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Courtesy of his now famous win at the New Zealand Open presented by Sky Sports, Ryan Peake gained winners category status on the Asian Tour, and makes his debut as a Tour member at this week’s GS Caltex Maekyung Open Golf Championship in South Korea.
Peake, who also gained DP World Tour status thanks to his second-place Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit finish, will likely play as much as he can in Asia before that European status comes into effect at the BMW Australian PGA Championship later this year.
It marks the beginning of the next chapter for the left-handed West Australian, whose comeback story of resilience and perseverance has been well documented, and one which is likely to crescendo at The Open Championship at Royal Portrush in July — another spoil from his win at Millbrook.
Peake is joined by a host of his fellow countrymen, including Travis Smyth, and last week’s Legends Tour champion Scott Hend, who his always out to prove he can still mix it with the young guys.
Staying in Korea, the Ripper GC boys are ready to take on the inaugural LIV Golf Korea. The Rippers currently sit third on the season-long team standings, in great position to successfully defend their 2024 title.
The LPGA Tour heads to Black Desert in Utah for the first time, with seven Australians playing, many keen to shake off a lacklustre week at the Chevron Championship. While the PGA TOUR’s CJ CUP Byron Nelson, which has been a happy hunting ground for Australians in the past, heads back to TPC Craig Ranch.
Round 1 tee times AEST
PGA TOUR
THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson
TPC Craig Ranch, McKinney, Texas
10:01pm Ryan Fox (NZ)
10:45pm* Karl Vilips, Cam Davis
11:51pm Harrison Endycott
3:22am* Aaron Baddeley
Recent champion: Taylor Pendrith
Past Aussie winners: Peter Thomson (1956), Bruce Devlin (1969), Adam Scott (2008), Jason Day (2010, 2023), Steven Bowditch (2015).
Prize money: $US 9.9million
TV times: Live Thursday and Friday 9:45pm-9am Fox Sports 503 and Kayo. Saturday and Sunday 10:30pm-8am Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
LPGA Tour
Black Desert Championship presented by Greater Zion
Black Desert Resort, Ivins, Utah
11pm* Robyn Choi, Sarah Kemp
11:44pm* Cassie Porter
12:06am* Minjee Lee
12:17am* Steph Kyriacou
12:50am Fiona Xu (NZ)
1:01am* Karis Davidson
4:26am* Gabi Ruffels
4:37am* Hira Naveed
5:43am* Grace Kim
Recent champion: Inaugural event
Prize money: $US 3million
TV times: Live Friday 8am-11am Fox Sports 506 and Kayo. Saturday 8am-11am Fox Sports 505 and Kayo. Sunday and Monday 8am-11am Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
Asian Tour
The 44th GS Caltex Maekyung Open Golf Championship
Namseoul Country Club, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
7:52am Junseok Lee
8:03am Ryan Peake
8:36am Jed Morgan
8:58am Sungjin Yeo (NZ)
9:09am Maverick Antcliff
12:41pm Nick Voke (NZ)
1:14pm Wonjoon Lee
1:25pm Travis Smyth
1:58pm Aaron Wilkin
2:31pm Scott Hend
Recent champion: Kim Hong-taek
Past Aussie winners: Mike Clayton (1984)
Prizemoney: KRW1,300,000,000
TV times: Live Thursday, Friday and Saturday 2pm-6pm Fox Sports 503 and Kayo. Sunday 1pm-5pm Fox Sports 506 and Kayo.
LIV Golf
LIV Golf Korea
Jack Nicklaus Golf Club, South Korea
Australasians in the field: Cameron Smith, Lucas Herbert, Marc Leishman, Matt Jones, Danny Lee (NZ).
Recent champion: Inaugural event.
TV times: Live Friday, Saturday and Sunday 7Plus.
Japan Golf Tour
The Crowns
Nagoya Golf Club Wago Course, Japan
Australasians in the field: Michael Hendry (NZ), Brad Kennedy.
Recent champion: Ren Yonezawa
Past Aussie winners: Peter Thomson (1969, 1972), David Graham (1976), Graham Marsh (1977, 1981), Greg Norman (1989), Peter Senior (1993), Roger Mackay (1994), Brendan Jones (2011).
Prizemoney: ¥110,000,000
PGA Tour Champions
Insperity Invitational
The Woodlands Country Club, Texas
Australasians in the field: Steven Alker (NZ), Steve Allan, Stuart Appelby, David Bransdon, Greg Chalmers, Richard Green, Mark Hensby, Rod Pampling, Cameron Percy, Vijay Singh (FIJI)
Recent champion: Scott Dunlap
Past Aussie winners: Nil.
Prizemoney: US$ 3million
TV times: Live Saturday 2:30am-5:30am Fox Sports 505 and Kayo. Monday 5am-8am Fox Sports 507 and Kayo.
PGA Tour Americas
Diners Club Peru Open
Los Inkas Golf Club, Lima, Peru
10:15pm Grant Booth
2:40am Charlie Hillier (NZ)
Recent champion: Stuart Macdonald
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prizemoney: US$ 225,000
Korn Ferry Tour
Tulum Championship at PGA Riviera Maya
PGA Riviera Maya, Tulum, Mexico
3:30am Rhein Gibson
4:40am* Harry Hillier (NZ)
Prizemoney: US$ 1million
Epson Tour
Reliance Matrix Championship presented by Epson
Spanish Trail Country Club, Las Vegas
1:50am* Amelia Garvey (NZ)
4:50am* Su Oh
Recent champion: Inaugural event
Prizemoney: US$ 250,000
Australia will provide its fourth captain of the International Team at the Presidents Cup with major winner Geoff Ogilvy to take on the role at Medinah in the United States in 2026.
