highest levels of the game, and the co-sanctioning of events like these is an important aspect of that partnership.”
Captain of Kingston Heath Golf Stephen Montfort said: “Kingston Heath Golf Club has a rich and proud history of hosting internationally recognised events and we are honoured to be hosting the 2024 Australian Open.
“After being a part of the historic first joint-event in 2022, there is a great deal of excitement around the club with this year’s role as primary host venue. From an Australian Open in 2024, to the Presidents Cup in 2028, showcasing Kingston Heath Golf Club to golf fans around the world will be a tremendously proud moment for all our members and staff. We look forward to celebrating our three champion golfers at the conclusion of this great event.”
Limited first release tickets available now – save 20% on tournament day passes: https://bit.ly/4co8WZa
An emotional Jack Wright has paid tribute to his late uncle after taking out the Brisbane MG Royal Queensland PGA Associate Pro-Am at Royal Queensland Golf Club on Monday.
With prize money in excess of $27,000, the tournament broke the record for the richest one-day Associate Pro-Am in the history of the PGA of Australia, Wright winning close to $5,000 with a superb round of 6-under 66.
Starting his round from the fifth tee alongside Zach Ion and Tiger Boontang, Wright stumbled out of the blocks with an opening bogey.
A run of four straight birdies from the ninth hole to the 12th quickly turned momentum his way, the second-year Coolangatta-Tweed Heads Golf Club Associate’s bogey on 13 the only other dropped shot for a one-stroke win.
Campbell Jones had just the one bogey in his round of 5-under 67 to snare second, Ion taking third spot with 4-under 68.
For Wright, not only did the win ease some of the pain his family had felt just days earlier but provides a much-needed financial boost ahead of the defence of his NSW/ACT PGA Associate Championship at Tura Beach Country Club next month.
“I would like to dedicate the win to my uncle who passed away over recent days,” said Wright. “Today will certainly help our family who have been saddened for our loss.
“Being the winner of the biggest one-day prize purse in the history of PGA Associate Pro-Ams is really special to me and I am grateful to be able to hold such title.
“Myself and all of the PGA Associates are really thankful for the support Paul Norris as well as the Royal Queensland Golf Club has provided, not only us as a PGA Associates but for everything they do of professional golf.
“It costs a fair amount to travel to both the NSW and National PGA Associates Championships coming up later this year so this money will go a long way to taking the pressure off me to cover expenses in travelling down for them.”
Globally renowned premium automotive leader BMW will become the title partner of the Australian PGA Championship.
The collaboration will see the BMW Australian PGA Championship, one of Australian golf’s two majors, join BMW’s suite of premium global tour tournaments alongside the DP World Tour’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, BMW International Open in Munich, the PGA TOUR’s penultimate playoff tournament – the BMW Championship – as well as the BMW Ladies Championship on the LPGA Tour.
Locked in for Royal Queensland Golf Club on November 21-24 this year, the BMW Australian PGA Championship stands as one of the premier tournaments on the Australian sporting calendar with its vibrant party hole and spectacular golf, attracting record crowds as Min Woo Lee won the 2023 title in his unique style.
Thanks to the co-sanctioning agreement between the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and DP World Tour, this year’s BMW Australian PGA Championship will again feature a world-class field, pitting the best of Australia’s professionals against an international contingent of contenders.
Same tournament, new title partner 😎@bmwau | #AusPGA pic.twitter.com/qnOLsYOa2e
— PGA of Australia (@PGAofAustralia) July 1, 2024
It will once again be the opening tournament of the DP World Tour season and enjoy its fourth consecutive year at Royal Queensland, the host venue of the 2032 Olympic Games golf competition.
Min Woo Lee, one of the rising superstars in world golf, has already confirmed he will return to defend his title.
PGA of Australia CEO Gavin Kirkman said that with BMW’s commitment to excellence and innovation, the partnership promises to elevate the championship to a new level.
“We are delighted to welcome BMW as the title partner of the Australian PGA Championship,” Kirkman said.
“BMW has had a wonderful influence on Australian golf and our PGA Championship for many years and this title partnership takes its commitment to the next level.
“The company’s commitment to excellence and innovation perfectly aligns with our values, and we are confident that this partnership will contribute to the continued success and growth of the championship.”
BMW Australia CEO Wolfgang Buechel said: “BMW has had a longstanding involvement in golf around the world for more than 40 years, and we are excited to extend our partnership with the Australian PGA for such a prestigious Australian tournament, welcoming incredible Australian talent home for the season’s first major event.
