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There was no sign of a winning hangover as Jason Norris backed up his Australian PGA Senior Championship win with victory at the Seamless Pymble Legends Pro-Am on Monday.
A five-stroke winner at Richmond Golf Club on Sunday, the one-round sprint at Pymble Golf Club kept things much tighter at the top of the leaderboard.
Playing alongside Peter O’Malley and the team from Seamless, Norris once again leant on the two most important clubs in the bag for a round of 3-under 66 and a one-stroke win.
Victorian David McKenzie (67) shared second spot with Scott Laycock (67) with six players finishing in a tie for fourth at 1-under 68.
“It’s always hard to come back out after a win in a big tournament, to come back to a one day pro-am,” Norris conceded.
“I just had a great group of blokes, playing with ‘POM’ and the major sponsors and just enjoyed the day really and played pretty solid.”
HOW THE WINNING ROUND UNFOLDED
Riding a wave of confidence, Norris once again relied on his work with the driver and putter to come out in front.
With his iron play not quite at his usual high standard, Norris was forced to fall back on the flatstick to stay ahead of the field.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
“I’ve said to some people that I actually don’t feel like I’m playing that well.
“I’m driving it quite well, my irons are average and my putting’s pretty solid. Driving it well, putting well, that’s most of the game really these days.
“That’s why I’m scoring pretty well I think.
“I drove it very well again today, missed a couple of greens, had a couple of chip-and-putts.
“Didn’t get up-and-down a couple of times but my ball-striking is quite solid and I’m putting pretty well.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
1 Jason Norris 66
T2 David McKenzie 67
T2 Scott Laycock 67
T4 Brad Burns 68
T4 Brendan Chant 68
T4 Steve Conran 68
T4 Nigel Lane 68
T4 David Van Raalte 68
T4 Perry Parker 68
NEXT UP
The PGA Legends Tour remains in Sydney on Wednesday for the $20,000 New South Wales Golf Club Legends Pro-Am in partnership with Porsche Centre Sydney South at New South Wales Golf Club.
Queensland and Australian cricketer Matt Renshaw wants to pair up with fellow left-hander Robert MacIntyre after playing his way into Wednesday’s Pro-Am for the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland.
With sporting stars and celebrities lining up to be part of the action next Wednesday with some of the world’s best golfers, Renshaw earned his spot by besting Brisbane Heat teammates Jimmy Peirson and Josh Brown in the final leg of the Australian PGA Sporting Teams Challenge.
Renshaw, Kotoni Staggs (Brisbane Broncos), Charlie Cameron (Brisbane Lions) and Jordan Petaia (Wallabies) will have the extra incentive of bragging rights for their respective codes.
A 7-marker who is a member at both Nudgee and Royal Queensland golf clubs, Renshaw (centre) used a bit of home course knowledge to edge Peirson (left) by a point at Nudgee’s Bulka Course.
He will now rub shoulders with the likes of Cameron Smith, Adam Scott, Min Woo Lee and Cam Davis yet wants a second chance to watch MacIntyre up close.
“My ideal playing partner would be Bob MacIntyre,” said Renshaw.
“I have a soft spot for him, being a lefty, and I was at the Scottish Open earlier this year when he was coming down the stretch.
“I was right in front of the 18th green when he sunk that putt to nearly win it, and that was pretty cool.
“He had the whole Scottish crowd right behind him and cheering him and then, unfortunately, Rory (McIlroy) had to come and spoil the party.
“Either him or Adam Scott.”
As a member at Royal Queensland, Renshaw will at least have a comfortable environment to step into despite the fact that it is not his normal sporting arena.
The 27-year-old has played 14 Tests for Australia and has some experience mixing with professional golf’s elite.
“I’ve played a few times with guys like Jason Scrivener and Jarryd Felton so it’s always a good day when you get to play with a pro.
“I’ve played the Queensland PGA Pro-Am a few times and I might have played the Aussie PGA at Royal Pines a few years ago.
“But Royal Queensland, RQ, it’s a beautiful course and I’m a member there as well so I’m excited to play the Pro-Am.
“Everyone is getting ready for it. I played the 17th yesterday and it’s a really nice hole anyway but I feel like it’s easier with the stands around. It feels like the green is not as undulating, there’s not the big run-off at the back. I said they should keep the stands there all the time.
“It just feels way cooler.”