The former US Open champion follows David Graham (1994), Peter Thomson (1996, 1998, 2000) and Greg Norman (2009, 2011) as Aussie captains of the Internationals.
Ogilvy, 47, played on three consecutive International Teams (2007, 2009, 2011), where he amassed a 7-6-1 record.
He also served as a captain’s assistant in the last four iterations of the event. The Australian owns eight career PGA TOUR victories, in addition to winning two of Australia’s biggest titles – the 2008 Australian PGA and 2010 Australian Open.
“The Presidents Cup has been a significant part of my career. I am honored to now take on the role of Captain of the International Team for the 2026 Presidents Cup at Medinah Country Club’s Course #3, a place that means a great deal to me,” Ogilvy said.
“Since Ernie Els debuted the shield in 2019, the International Team’s spirit has intensified and grown as we have rallied around this symbol, which embodies our shared ambition and unifies both players and fans.
“I intend to carry that momentum forward, just as the captains before me have, to build strong support for our international players in the lead-up and throughout the event.”
Ogilvy’s golf course design firm, OCM, oversaw the renovation of Course #3 – a two-year project that delivered a much larger scale to match the topography of the property. The course, now punctuated by larger greens, scale bunkering and wider fairways, along with a new routing, re-opened to play in the summer of 2024.
PGA TOUR Commissioner Joel Monahan said: “Geoff Ogilvy is the perfect captain to lead the International Team into Chicago in 2026, drawing on both his great history with the Presidents Cup and a vast knowledge of Medinah.
“Geoff will capitalise on the upward trend of the International Team, where we have seen a passionate level of support from players and fans over the years.
“With his pedigree as a major champion and experience in the team room, Geoff was primed to take on this role for the 16th edition of the event.”
Brandt Snedeker was named captain of the defending champion United States team.
There were plenty of players on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia who definitely trended in the right direction in season 2024/25.
Here’s a look at some of our biggest improvers in the top 20.
Cory Crawford (pictured above) – up 118 to No.13
The highlight of Crawford’s summer was a one-shot win at the Vic PGA Championship at Moonah Links in December, his first on Tour in more than seven years. In a consistent run in the first half of the 2024/25 season, the 32-year-old had top-20s in five consecutive events. He added a tie for seventh at Webex Players Series Victoria after the Christmas-New Year break.
Tyler Hodge – up 101 to No.20
With thoughts of retirement from Tour life in his head, the New Zealander produced the best result of his career with a win at the Wallace Development NZ PGA Championship at Hastings. His other big point hauls came with an 11th at the Ford NSW Open and share of eighth at the Heritage Classic.
Ryan Peake – up 79 to No.2
The West Australian’s thrilling one-shot win at the NZ Open presented by Sky Sport was one of the big highlights of 2024/25. It changed his life. Less than 12 months after playing in the Tour Q School, the lefthander earned a winner’s category on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and Asian Tour and a 2025/26 DP World Tour card. He also had five other top-10s on his summer record.
Jack Buchanan – up 65 to No.6
In his second year as a professional, Buchanan was one of the stars of the first half of the 2024/25 season, beating Jordan Doull in a playoff for his first Tour win at the CKB WA PGA Championship presented by TX Civil & Logistics before coming from behind to claim Webex Players Series South Australia in front of a home crowd. He also produced a T5 finish at the Ford NSW Open and a season-ending T6 at The National Tournament.
James Conran – up 64 to No.15
Conran came close to his first Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia title last August, finishing as runner-up to Will Bruyeres in the PNG Open. When he next made it into contention at the Heritage Classic, he completed the job, producing a fantastic wedge shot on the final hole to set up a tournament-clinching birdie and a one-shot margin over Nathan Page.
Jack Thompson – up 60 to No.16
The South Australian cashed in at the NZ Open presented by Sky Sport, coming within a shot of forcing a playoff with Ryan Peake after closing with a brilliant 63 at Millbrook. That result came after a T9 at Webex Players Series Sydney and gives him plenty of confidence for an Asian Tour campaign in 2025.
Corey Lamb – up 53 to No.9
The phrase “knocking on the door” was made for Lamb who was equal second at Webex Players Series SA and the Ford NSW Open and third at the Gippsland Super 6. He was also well in contention at Webex Players Victoria before finishing tied for 11th. A place inside the top 10 on the Order of Merit represented a huge jump for the NSW pro who came through Qualifying School last April.
Elvis Smylie – up 30 to No.1
Two victories, including an Aussie major, plus another five top-10 finishes made it a season to remember for the young Queenslander who now has a DP World Tour card and a position in The Open Championship at Royal Portrush. Smylie also produced arguably the shot of the year – an approach in near-gale force winds to inside a metre, setting up a birdie to clinch the Bowra & O’Dea Nexus Advisernet WA Open at Mandurah Country Club.
Blake Proverbs – up 24 to No.17
The Queenslander was one of 13 first-time winners on Tour this season, triumphing in a playoff against Jason Norris at Webex Players Series Murray River. Earlier in the season, he again showed his linking for Nudgee Golf Club with a tie for third at the Queensland PGA Championship after being a joint runner-up in the same event 12 months earlier.
Harrison Crowe – up 18 to No.8
A victory at the season-ending National Tournament was a just reward for a strong season from the former Asia-Pacific Amateur Champion and GA Rookie Squad member. He fired in the big events with a T5 at the ISPS HANDA Australian Open, T7 at the Ford NSW Open and T8 at the BMW Australian PGA Championship. His bogey-free 68 in strong winds to close out the win at The National was one of the rounds of the season given the circumstances.
Twenty-six years after his first, Queenslander Scott Hend has claimed the 17th win of his professional career at the Barbados Legends event at Apes Hill in Barbados.