“From the US via Europe to Asia and Australasia, you will find BMW wherever golf is played and enjoyed through all major markets worldwide.
“This is BMW’s first golf title partnership in the Southern Hemisphere and builds on our existing relationship as the official automotive partner of the PGA, Golf Australia and the WPGA.
“In partnership with the PGA, BMW will create captivating experiences across Australia, where future-defining innovation meets a sustainable society and a shared ambition to grow and create unforgettable memories and moments.
“The BMW Australian PGA Championship will be a great platform to promote our electric future via our range of BMW fully electric vehicles that will be on course at Royal Queensland.”
Guy Kinnings, CEO of the DP World Tour, added: “We are delighted BMW have joined as title partner of the Australian PGA Championship. Over the past 35 years, the DP World Tour have developed an extremely close working relationship that continues to drive strong value to BMW’s global engagement in sport.
“With this partnership in Australia, it brings together a truly iconic brand and iconic golf tournament, popular with golf fans and players alike across the world. The BMW brand stands for luxury, innovation, and sportiness – all values that closely match our own, with both the DP World Tour and PGA of Australia benefitting significantly from partnering with such a respected partner of the game of golf.”
As well as being title partner of the BMW Australian PGA Championship, BMW is committed to supporting the future of Australian professional golf with its existing Australian golf partnership with the PGA of Australia and Golf Australia covering the broader Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, WPGA Tour of Australasia and the Australian Open.
The company also currently has partnerships with LPGA Tour star Grace Kim and DP World Tour player Elvis Smylie.
Tickets for the BMW Australian PGA Championship are available now via Ticketek
An emotional Cam Davis has credited two weeks of hypnotherapy for the sudden form reversal that has yielded a second win at the PGA TOUR’s Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit.
Three years after holing a bunker shot on the 71st hole and emerging victorious from a three-man playoff for his breakthrough win, Davis could not hide the enormity of his second victory at Detroit Golf Club, the first player with multiple wins at the event.
With putts repeatedly burning the edge of the hole and a lasered second shot into the par-5 14th that somehow dribbled into the water, it looked as though the golf gods would conspire against Davis.
Fellow Australian Min Woo Lee (69) made a back-nine charge to earn a share of the lead at 18-under but made bogey on the final hole when his approach shot finished in the rough behind the green and he was unable to get up-and-down for par.
Davis, too, needed to scramble from the rough on 18 for a 2-under 70 to claim the clubhouse lead at 18-under.
He did that with a superb chip from right of the green and then looked on in shock from the range as American Akshay Bhatia (72) three-putted for the first time all week on the 72nd hole to hand the Aussie a one-shot win.
Ranked 77th in the FedEx Cup standings entering the week and without a top-10 finish all season, Davis was at a loss to explain a form reversal that resulted in victory.
“From where I was a couple of weeks ago to today, just completely different person,” said the 29-year-old from Sydney.
“This is a little emotional actually. I wouldn’t wish what happened to Akshay on anyone, but I’ve done a lot of grinding to kind of get myself out of a hole and just all of a sudden to do that, it’s pretty good.”
Dub (again) in Detroit 🏆🏆 pic.twitter.com/RW37jg41tG
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 30, 2024
While he described his playoff win over countryman Adam Scott at US Open qualifying as a “little shining moment”, Davis revealed that it has been his recent visits to a hypnotherapist that has unlocked his love for the game again.
At the urging of his wife, Jonika, Davis began seeing a hypnotherapist two weeks ago and is adamant in the role that it has played in earning a long-awaited second win.
“My career trajectory was not where I wanted it,” added Davis, who has been working with Canadian-based coach Ralph Bauer for the past year.
“It’d been a long time since I’d won and I felt like I wasn’t playing anywhere near good enough golf to keep up with the best players in the game.
“We’ve only been working together for a couple of weeks and I’ve gone from almost disliking the game to feeling like I’ve got a bit of that magic back, so it’s made a huge difference.
“I can entirely put it down to fact that my team’s had my back through every dark day I’ve had over the last couple of couple of months to Grace, who’s helped me through it all and got me back on a really good path.
“I’ve got a lot of people to thank, but definitely the biggest turnaround has happened with the hypnotherapy.”
In addition to the 1-2 finish in Detroit, there were Aussies in contention across the globe this past week.