And it is in the stands where you will likely find Renshaw once Round 1 gets underway next Thursday.
“I didn’t get to go last year because we were away but I was watching on the Sunday with the storm and Cam Smith coming down the straight,” said Renshaw.
“Hopefully I’ll be able to go a few days this year and watch and see how it’s done.”
Tickets and premium experiences for the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship are available via ticketek.com.
The Fortinet Australian PGA Championship is proudly supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland, and Brisbane City Council via Brisbane Economic Development Agency.
Lucas Herbert will be this year’s Yellow Day Ambassador at the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship when the tournament will again honour Jarrod Lyle and continue the legacy he built in the golfing community.
For the sixth year, the second day of the event – Friday, November 24 – will be dedicated to remembering Jarrod and his achievements on and off the course, with the aim of raising important funds for not-for-profit organisation Challenge to support children with cancer.
Royal Queensland will turn yellow for the day and everyone at the course, and watching on from home, is encouraged to take part.
A winner on both the DP World Tour and PGA TOUR, Lucas was great friends with his fellow Victorian, who passed away from acute myeloid leukemia at age 36 in 2018, and has an on-going ambassador role with Challenge.
His support includes raising awareness of Challenge by wearing the mascot, Leuk the Duck, and spreading the word of the cause at any opportunity where he is given a chance.
“Yellow Day is all about remembering our mate Jarrod, all the positivity he brought to the game of golf, the achievements he had and importantly to continue to raise awareness and much-needed funds for Challenge to support kids with cancer,” Lucas said.
“The second round of the PGA is always a special time for Australian golfers,
“I’d love everyone who comes along to RQ on Yellow Day this year to get involved even more than ever before.
“Get out your yellow shirts, yellow hats, yellow zinc and help us turn the course yellow.”
Lucas said he missed Jarrod’s smile and never-quit attitude.
“Although it’s been five years now since Jarrod passed, he’s still very much in our thoughts and what he gave to all of us, especially young players like me when I was just starting my golf career, is still fresh in our minds.
“Like many others on Tour, I’m proud to have Leuk the Duck with me when I’m practising and out on the course in tournaments.
“Leuk is a reminder of how much Jarrod meant to us and how important it is to help Challenge do what they do for young kids.”
PGA of Australia CEO Gavin Kirkman said: “It’s been incredible to see such wonderful support of Jarrod Lyle and Challenge over the past five Yellow Days with so many players and fans donning yellow.
“Hopefully we can take that support to another level this year as we remember Jarrod once again and honour all that he did for golf and for Challenge.”
To help Challenge continue supporting young cancer victims and their families, visit www.challenge.org.au to donate directly or purchase clothing and pins carrying the Leuk the Duck symbol Jarrod Lyle helped make famous.
Major champions Cameron Smith and Adam Scott have set their sights on success on home soil following top-five finishes in their final international commitments for 2023.
A birdie at the 72nd hole saw Kiwi Ben Campbell edge Smith (68) by a shot at the Hong Kong Open on the Asian Tour while Scott was tied for fifth as old friend Camilo Villegas completed an emotional victory at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship on the PGA TOUR.
ISPS HANDA Australian Open drawcard Stephanie Kyriacou extended her LPGA Tour season by an extra week, her tie for fifth at The ANNIKA enough to squeeze inside the top 60 who qualify for the CME Globe Tour Championship in Florida.
Tied for the lead standing on the 18th tee, Smith’s struggles with his driver over the weekend forced him to lay up at the par-4 finishing hole.
He very nearly jarred his wedge shot for birdie but could only watch on as Campbell (66) drained his 15-footer for birdie to claim his first Asian Tour win and first anywhere since the 2018 NZ PGA Championship.
With the defence of his Fortinet Australian PGA Championship now just a week away, Smith will take the positives from his runner-up finish and tune up for Royal Queensland.
“Pretty poor over the weekend I guess but I hung in there so lots of positives,” said Smith, who struggled with his driver and long irons over the final two rounds.
“Definitely wasn’t the nicest golf to be played over last couple of days, still lots to work on.”
Scott made his return to Bermuda for the first time in a decade with his three-week schedule in Australia very much front of mind.
Scott will tee it up at the Australian PGA, Australian Open and Cathedral Invitational buoyed by his first top-five finish since the Wells Fargo Championship in May.