Hend’s second win on the European Legends Tour – his first was in his Tour debut at the WINSTONgolf Senior Open shortly after turning 50 in 2023 – came courtesy of a spectacular finish.
One of the most well-travelled players in professional golf history with more than 700 starts worldwide, Hend’s first win was at the 1999 South Australian PGA Championship.
Four shots back at the start of the final round in Barbados, Hend tore through the field with a barrage of birdies.
He played the back nine in 5-under 30 for a round of 7-under 64 and 11-under total to banish the painful memory of last year’s playoff defeat to Peter Baker in the same event.
That is one of five runner-up finishes for Hend on the Legends Tour the past two years – he was also second at the 2024 New Zealand Open – making this latest trophy one to savour.
“Second’s nice, because you get paid, but first is better because nobody really remembers second,” said Hend, typically matter-of-factly.
“I love collecting trophies, whichever tour they’re on. I’ll take a trophy at any point in time and it’s great to be back in the winner’s circle again.”
Sparked by a three-putt from close range for bogey at the par-4 fourth, Hend birdied three of his final four holes on the front nine to turn in 2-under and just two strokes off the lead.
The 51-year-old picked up shots at 11 and 12 but it would be a trio of birdies between the 15th and 17th holes that would ensure a two-shot win from England’s Greg Owen.
“It’s nice to redeem after last year’s loss to ‘Bakes’ in the playoff,” said Hend.
“You can lose a playoff in any tournament and feel like the golf course sort of suits you. This morning, I woke up and thought, It’s a bit windy, if I can try and go out there and get my score to double digits (under par), I might get lucky.
“I looked at the board when we came through nine and saw that I was one or two shots behind through nine holes.
“I thought that if I could get out there and try and post something … funny things happen in golf tournaments in the final round.”
While Hend broke his run of runner-up finishes, the Ripper GC boys had two in one day at LIV Golf Mexico City.
Captain Cameron Smith had led the way the first two days but it was Lucas Herbert who charged to a tie for second with a scintillating 10-under 61.
Herbert’s heroics weren’t quite enough to carry Ripper GC to a second straight team win, finishing second to the Jon Rahm-led Legion XIII.
Trailing by five through 54 holes, Minjee Lee was unable to mount a final round charge at the Chevron Championship in Texas, Karl Vilips partnered Michael Thorbjornsen to a tie for fourth at the Zurich Classic and Harrison Endycott made a welcome return to form with a top-10 finish on the Korn Ferry Tour.
Photo: Marianna Massey/Getty Images
Results
LPGA Tour
The Chevron Championship
The Club at Carlton Woods, The Woodlands, Texas
1 Mao Saigo 70-68-69-74—281 $US1.2m
Won on first hole of sudden-death playoff
T14 Minjee Lee 71-69-72-74—286 $104,783
T30 Stephanie Kyriacou 74-71-73-72—290 $48,689
T40 Cassie Porter 74-71-73-73—291 $36,286
T44 Gabriela Ruffels 72-74-70-76—292 $28,741
T52 Lydia Ko (NZ) 73-72-75-73—293 $22,215
T59 Grace Kim 74-70-77-73—294 $18,639
MC Hannah Green 73-77—150
MC Hira Naveed 78-74—152
PGA TOUR
Zurich Classic of New Orleans
TPC Louisiana, Avondale, Louisiana
1 Andrew Novak/Ben Griffin 62-66-61-71—260 $1,329,400 each
T4 Karl Vilips/M Thorbjornsen 64-70-61-68—263 $347,588
T32 Cam Davis/Adam Svensson 61-72-61-78—272 $38,456
MC Ryan Fox/Garrick Higgo 64-74—138
PGA TOUR Champions
Mitsubishi Electric Classic
TPC Sugarloaf, Duluth, Georgia
1 Jerry Kelly 62-67-67—196 $US300,000
3 Steven Alker (NZ) 68-67-65—200 $144,000
T21 Mark Hensby 70-68-73—211 $22,200
T26 Cameron Percy 71-67-74—212 $17,400
T31 Stuart Appleby 73-72-68—213 $13,800
T36 Greg Chalmers 70-75-69—214 $10,425
T36 Richard Green 74-68-72—214 $10,425
T44 Steve Allan 72-70-73—215 $7,200
T44 John Senden 70-72-73—215 $7,200
T65 Brendan Jones 73-74-72—219 $2,400
T71 David Bransdon 73-76-72—221 $1,580
LIV Golf
LIV Golf Mexico City
Club de Golf Chapultepec, Mexico
1 Joaquin Niemann 68-64-65—197 $US4m
T2 Lucas Herbert 68-71-61—200 $1.875m
T5 Cameron Smith 64-66-72—202 $750,000
T17 Matt Jones 68-67-75—210 $255,000
T30 Marc Leishman 69-71-74—214 $162,500
T41 Danny Lee (NZ) 76-69-73—218 $128,800
WD Ben Campbell (NZ) 73
DP World Tour
Hainan Classic
Blackstone Course, Mission Hills Resort Haikou, Hainan Island, China
1 Marco Penge 68-71-65-67—271 €382,588.89
T16 Jason Scrivener 73-68-70-69—280 €29,763.17
T16 Elvis Smylie 68-68-70-74—280 €29,763.17
T36 Danny List 73-70-70-71—284 €15,303.56
MC George Worrall 72-75—147
MC Daniel Gale 78-71—149
MC Brett Coletta 79-78—157
Korn Ferry Tour
Veritex Bank Championship
Texas Rangers Golf Club, Arlington, Texas
1 Johnny Keefer 63-61-66-64—254
T10 Harrison Endycott 62-66-65-67—260
MC Harry Hillier (NZ) 67-67—134
MC Rhein Gibson 72-65—137
Epson Tour
IOA Championship
Morongo Casino Resort and Spa, Beaumont, California
1 Briana Chacon 67-71-66—204 $US33,750
T31 Robyn Choi 69-71-75—215 $1,888
T41 Su Oh 73-72-72—217 $1,219
Japan Golf Tour
Maezawa Cup
MZ Golf Club, Chiba
1 Takanori Konishi 67-64-65-67—263 ¥40m
3 Michael Hendry (NZ) 63-65-69-69—266 ¥13.6m
T47 Brad Kennedy 70-67-66-73—276 ¥462,000
PGA Tour Americas
KIA Open
Quito Tenis y Golf Club, Quito, Ecuador
Reduced to 54 holes due to rain
1 Jay Card III 66-63-71—200
T13 Grant Booth 68-67-70—205
MC Charlie Hillier (NZ) 73-69—142
Korea PGA Tour
Woori Finance Championship
Seowon Valley CC, Paju, South Korea
1 Taehoon Lee 69-70-70-70—279 KRW300,180,108
Won on first hole of sudden-death playoff