Richard Green remains in the hunt as the US Senior Open was forced into a Monday finish due to dangerous weather while Grace Kim paired with American Auston Kim for a tie for fifth at the LPGA Tour Dow Championship.
David Micheluzzi rebounded from some indifferent form of late for a top-10 finish at the Italian Open, Rhein Gibson shot 63 in rounds two and four to be tied for eighth on the Korn Ferry Tour and Cassie Porter is projected to move to second on the Epson Tour Race For The Card after a tie for seventh at the Dream First Bank Charity Classic.
Photo: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
Results
PGA TOUR
Rocket Mortgage Classic
Detroit Golf Club, Detroit, Michigan
1 Cam Davis 68-66-66-70—270 $US1.656m
T2 Min Woo Lee 68-68-66-69—271 $616,400
T67 Ryan Fox (NZ) 71-67-76-71—285 $19,412
T72 Aaron Baddeley 68-70-72-76—286 $18,768
MC Tim Wilkinson (NZ) 74-70—144
MC Harrison Endycott 74-71—145
PGA TOUR Champions
US Senior Open
Newport Country Club, Newport, Rhode Island
Round 4 to be completed Monday due to dangerous weather
1 Hiroyuki Fujita 63-66-67—196
3 Richard Green 63-67-69—199
T8 Steven Alker (NZ) 71-67-67—205
T14 Cameron Percy 70-65-70—205
T25 Mark Hensby 75-63-74—212
T25 Michael Long (NZ) 72-69-70-68—279
T40 Greg Chalmers 72-70-70—212
T45 Stuart Appleby 67-74-71—212
T57 Michael Wright 68-72-73—213
T60 Mathew Goggin 66-73-77—216
MC Rod Pampling 67-78—145
MC Richard Lee (NZ) 73-73—146
LPGA Tour
Dow Championship
Midland Country Club, Midland, Michigan
1 Atthaya Thitikul/Ruoning Yin 64-66-66-62—258 $US364,572 ea
T5 Grace Kim/Auston Kim 67-61-69-65—262 $60,177
T17 Hira Naveed/Sofia Garcia 69-64-70-62—265 $19,206
T27 Lydia Ko (NZ)/Danielle Kang 71-62-72-63—268 $9,322
MC Gabriela Ruffels/Esther Henseleit 69-65—134
MC Stephanie Kyriacou/Olivia Cowan 68-66—134
MC Robyn Choi/Minji Kang 71-64—135
MC Sarah Kemp/Alena Sharp 74-65—139
DP World Tour
Italian Open
Adriatic Golf Club Cervia, Milano Marittima, Italy
1 Marcel Siem 69-68-66-71—274 €516,774.24
Won in sudden-death playoff
T10 David Micheluzzi 70-68-69-70—277 €45,141.75
T10 Sam Jones (NZ) 72-68-68-69—277 €45,141.75
MC Haydn Barron 70-73—143
MC Jason Scrivener 74-71—145
MC Daniel Hillier (NZ) 70-77—147
Ladies European Tour
VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open
Golfpark Holzhausern, Switzerland
1 Alice Hewson 68-69-65—202 €45,000
Won in sudden-death playoff
T19 Kelsey Bennett 71-68-69—208 €4,230
T34 Kirsten Rudgeley 66-72-72—210 €2,385
T43 Momoka Kobori (NZ) 72-72-68—212 €1,656
T56 Whitney Hillier 69-73-75—217 €1,110
MC Amy Walsh 77-80—157
Korn Ferry Tour
Memorial Health Championship
Panther Creek Country Club, Springfield, Illinois
1 Max McGreevy 63-66-62-69—260
T8 Rhein Gibson 69-63-69-63—264
MC Brett Drewitt 69-72—141
Challenge Tour
Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge
Golf PGA France du Vaudreuil, Le Vaudreuil, France
1 Joel Moscatel 71-67-66-70—274 €43,200
Won in sudden-death playoff
T10 Jeff Guan 69-65-72-73—279 €5,670
T29 Andrew Martin 74-68-73-68—283 €2,160
T50 Hayden Hopewell 71-71-76-68—286 €1,096.20
MC Tom Power Horan 74-76—150
MC Connor McKinney 78-73—151
Epson Tour
Dream First Bank Charity Classic
Buffalo Dunes Golf Course, Garden City, Kansas
T7 Cassie Porter 69-73-68—210
T14 Amelia Garvey (NZ) 69-71-71—211
T22 Maddison Hinson-Tolchard 70-72-71—213
MC Amy Chu 69-78—147
MC Soo Jin Lee 71-78—149
Korean PGA Tour
Biz Play-Wonder Club Open
Club 72 Country Club (Sky Cse), Korea
1 Heo In-hoe 66-68-68-65—267
T7 Junseok Lee 67-67-67-71—272
T52 Sungjin Yeo (NZ) 64-71-72-74—281
T69 Kevin Chun (NZ) 70-70-76-69—285
PGA TOUR Americas
ATB Classic
Northern Bear Golf Club, Strathcona County, Alberta
1 Frederik Kjettrup 68-68-67-69—272 $US40,500
T8 Grant Booth 70-68-72-68—278
T33 Karl Vilips 65-73-74-72—284