T37 Changgi Lee (NZ) 69-76-72-72—289 KRW8,284,970
MC Wonjoon Lee 74-72—146
MC Sungjin Yeo (NZ) 72-75—147
MC Junseok Lee 76-78—154
Legends Tour
Barbados Legends Hosted By Ian Woosnam
Apes Hill, Barbados
1 Scott Hend 69-69-64—202
T17 Michael Campbell (NZ) 71-75-66—212
T54 Michael Long 81-72-73—226
A family entrenched in military service is driving PGA Academy Professional Scott McDermott to seek support in expanding a Melbourne-based golf program for military veterans into a national initiative.
As Australia and New Zealand observe ANZAC Day on Friday in honour of the servicemen and women who have served and those currently deployed, McDermott’s ‘Fairways to Resilience’ golf program is nearing its one-year anniversary.
Initially inspired to develop the program after seeing the impacts of war on his father, brother and uncle – and having witnessed the positive influence golf has had on All Abilities athletes he has coached – McDermott has structured a program that is as strong in social connection as it is in straightening wayward tee shots.
Developed initially with the support of the Department of Veterans Affairs and now sponsored by Frankston RSL, a pilot program with 16 participants last year highlighted the benefits received by those who took part.
Seventy-five per cent of respondents to a post-program questionnaire reported that they felt more socially connected than they did eight weeks prior and 87.5 per cent said that they would continue to play golf to support their well-being.
“If this program were to continue, I would jump at the opportunity to continue as I see the benefit in not only learning and improving on a new skill, but in also supporting my mental health,” said one respondent.
“I need this in my life to help me with my issues,” wrote another.
Given what he has seen not only the past year but through the lived experience of his family dating back to his great grandfather’s service in World War I, McDermott knows the good such a program could do on a national scale.
“All three of my family members who have gone through the military and who are still alive have some level of impact in their life that has been quite dramatic,” McDermott explains.
“Probably the reason why I didn’t end up going down that track because I saw what it does, but at the same time I thought, How can I help these people?
“It’s a holistic approach to developing individuals’ social skills, community skills, getting back out in the community and participating. Being around people who have lived experiences very similar to their own.”
In addition to golf skill development and shared rounds of golf, coffees after each session are built into the program.
It is that development of a self-sustained support network where McDermott sees the greatest potential impact.
“As a golfer, we know how social this game is, we know how good it is for your physical and mental health and we have studies to support that,” he added.
“The responses to that initial questionnaire spoke about connecting with people, making new friendships and being part of a community. If they have a bad day, there is someone they can reach out to with a shared or very similar experience.
“That’s potentially reducing someone’s suicidal thoughts and reducing those by giving them a platform where they can make friendships, develop relationships and feel comfortable.”
To go national, McDermott needs two things.
He wants to build a comprehensive program structure that provides fellow PGA Professionals the toolkit and background to deliver it themselves… and he needs funding.
The number of spots McDermott can currently offer is limited by sponsorship but he hopes support by organisations such as DVA and the Australian Defence Force could open the door for thousands of military personnel to take part.
“I knew what they needed. They wanted social connection and they wanted to start playing golf and the only reason it hasn’t grown further is due to funding,” he said.
“Federal funding would allow us to offer it around the country and for other PGA Professionals to get involved.
“When I talk to people from Frankston RSL, the DVA, people in Canberra, they all love it. They say it’s phenomenal and to keep doing what you’re doing.
“But until we can find that federal funding, the program will remain localised and we’ll be restricted in how many military personnel we can offer it to.”
Queensland’s Cassie Porter will make her first appearance in a major with the ringing endorsement of a fellow Aussie with major championship pedigree at The Chevron Championship starting Thursday night in Texas.
Of the seven Australians to tee it up in the first LPGA major of 2025, Porter is the only one who has to manage major debutant nerves.
But after earning promotion to the LPGA Tour in 2025 via the Epson Tour, the 22-year-old has made a quick transition to the highest echelon in women’s golf.
Her place in the field this week was secured with a fourth-place finish at the Blue Bay LPGA in China, a result that world No.5 Hannah Green believes is an indicator of even bigger things to come.
“I played a practise round with Cassie a couple of weeks ago when we played in Phoenix and she was kind of saying she’s a little bit of a homebody like myself and how to manage things when it comes to schedules,” said Green, the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA champion.
“It’s obviously great that she’s had a good finish so early in the year so she can at least know what events she’ll get into and what she won’t.
“Chevron is a great course. There is a lot of water and I’m sure she’s kind of used to that playing in Queensland and Sydney.
“She hits a long ball and that will be really beneficial in any major championship. Hopefully having her coach Dan (Morrison) on the bag, if she’s in some tricky moments, that will be able to give her some clarity and some help out there.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the Aussie girls play well this week.”
Porter has the honour of being the first of the Aussies away tonight, teeing off at 10:59pm Thursday night alongside Thai pair Ariya Jutanugarn and Chanettee Wannasaen.
As the women take centre stage, there is a strong Australasian presence at the DP World Tour’s Hainan Open in China, there are nine Aussies contesting the Mitsubishi Electric Classic on the PGA TOUR Champions and Karl Vilips will partner former Stanford teammate Michael Thorbjornsen and Cam Davis has teamed up with Adam Svensson as he returns to the Zurich Classic of New Orleans for the first time since 2019.
Round 1 tee times AEST
LPGA Tour
The Chevron Championship
The Club at Carlton Woods, The Woodlands, Texas
10:59pm Cassie Porter
11:54pm Gabriela Ruffels
12:05am* Hira Naveed
3:59am Stephanie Kyriacou
4:10am* Hannah Green
4:21am* Lydia Ko (NZ)
4:32am* Minjee Lee
4:43am* Grace Kim
Recent champion: Nelly Korda
Past Aussie winners: Karrie Webb (2000, 2006)
Prize money: $US8m
TV times: Live 1am-5am, 8am-10am Friday, Saturday; Live 4am-8am Sunday, Monday on Fox Sports 505 and Kayo.
PGA TOUR
Zurich Classic of New Orleans
TPC Louisiana, Avondale, Louisiana
10:39pm* Karl Vilips/Michael Thorbjornsen
10:52pm Cam Davis/Adam Svensson
4:10am Ryan Fox (NZ)/Garrick Higgo
Recent champions: Rory McIlroy/Shane Lowry
Past Aussie winners: Cameron Smith and Jonas Blixt (2017); Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman (2021)
Prize money: $US9.2m
TV times: Live 10pm-8am Thursday; Live 10:45pm-8am Friday; Live 10:30pm-8am Saturday, Sunday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
PGA TOUR Champions
Mitsubishi Electric Classic
TPC Sugarloaf, Duluth, Georgia
Australasians in the field: Steven Alker (NZ), Steve Allan, Stuart Appleby, David Bransdon, Greg Chalmers, Richard Green, Mark Hensby, Brendan Jones, Cameron Percy, John Senden.
Recent champion: Stephen Ames
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US2m
TV times: 12pm-1:30pm Saturday on Fox Sports 503; Live 5am-8am Sunday, Monday on Fox Sports 507 and Kayo.
LIV Golf
LIV Golf Mexico City
Club de Golf Chapultepec, Mexico
Australasians in the field: Cameron Smith, Marc Leishman, Matt Jones, Lucas Herbert, Ben Campbell (NZ), Danny Lee (NZ)
Recent champion: Inaugural event
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US20m
TV times: Live from 5am Saturday, 4am Sunday, Monday on 7 Mate.
DP World Tour
Hainan Classic
Blackstone Course, Mission Hills Resort Haikou, Hainan Island, China
9am Jason Scrivener
9:50am* Elvis Smylie
10:20am George Worrall
1:50pm* Brett Coletta
2:10pm Daniel Hillier (NZ)
2:30pm Kazuma Kobori (NZ)
3:30pm Danny List
3:30pm* Daniel Gale
Recent champion: Inaugural event
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US2.55m
Korn Ferry Tour
Veritex Bank Championship
Texas Rangers Golf Club, Arlington, Texas
11:13pm Rhein Gibson
4:27am Harrison Endycott
4:49am* Harry Hillier (NZ)
Recent champion: Tim Widing
Past Aussie winners:
Prize money: $US1m
Epson Tour
IOA Championship
Morongo Casino Resort and Spa, Beaumont, California
Australians in the field: Robyn Choi, Su Oh
Recent champion: Juliana Hung
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US225,000
Japan Golf Tour
Maezawa Cup
MZ Golf Club, Chiba
9:20am* Brad Kennedy
10:55am Michael Hendry (NZ)
Recent champion: Inaugural event
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: ¥200m
PGA Tour Americas
KIA Open
Quito Tenis y Golf Club, Quito, Ecuador
2:10am Charlie Hillier (NZ)
3:30am* Grant Booth
Recent champion: Thomas Longbella
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US225,000
Korea PGA Tour
Woori Finance Championship
Seowon Valley CC, Paju, South Korea
8:10am* Changgi Lee (NZ)
8:50am* Junseok Lee
1:30pm* Wonjoon Lee
2:20pm* Sungjin Yeo (NZ)
Recent champion: Lim Seong-jae
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize Money: KRW1.5b
Legends Tour
Barbados Legends Hosted By Ian Woosnam
Apes Hill, Barbados
Australasians in the field: Michael Campbell (NZ), Scott Hend, Michael Long (NZ)
Recent champion: Peter Baker
Past Aussie winners: Nil
It’s been a happy hunting ground in years past and three members of this week’s Power Rankings finished inside the top 20 at the LPGA Tour’s JM Eagle LA Championship.
The champion in 2019, Minjee Lee made it three top-10 finishes from six starts with a share of seventh, two-time defending champion Hannah Green was a shot further back in a tie for ninth as Stephanie Kyriacou climbed into a tie for 16th with a closing 68.
Three of the seven Aussies in the field for this week’s Chevron Championship, it offers a nice sense of momentum from which to build for the first of five women’s majors for 2025.
It was a strong return to the DP World Tour for recently-crowned Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winner, Elvis Smylie.