MC Harry Hillier (NZ) 72-74—146
LET Access Series
MoreGolf Mastercard Open
Varbergs Golf Klubb, Sweden
1 Kajsa Arwefjall 70-69-67—206 €6,400
T10 Belinda Ji (a) 70-69-77—216 ——-
T32 Hanee Song (NZ) 73-75-74—222 €484
MC Wenyung Keh (NZ) 76-75—151
MC Munchin Keh (NZ) 76-76—152
A history-making quartet of Minjee Lee, Min Woo Lee, Jason Day and Hannah Green will represent Australia in Paris, with the four golfers selected by the Australian Olympic Committee today.
Minjee Lee will become the first Australian golfer to compete at three Olympics, Green returns for her second Games while Min Woo Lee and Day will both make their Olympic debut.
Minjee and Min Woo Lee also make history as the first siblings to compete in Olympic golf for Australia. The pair become the sixteenth Australian sister and brother pair to compete in the same sport at the same Games, a record which stretches back to 1920 with swimmers Lillian and Frank Beaurepaire.
The four players all qualified by virtue of their International Golf Federation Olympic ranking at the end of a two-year ranking period. Green and Minjee Lee finished the period ranked seventh and 11th respectively, while Day and Min Woo are Australia’s highest ranked male golfers at 27th and 36th respectively.
Green matched Australia’s best ever Olympic golf finish with a tie for fifth at Tokyo 2020, and has won two LPGA Tour events already this year. Minjee Lee has 10 career LPGA wins, Day 13 career PGA Tour wins, while Min Woo is the reigning Australian PGA champion and achieved a career-best world ranking of 31st in 2024.
Australian Olympic Team Chef de Mission, Anna Meares, welcomed the four athletes to the Team.
“Congratulations to Hannah, Minjee, Jason and Min Woo on earning your spot in the Australian Olympic Team for Paris,” Ms Meares said.
“This group has proven they can perform at a world class level on the international stage and I know they will represent Australia proudly in Paris.
“Minjee will make history twice, as the first Australian golfer to contest three Games and with her brother Min Woo as the first Australian siblings to compete in Olympic golf.
“Congratulations to each of the athletes, Golf Australia and everyone who has helped these athletes book their place on the Australian Olympic Team for Paris.”
The only brother-sister duo to win USGA championships – Minjee won the 2012 US Girls’ Junior and Min Woo the 2016 US Junior Amateur – the Lees will now join Australia’s rich history of Olympic siblings.
“Representing Australia at a third consecutive Olympic Games is truly an honour,” said Minjee.
“The past two Olympics have been among the greatest experiences of my career, and I have no doubt Paris 2024 will only add to that.
“Having my brother in Paris as part of the team will make it a fortnight that our family will treasure forever.”
“Now that it is starting to sink in, representing the Australian Olympic Team alongside my sister at Paris 2024 is actually crazy,” said Min Woo.
“Playing at the Olympics has been a goal of mine ever since Minjee qualified for the Rio Olympics in 2016. Now that it is here, I want to do the green and gold proud and will be doing everything I can to come home with a gold medal.”
Australia’s best performer in the Olympic golf competition in Tokyo three years ago, Green has accumulated two LPGA Tour wins this season and is currently Australia’s highest-ranked golfer at No.7 in the Women’s World Golf Ranking.
“I am so thrilled to be once again representing the Australian Olympic Team at Paris 2024,” said Green.
“Growing up in Perth, I never imagined that I could possibly win an Olympic medal but finishing fifth in Tokyo has been a major motivator the past three years.
“I can’t wait to get to Paris and do the green and gold proud.”