Tied for seventh at the halfway mark, Smylie cemented his place inside the top 15 on the Race to Dubai ranking with a share of 15th as Cam Davis bounced back from five missed cuts with a tie for 13th at the RBC Heritage.
10. Kelsey Bennett (Last week: 10)
Currently back home to recharge after back-to-back top-10 finishes on the Ladies European Tour’s South African swing. Scheduled to return to play at the Aramco Korea Championship early next month.
9. Stephanie Kyriacou (9)
Likely to move even higher in the Rolex Women’s World Ranking from her current position of 46th courtesy of her tie for 16th at the JM Eagle LA Championship. Certainly one to watch at this week’s Chevron Championship.
8. Marc Leishman (6)
Will enter LIV Golf Mexico City this week full of confidence on the back of his breakthrough individual win at LIV Golf Miami.
7. Karl Vilips (5)
Entered the final round of RBC Heritage inside the top 30 thanks largely to a 6-under 65 in Round 2. The Puerto Rico Open winner shot 74 in the final round to drop to a tie for 54th. Has paired up with former Stanford University teammate Michael Thorbjornsen for this week’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans.
6. Elvis Smylie (8)
Continues to look increasingly comfortable on the world stage. Smylie was tied for 15th at the Volvo China Open and remains in the hunt for the DP World Tour Rookie of the Year honour.
5. Minjee Lee (7)
Would have been in the mix late at the JM Eagle LA Championship if not for a run of four straight bogeys in Round 3. Ball-striking is at her usual lofty standard and her proficiency with the long putter improves week after week.
4. Jason Day (4)
Eight-under through 45 holes of the RBC Heritage, Day played the final 27 holes at Harbour Town Golf Links in 4-over to finish tied for 49th. After rising five spots on the back of his top-10 finish at the Masters, dropped one to now sit 32nd on the Official World Golf Ranking.
3. Lucas Herbert (2)
Will have a fire in the belly to emulate Marc Leishman’s win in Miami with a victory of his own at LIV Golf Mexico City this week. With two top-five finishes is currently 11th in the LIV Golf individual standings.
2. Hannah Green (3)
Began her year in earnest with a tie for ninth at the JM Eagle LA Championship. Now turns her attention to The Chevron Championship in Texas where she has missed the cut in her past two starts.
1. Min Woo Lee (1)
Perhaps suffering from something of a Masters hangover, finished tied for 61st at RBC Heritage. At No.25 in the Official World Golf Ranking remains our highest-ranked male player. Will take two weeks off before returning for the next Signature Event on the PGA TOUR, the Truist Championship in Philadelphia.
The Australian Golf Power Rankings is a subjective list developed with input from members of the Australian Golf media team.
Major winners Minjee Lee and Hannah Green will head into the first major of the season high on confidence after recording top-10 finishes at the JM Eagle LA Championship.
Both past winners of the event – Green victorious in the past two – Lee began the final round best placed to make a move up the leaderboard on Easter Sunday.
A 3-under 69 was only good enough for a share of seventh, Green one shot further back in a tie for ninth after closing with six birdies in her round of 5-under 67.
Four of Lee’s six bogeys for the week came in succession to close out the front nine of Round 3 but the 28-year-old stayed within touch of the leaders with four back-nine birdies.
Despite having made birdie the previous two days at the par-5 first, Lee began the final round with six straight pars as the leaders extended their advantage.
There were birdies at seven, nine, 14 and 16 yet not enough to make an impression on the top of the leaderboard.
Yet what will please Lee and coach Ritchie Smith are ball-striking stats across the week that will hold her in good stead for The Chevron Championship starting Thursday night.
The two-time major winner hit 75 per cent of fairways and 82 per cent of greens in regulation across the week at El Caballero Country Club, numbers that she would love to replicate in conjunction with a good week with the long putter.
Green was sub-70 all four rounds in a valiant attempt to join Karrie Webb as the lone Aussies to win the same LPGA event three years straight.
There was extra motivation for Green’s defence this week as she pledged to donate to the LA Fire Relief Association for every birdie and eagle she made across the 72 holes.
That amounted to $10,500 to help the community back on their feet after the devastating wildfires in January.
“I’m super happy,” said Green after her final round.
“I did a little bit of a tally last night. At the start of the week, I didn’t really know how many birdies we were going to make, so I was hoping that it was going to be a course where we make a ton.
“Definitely a lot of opportunities where I could have made some more, so I’m grateful that I did make the amount that I did.
“Obviously going to a great cause, and good to see some of the guys come out.
“I know at least where my money is going to, so I’m very happy with that.”
One of seven Aussies to contest The Chevron, a bogey-free Sunday 68 for a share of 16th was also a nice source of momentum for Stephanie Kyriacou.
There were top-15 finishes for both Cam Davis and Elvis Smylie.
Coming in on the back of five straight missed cuts, Davis could have finished as high as a tie for third at the RBC Heritage but dropped four shots in four holes around the turn in the final round to finish tied 13th.
Tied for seventh through 36 holes, Elvis Smylie closed with four birdies on the back nine to earn a share of 15th at the Volvo China Open to stay 15th on the DP World Tour Race to Dubai ranking.
Photo: Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images
Results
PGA TOUR
RBC Heritage
Harbour Town Golf Links, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
1 Justin Thomas 61-69-69-68—267 $US3.6m
Won on first hole of sudden death playoff
T13 Cam Davis 70-66-67-71—274 $364,000
T49 Adam Scott 68-70-69-73—280 $48,000
T49 Jason Day 68-69-70-73—280 $48,000
T54 Karl Vilips 71-65-71-74—281 $44,500
T61 Min Woo Lee 72-71-71-68—282 $41,500
Corales Puntacana Championship
Puntacana Resort & Club (Corales Cse), Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
1 Garrick Higgo 64-68-70-72—274 $US720,000
T26 Aaron Baddeley 66-70-70-75—281 $29,800
T59 Ryan Fox (NZ) 70-71-73-74—288 $8,960
LPGA Tour
JM Eagle LA Championship
El Caballero Country Club, Los Angeles, California
1 Ingrid Lindblad 68-63-68-68—267 $US562,500
T7 Minjee Lee 67-65-70-69—271
T9 Hannah Green 69-67-69-67—272
T16 Stephanie Kyriacou 69-67-70-68—274
T52 Hira Naveed 71-69-70-70—280
MC Cassie Porter 69-72—141
MC Grace Kim 71-73—144
MC Karis Davidson 75-71—146
MC Gabriela Ruffels 74-75—149
MC Fiona Xu (NZ) 77-73—150
DP World Tour
Volvo China Open
Enhance Anting GC, Shanghai, China
1 Ashun Wu 68-70-67-65—270 €381,213.83
T15 Elvis Smylie 67-70-71-70—278 €30,317.71
T20 Kazuma Kobori (NZ) 67-70-70-72—279 €26,460.72
T36 Daniel Hillier (NZ) 68-69-75-71—283 €14,575.82
T43 Jason Scrivener 67-71-73-73—284 €11,660.66
MC George Worrall 74-74—148
Korn Ferry Tour
LECOM Suncoast Classic
Lakewood National Golf Club (Commander Cse), Lakewood Ranch, Florida
1 Neal Shipley 64-68-70-64—266 $US180,000
T57 Harry Hillier (NZ) 69-68-71-71—279 $4,130
MC Rhein Gibson 66-73—139
MC Harrison Endycott 70-73—143
HotelPlanner Tour
Abu Dhabi Challenge
Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club, Abu Dhabi, UAE
1 Renato Paratore 69-63-65-66—263 €42,210.53
MC Coby Carruthers (a) 69-72—141
MC Hayden Hopewell 71-71—142
MC Jye Pickin 71-72—143
MC Sam Jones (NZ) 75-71—146
WD Danny List
First-year professional Jimmy Zheng hopes to emulate his fellow New Zealander Kazuma Kobori by turning a Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Qualifying School victory into a DP World Tour card.
Rounds of 67-67-69-68 gave the Duke University economics graduate a 17-under-par total on the Moonah Links Old Course and a three-shot margin over runner-up Ben Wharton (Victoria).
As the Qualifying School – Australia Final Stage champion, Zheng will be fully exempt for all tournaments in the 2025/26 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia season, which begins in August with the PNG Open at Royal Port Moresby Golf Club.
His compatriot Kobori was the Q School winner two seasons ago and then went on to have a spectacular 2023/24 season, winning three tournaments to claim the Order of Merit title and earn his DP World Tour card.
One of five New Zealanders to earn a Tour card by finishing amongst the top 26 and ties today, Zheng came through the First Stage of Q School last week, advancing in a share of sixth place, before leading Final Stage for the majority of the 72 holes.
He made his Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia debut as a Monday qualifier at this year’s Heritage Classic, finishing in a tie for 28th.
“It feels like a real big boost of confidence,” the 23-year-old said of his victory.
“I’m real excited to play all the events and kind of see how my golf stacks up against all the other veterans and good golfers that have come through this system.”
Kobori’s achievements are a target for every Qualifying School professional with Zheng no exception.
“That would be the dream, honestly. Go through the PGA Tour of Australasia and get a DP (World Tour) card from the Order of Merit at the end of the season,” he said.
“Kazuma and I played a lot of junior golf together before I went over to America for uni.”
Further down the Qualifying School leaderboard, the biggest fightback in the final round came from former New Zealand Open champion Zach Murray who shot a 6-under-par 66 to retain his Tour card by a single shot.
Back at Q School after finishing 111th on the 2024/25 Order of Merit, Murray came to his last hole, the par-4 ninth, knowing he needed a birdie to reach the magic number required. He hit his approach shot to 15 feet and rolled in the putt for one of the most important threes of his career.
The 28-year-old was well back in a tie for 61st after a day one 77 but on the final day collected 10 birdies, alongside two bogeys and a double.
“It was a wild ride for sure,” the Albury professional said.
Unfortunately, it was a different story for three-time Tour winner Tom Power Horan who triple-bogeyed his final hole, the par-5 18th, to finish at 1-over-par, one shot outside the top 26 and ties mark needed.
Among the other successful qualifiers were former NZ PGA champion Louis Dobbelaar, outstanding NSW Amateur Declan O’Donovan, who featured on a number of Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia leaderboards in the recently completed season, and 2023 Japan Amateur champion Rintaro Nakano.
O’Donovan intends to retain his amateur status for now as he focusses on the big amateur events overseas in the northern summer.
The top 26 finishers and ties earned Full Tournament Membership of the PGA of Australia will be placed in a Tournament Exemption Category.
Those players finishing beyond 26th place and ties, who completed 72 holes at Final Stage, will be eligible for Full Tournament Membership of the PGA of Australia, however, they will not hold an exemption category for the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia.
All players who played 72 holes of the Final Stage earned a Pro-Am exemption category and be eligible to enter adidas PGA Pro-Am Series events.
The 72–hole Final Stage of Qualifying – USA will be played July 15-18 and the leading six players and ties from the USA will be eligible to for Full Tournament Membership of the PGA of Australia, and will be placed in a Tournament Exemption Category. As in Australia, the winner of this stage will be fully exempt for all tournaments in the 2025/26 season.
Those players finishing from seventh to 20th place and ties at Final Stage USA, will be eligible for Full Tournament Membership of the PGA of Australia, however, they will not hold an exemption category for the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia.