Paris will also mark the Olympic debut for Jason Day, a former world No.1 and the 2015 US PGA Championship winner.
At 36, Day is the veteran member of the squad and thrilled to be representing his country in the Olympic arena.
“I am so grateful for the opportunity to represent the Australian Olympic Team in Paris,” said Day.
“Throughout my career – whether on the PGA TOUR, in President Cups and World Cups – I have tried to represent Australia in the best way possible.
“I will wear the green and gold with pride in Paris and would love nothing more than to win a gold medal for Australia.”
Golf Australia CEO, James Sutherland, believes all four athletes will serve as wonderful ambassadors for Australian golf during their Paris 2024 campaigns.
“Golf Australia could not be more proud to put these four athletes forward to represent Australia at the Paris Olympic Games,” said Mr Sutherland.
“In Jason, Hannah and Minjee we have three major champions and, in Min Woo, our reigning Australian PGA champion and a likely major winner of the future.
“We are proud of golf’s place within the Olympic movement and I have no doubt that our Paris 2024 representatives will live up to the Olympic ideals during the two weeks of competition.”
The Golf competition will be held from Thursday 1 August to Saturday 10 August at Le Golf National venue in Guyancourt.
Tiger Woods’ former caddie, Steve Williams, headlines the next wave of speakers announced for this year’s Golf Summit in Melbourne.
Many Australians will remember Williams being on the bag for Adam Scott when he broke through at the 2013 Masters, forever etching Scott and Williams into Australian sporting history.
Williams, whose journey in golf began in 1976 with Australian icon Peter Thomson, will share his vast knowledge and experiences on the Tour. He will be joined by an impressive roster of industry heavyweights such as Dr Paul Wood and Will Robbins, sporting success stories in Elle Steele and Bachar Houli, along with the CEOs of the PGA of Australia, Golf Australia and the WPGA Tour of Australasia. Together, they will equip attendees with innovative strategies and insights to lead, grow, and transform the golf industry.
Scheduled for October 16-17, the Golf Summit is an event by Australian Golf’s peak bodies – the PGA of Australia and Golf Australia – to bring the industry together to engage and influence key decision makers to lead, grow and innovate Australian golf.
Attendees will have the chance to network, share ideas, strategies and best practices to take back to their business to help drive growth and success.
A highlight of the Summit will be the diverse range of panel sessions addressing critical business outcomes within the industry. There will be a panel tackling championing change for women and girls in golf, along with the impact of technology on golf coaching.
The two-day conference will also feature sessions on promoting diversity and inclusion, talent retention and management, biodiversity and sustainability in golf, and leveraging social media for commercial success.
Confirmed speakers for the 2024 Golf Summit:
READ MORE ABOUT THE SESSIONS
The Asia-Pacific region’s premier event welcoming the entire golf industry, tickets for the 2024 Golf Summit are on sale now.
Find tickets HERE.
The Golf Summit is proudly supported by the Melbourne Convention Bureau and the State Government’s National Business Event Program.
The Mining Town series continued this week, with the JET Group Clermont Pro-Am providing three first-time winners on an incredibly wet day in outback Queensland.
Victorians Ben Henkel and Connor McDade were joined by Queenslander Bailey Arnott atop the leaderboard after all carded 6-under 65 on the par-71 regional layout.
Henkel was part of the group of players who gained a Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia card at qualifying school earlier this year, and believes this win will give him a lot of confidence moving forward in his young professional career.
“It’s great to get it done, and prove that I can do it,” he said.
“Just knowing that I can knock it around with these pretty talented golfers out here.”
Thanks to a 3-under 68, Queenslander Blaike Perkins managed to leapfrog Tim Hart on the overall Mining Town Series leaderboard. Perkins is at 33-under, with Hart two strokes back at 31-under and a chasing pack five and six shots further adrift.
HOW THE WINNING SCORES UNFOLDED
McDade got off to a rough start, with a double-bogey on the first, but quickly shook that off and preceded to have eight birdies in ten holes. From there it was just about holding on, which McDade managed well.
Beginning on a similar note, Arnott also started his day with a double-bogey, but bounced back incredibly too, the early blunder seeming to spark something in both players.
Arnott managed to add a flurry of birdies together quickly, but his round was highlighted by an eagle mid-round which sparked a strong birdie-birdie finish.
Unlike his competitors, Henkel got off to a positive start, and in his words “stayed very level-headed” the entire round.
An uncharacteristic raking draw when he needed it which led to a birdie and Henkel’s shot-of-the-day, and gave him huge confidence knowing he could pull the shot off under pressure.
WHAT THE WINNERS SAID
Ben Henkel:
“It was one of the days where you just stay really level-headed because it was pretty ordinary weather.”
“Few birdies early to get me in a groove, and then just didn’t really chase it, I knew a score would be out there I just stayed very level-headed and didn’t let the weather affect me.”
Bailey Arnott:
“It was an interesting one. Started with a double, obviously there was some rain in the morning so we expected a bit of a battle in the arfternoon.”
“It’s definitely a monkey off the back. I think everyone feels if you knock on the door for long enough, this is probably four years out here playing Pro-Ams, so to get the monkey off the back and play some good golf is nice.”
Connor McDade:
“I’m over the moon, I’m super stoked. A lot of hard work has gone into this but it’s nice to get one away this early into my professional career.”
“I hit one to two inches on my second hole of the day, so that was a good bounce back after the double. I nearly had a hole-in-one and I’ve haven’t had a hole-in-one before so I’ve been robbed there a little bit.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
1 Ben Henkel 65
1 Bailey Arnott 65
1 Connor McDade 65
4 Danni Vasquez 66
T5 *Seven players tied
NEXT UP
The final tilt of The Mining Towns Swing is up next, with the two-day Blackwater Pro-Am kicking off this Saturday 29 June.
He has played his way onto the Australian Olympic Team yet Min Woo Lee remains motivated to play his way into the lucrative Signature Events in the final weeks of the PGA TOUR season.
Just days after qualifying to represent Australia at the Paris 2024 Games in August, Lee is on debut in Detroit for the Rocket Mortgage Classic.
Currently ranked No.64 in the FedEx Cup points list, Lee needs to play his way inside the top 50 by the time of the Tour Championship to be guaranteed a spot in the $US20 million Signature Events in season 2025.
He played his way into the Arnold Palmer Invitational this year by virtue of a runner-up finish at the Cognizant Classic but has missed out on all seven of the other Signature Events played this season.
It’s a situation he intends to change in the coming weeks.
“I’m not the one to moan about it, but I guess I played every major, which is awesome and amazing. I played into them,” said Lee, who is in his first year as a full member of the PGA TOUR.
“To not like play most of the Signature Events, it was kind of hard to take a little bit.
“I know I’ve got to play better and make the cut-off line at the end of the year and get to play next year.
“Obviously it’s a new thing and all of us are trying to get into those events.”
Adding to Lee’s motivation with just six events left in the before the FedEx Cup Playoffs is a maiden Presidents Cup appearance in Canada in September.
The 25-year-old is currently one spot out of the top six automatic qualifiers for the International Team and is desperate to be part of a team he narrowly missed out on in 2022.
“I felt like I missed out last time by a small margin,” said Lee.
“I’ve been playing a lot better since not making that team two years ago.
“I know the American team is very strong and we’ve got to play very well to beat them but I’m really excited, especially the team aspect.
“I really love playing match play; being with a partner is cool.”
Another Aussie making a debut of sorts this week is Mathew Goggin.
Mat Goggin will put green building and grass coverage at @7milegolf aside this week as he makes his senior golf debut at the @USGA Senior Open.
— PGA of Australia (@PGAofAustralia) June 26, 2024
Hear his thoughts on his game, and potential opening date in Tassie, via @JimmyEmanuel4 below.https://t.co/TftL91vfRH
The Tasmanian recently celebrated his 50th birthday by qualifying for the US Senior Open, joining a burgeoning group of Aussies in the senior ranks.
Goggin is among eight Aussies at Newport Country Club this week along with the Kiwi trio of Steven Alker, Michael Long and Richard Lee.
Top-10 a year ago, Sarah Kemp teams up again with Canadian Alena Sharp at the LPGA Tour’s Dow Championship, one of six Aussies in the field with teammates from a wide array of other countries.