The top 20 players will also earn a Pro-Am exemption category and be eligible to enter adidas PGA pro-Am Series.
Two-time defending champion Hannah Green has shared her big prediction for 2025 as she chases her own slice of history at this week’s JM Eagle LA Championship.
After back-to-back wins at Wilshire Country Club in 2023 and 2024, Green’s quest for a three-peat takes on a new look at El Caballero Country Club as she seeks to become the first player to win an LPGA event three years straight since Inbee Park won the LPGA Championship from 2013-2015.
Karrie Webb’s Australian Ladies Masters dominance from 1998-2000 is the only other time an Australian has achieved the feat but given a light schedule to start 2025, Green is trying to temper expectations, including her own.
As the 28-year-old looks to follow up her three-win season in 2024, Green doesn’t expect to be the only Aussie pushing for tournament wins this year.
With a record nine Australians exempt on the LPGA this season, Green has become a mentor and sounding board to the likes of Grace Kim, Stephanie Kyriacou, Hira Naveed and Cassie Porter in recent years.
Kim already has a Tour win to her name, and Green expects others to follow.
“We had a question with media at Bradenton, like what’s your prediction for 2025, and I said a young Aussie will win for the first time on Tour,” said Green.
“I was talking to someone the other day back in Australia and saying that we have the most Aussies on Tour. But also, all of those players are talented enough to become really good players and win on Tour.
“It’s nice to have some of the younger girls out and they reach out to us and ask for some help.
“I feel like I’m one of the veterans, I guess you could say, so it’s nice to see the girls have come through and how they’re experiencing and learning things.”
Next in line looks to be Kyriacou.
Ranked No.46 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Ranking, Kyriacou was denied a major win at last year’s Evian Championship when Japan’s Ayaka Furue played the final five holes in 5-under, including an eagle at the 72nd hole.
How she handled that moment has Green convinced a first LPGA win is simply a matter of time.
“Steph is a close friend of mine and obviously she came so close at Evian last year,” said Green.
“I think she handled herself really well. Ayaka just played amazing on that back nine. Steph unfortunately did make a bogey on 17 but she made birdie on 18 to try and press her.
“That took a lot of guts, and hopefully that brings in some confidence for her.
“Getting back into the top 50 I think was probably one of her goals, and we have the International Crown of course this year, so she really wants to make that team.
“She works really hard, so I really hope she has some success.”
Elsewhere this week, five Aussies will contest the RBC Heritage Signature Event on the PGA TOUR, the past two Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winners, Elvis Smylie and Kazuma Kobori, are playing the DP World Tour’s Volvo China Open and Jye Pickin and Concord amateur Coby Carruthers are playing the HotelPlanner Tour event in Abu Dhabi.
Pickin and Carruthers both received invitations thanks in part to PGA of Australia Member Kieren Pratt, who is the Championship Director for the Emirates Golf Federation.
Round 1 tee times AEST
PGA TOUR
RBC Heritage
Harbour Town Golf Links, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
11:25pm Adam Scott
1:10am Karl Vilips
2:25am Jason Day
2:55am Cam Davis
3:50am Min Woo Lee
Recent champion: Scottie Scheffler
Past Aussie winners: Graham Marsh (1977), Greg Norman (1988), Peter Lonard (2005), Aaron Baddeley (2006)
Prize money: $US20m
TV times: Live 9:30pm-8am Thursday, Friday; Live 10:30pm-8am Saturday, Sunday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
Corales Puntacana Championship
Puntacana Resort & Club (Corales Cse), Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
2:21am* Ryan Fox (NZ)
2:33am Aaron Baddeley
Recent champion: Billy Horschel
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US4m
TV times: Live 12am-3am Friday, Saturday; Live 5am-8am Sunday, Monday on Fox Sports 505 and Kayo.
LPGA Tour
JM Eagle LA Championship
El Caballero Country Club, Los Angeles, California
12:26am Grace Kim
12:59am* Hannah Green
1:21am Stephanie Kyriacou
2:16am Gabriela Ruffels
5:37am Fiona Xu (NZ)
6:10am Minjee Lee
6:21am Cassie Porter
6:54am* Karis Davidson
7:05am Sarah Kemp
7:16am* Hira Naveed
Recent champion: Hannah Green
Past Aussie winners: Minjee Lee (2019), Hannah Green (2023, 2024)
Prize money: $US3.75m
TV times: Live 8am-11am Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
DP World Tour
Volvo China Open
Enhance Anting GC, Shanghai, China
9:20am Jason Scrivener
1:30pm* Kazuma Kobori (NZ)
2:20pm Daniel Hillier (NZ)
2:50pm Elvis Smylie
3:30pm* George Worrall
Recent champion: Adrian Otaegui
Past Aussie winners: Scott Strange (2009), Brett Rumford (2013)
Prize money: $US2.55m
TV times: Live 2:30pm-7:30pm Thursday, Friday; Live 2:30pm-7pm Saturday; Live 2pm-7pm Sunday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
Korn Ferry Tour
LECOM Suncoast Classic
Lakewood National Golf Club (Commander Cse), Lakewood Ranch, Florida
Round 1
T13 Rhein Gibson 66
T64 Harry Hillier (NZ) 69
T82 Harrison Endycott 70
Recent champion: Tim Widing
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US1m
HotelPlanner Tour
Abu Dhabi Challenge
Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting & Golf Club, Abu Dhabi, UAE
1:50pm Sam Jones (NZ)
2:20pm* Jye Pickin
2:30pm* Coby Carruthers
6:50pm Danny List
7pm* Hayden Hopewell
Recent champion: Garrick Porteous
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US300,000