Photo: Alex Slitz/Getty Images
Round 1 tee times AEST
PGA TOUR
Rocket Mortgage Classic
Detroit Golf Club, Detroit, Michigan
8:56pm Aaron Baddeley
9:51pm Tim Wilkinson (NZ)
2:32am Ryan Fox (NZ)
2:43am Min Woo Lee
3:05am Cam Davis
4:22am Harrison Endycott
Defending champion: Rickie Fowler
Past Aussie winners: Cam Davis (2021)
Prize money: $US9.2 million
TV times: Live 10pm-8am Thursday; Live 2am-8am Saturday, Sunday; Live 1:30am-8am Monday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
PGA TOUR Champions
US Senior Open
Newport Country Club, Newport, Rhode Island
9:31pm* Michael Long (NZ)
9:52pm* Mark Hensby
10:03pm* Stuart Appleby
10:34pm Richard Green
10:55pm Richard Lee (NZ)
2:51am* Greg Chalmers, Michael Wright
3:22am Rod Pampling
3:33am* Vijay Singh (FI)
3:43am* Cameron Percy
4:04am* Steven Alker (NZ)
4:15am* Mathew Goggin
Defending champion: Bernhard Langer
Past Aussie winners: Graham Marsh (1997)
Prize money: $US4 million
TV times: Live 2am-7am Friday, Saturday, Sunday on Fox Sports 505; Live 2:30am-7:30am Monday on Fox Sports 506 and Kayo.
LPGA Tour
Dow Championship
Midland Country Club, Midland, Michigan
9:15pm Robyn Choi/Minji Kang
10:10pm Gabriela Ruffels/Esther Henseleit
10:32pm Lydia Ko (NZ)/Danielle Kang
1:52am Stephanie Kyriacou/Olivia Cowan
2:14am Hira Naveed/Sofia Garcia
2:14am* Grace Kim/Auston Kim
2:25am Sarah Kemp/Alena Sharp
Defending champion: Elizabeth Szokol/Cheyenne Knight
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US3 million
TV times: 12:30pm-2pm Friday on Fox Sports 503; Live 7am-9am Sunday; Live 2am-5am Monday on Fox Sports 505 and Kayo.
DP World Tour
Italian Open
Adriatic Golf Club Cervia, Milano Marittima, Italy
5pm Daniel Hillier (NZ)
8:50pm* Jason Scrivener
9:50pm* Haydn Barron
10:10pm David Micheluzzi
10:30pm* Sam Jones (NZ)
Defending champion: Adrian Meronk
Past Aussie winners: Greg Norman (1988), Craig Parry (1991)
Prize money: $US3.25 million
TV times: Live 9pm-2am Thursday on Fox Sports 505; Live 9pm-2am Friday; Live 10:30pm-2am Saturday; Live 8:30pm-1:30am Sunday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
Ladies European Tour
VP Bank Swiss Ladies Open
Golfpark Holzhausern, Switzerland
Australasians in the field: Whitney Hillier, Kirsten Rudgeley, Momoka Kobori (NZ), Kelsey Bennett, Amy Walsh
Defending champion: Alexandra Forsterling
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: €300,000
TV times: 10am-12pm Saturday; 9am-11am Sunday on Fox Sports 505; 8am-10am Monday on Fox Sports 503.
Korn Ferry Tour
Memorial Health Championship
Panther Creek Country Club, Springfield, Illinois
3:22am Rhein Gibson
3:44am Brett Drewitt
Defending champion: Paul Barjon
Past Aussie winners: Brett Drewitt (2020)
Prize money: $US1 million
Korean PGA Tour
Biz Play-Wonder Club Open
Club 72 Country Club (Sky Cse), Korea
1pm* Kevin Chun (NZ)
1:30pm Sungjin Yeo (NZ)
2pm Junseok Lee
Defending champion: Inaugural event
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: KRW700 million
Challenge Tour
Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge
Golf PGA France du Vaudreuil, Le Vaudreuil, France
4pm Jeff Guan
9pm* Andrew Martin
9:10pm Tom Power Horan
10:30pm Hayden Hopewell
10:40pm* Connor McKinney
Defending champion: Darren Fichardt
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: €270,000
Epson Tour
Dream First Bank Charity Classic
Buffalo Dunes Golf Course, Garden City, Kansas
Australasians in the field: Amelia Garvey (NZ), Cassie Porter, Maddison Hinson-Tolchard, Amy Chu, Soo Jin Lee
Defending champion: Gabriela Ruffels
Past Aussie winners: Gabriela Ruffels (2023)
Prize money: $US237,500
PGA TOUR Americas
ATB Classic
Northern Bear Golf Club, Strathcona County, Alberta
12:50am Karl Vilips
1:30am* Charlie Hillier (NZ)
5:10am* Grant Booth
5:50am* Harry Hillier (NZ)
Defending champion: Inaugural event
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US225,000
LET Access Series
MoreGolf Mastercard Open
Varbergs Golf Klubb, Sweden
5:17pm Belinda Ji (a)
9:41pm Hanee Song (NZ)
11:09pm Munchin Keh (NZ)
11:31pm Wenyung Keh (NZ)
Defending champion: Emily Price
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: €40,000
When Mat Goggin’s name is mentioned in golf circles these days, it often relates to the Seven Mile Beach golf course the former PGA TOUR regular is building near Hobart.
However, this week the Tasmanian local will be back to his “real job”, with Goggin turning 50 on June 13 and successfully pre-qualifying for the US Senior Open at historic Newport Country Club.
One of eight Australians in the field, Goggin’s chances are buoyed by his recent play at home on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, including a third behind Order of Merit champion Kazuma Kobori at the Webex Players Series Victoria.
His place as one of the “young guys” on the over-50s PGA TOUR Champions circuit also makes him one of the longer players in Rhode Island this week.
“Most of the guys are still hanging in there pretty well but I’ve always been relatively long so I’m still up there. I wouldn’t say I’m one of the shorter guys that’s for sure,” Goggin told Australian media on Wednesday.
Believing his multiple injuries that curtailed regular appearances in the latter part of his regular Tour career has him refreshed and ready to go, Goggin is thriving in the familiarity of the names and faces playing the senior game.
Experiencing the question of “What are you doing here?” from the likes of Ernie Els this week that are common place for each over-50s debutant, Goggin is joined in the field by Stuart Appleby, Greg Chalmers, Richard Green, Mark Hensby, Rod Pampling, Cameron Percy and Michael Wright.
It is a cohort of Australians he is far more familiar with than those at home when making his occasional competitive appearances to sharpen his game for the second career of senior golf.
“It’s kind of funny. I’ve been playing a few events down in Australia, I literally don’t know anyone. Everyone’s like 21, 22, 23, there’s no old guys,” he said.
“It’s kind of funny to come out here… it feels like a time capsule.
“I played a practice round with ‘Apples’ (Stuart Appleby) today, I think I’m going to play with ‘Wrighty’ (Michael Wright) tomorrow and then I’ve seen (Greg) Chalmers and Richard Green. I saw a whole bunch of the guys, so it’s good to see them again.”
Reflecting on playing with the “kids” of the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, Goggin noted his third at Rosebud as “what we love and what we hate” as a professional golfer.
The one-time world No.48 instantly admits that near misses never fade completely from memory, including playing in the final group at The Open alongside Tom Watson in 2009 where he finished fifth.
“The British Open, I think about that all the time still because it would’ve had such a huge impact on my career,” he said.
“It’s the great opportunities that you lose that keep you up at night and do forever.”
Excited at the prospect of competing once again at a level where he might have the advantage of relative youth, Goggin knows like that week, that a win at Newport would greatly change his future plans.
However, even when preparing for a senior major, the future of his other work is never far from mind.
Goggin revealed the hope to open a loop of holes at Seven Mile Beach in November this year, while is also in the final stages of a council application to build a second golf course on the site.
“When I go to Hobart, it’s basically just flat-out meetings after meetings for Seven Mile Beach and then I’m always waking up to a few emails,” Goggin said of his time spent at his US base in North Carolina.
“Actually, the most stressful part of my day is about 5am when I first check the phone, just waiting to see all the flood of emails from Hobart. Then there’s a quick panic about stuff I’ve got to do, but then realising there’s not much I can do about it now because it’s 10 o’clock at night in Hobart.”
Switching off that course builder part of his brain and focusing only on competing will be a unique challenge for Goggin amongst a stacked field of Hall of Famers this week.
Yet his intimidate knowledge of course design could help around one of the original five USGA member clubs where Goggin’s links golf career highlight and power could be significant assets.
“It’s very much like UK golf. It’s not really a links golf course, but it has the same feeling across the land,” he said of Newport. “It’s not dissimilar to the Mornington Peninsula in a lot of respects in the way that the hills sort of flow.
“There’s a lot of 430, 420-metre par-4s. We played a couple yesterday into the westerly breeze and it was four straight 4-irons – and I’m one of the longer players – into four holes.
“There were guys hitting woods into a lot of holes, which is pretty crazy.
“I’m sure they might adjust that coming into the tournament, but if it gets windy it’s going to be tricky.”
The US Senior Open is live on Fox Sports, available on Foxtel and Kayo.