Scott, who introduced Villegas to the team at L.A.B. Golf who built the Colombian a new putter, shot 67 in difficult conditions in the final round to finish five back of Villegas.
A two-time winner of the Joe Kirkwood Cup and the 2009 Australian Open champion, Scott is heading home with winning on his mind.
“It was really one of the reasons for coming to play was to kind of make sure I’m not rusty when I play at home,” Scott said of his tournament debut in Bermuda.
“I want to play well down there. I want to play well every week, but if I didn’t play great this week, I would have known what to do when I got there and not just guessing.
“I really like where things are at. There’s a lot of good stuff to take out of my game this week and if I play in similar style down there, hopefully I can end up on top.”
Coming into the week 71st in the Race to the CME Globe standings, Kyriacou knew it would take something special to play her way into the $2 million season finale.
Not even after signing for a 3-under 67 was Kyriacou aware of her status but will now join fellow Aussies Minjee Lee (sixth), Hannah Green (28th), Grace Kim (30th) and Sarah Kemp (58th) in the final event of the season ready to let rip.
“You made it there, you’re there for a reason. You might as well go shoot the lights out,” said Kyriacou, who climbed from 71st to 56th with her second top-five finish of the season.
“Today I definitely found it pretty tough. Even before the round started I was quite nervous,” Kyriacou admitted.
“But my caddie kind of just said, ‘You know, it’s another round of golf. Yeah, there is more riding on it, but you’ve played good up until now not thinking about that, so let’s just try to go out there and do it again.’
“I’m pretty proud of myself. Definitely made some clutch pars coming in there.
“It’s great.”
Victorian Richard Green brought his rookie season on the PGA TOUR Champions to an impressive conclusion, tied for fourth at the Charles Schwab Cup Championship as Steven Alker completed a three-win weekend for the Kiwis.
A host of Aussies remain in the hunt for DP World Tour cards at the halfway mark of Final Stage of Q School in Spain.
With 25 cards to be handed out after six rounds, West Australian Hayden Hopewell is the best-placed Aussie through three rounds in a tie for 16th.
Fellow West Australian Haydn Barron is two shots further back in a tie for 34th with Connor McKinney, Elvis Smylie and Justin Warren also still in the hunt.
Results
PGA TOUR
Butterfield Bermuda Championship
Port Royal Golf Course, Southampton, Bermuda
1 Camilo Villegas 67-63-65-65—260 $US1.17m
T5 Adam Scott 65-67-66-67—265 $251,063
T30 Lucas Herbert 66-71-64-70—271 $38,954
T72 Cameron Percy 72-64-73-70—279 $12,870
MC Harrison Endycott 71-70—141
MC Greg Chalmers 77-71—148
LPGA Tour
The ANNIKA
Pelican Golf Club, Belleair, Florida
1 Lilia Vu 67-66-62-66—261 $US487,500
T5 Stephanie Kyriacou 70-65-64-67—266 $124,827
T23 Grace Kim 71-67-69-64—271 $34,952
T31 Lydia Ko (NZ) 67-69-67-70—273 $23,205
T38 Gabriela Ruffels 69-67-71-67—274 $17,726
T57 Sarah Kemp 68-68-73-69—278 $9,653
MC Su Oh 72-74—146
DP World Tour
Nedbank Golf Challenge
Gary Player CC, Sun City, South Africa
1 Max Homa 66-68-69-66—269 €961,124.05
T33 Daniel Hillier (NZ) 72-68-76-71—287 €42,852.07
T39 Jason Scrivener 71-74-76-69—290 €35,069.31
T51 Ryan Fox (NZ) 69-76-70-77—292 €21,566.69
DP World Tour
Qualifying School – Final Stage
Infinitum Golf, Spain
Through three of six rounds. The top 25 after six rounds earn 2024 DP World Tour cards
T16 Sam Jones (NZ) 68-69-70—207
T16 Hayden Hopewell 73-65-69—207
T34 Haydn Barron 67-72-70—209
T69 Connor McKInney 71-69-71—211
T73 Elvis Smylie 73-70-67—210
T83 Justin Warren 78-68-65—211
T116 Matias Sanchez 72-67-76—215
T129 Andre Lautee 73-71-72—216
T129 James Marchesani 75-69-72—216
WD Blake Windred 70-70—140
Asian Tour
Hong Kong Open
Hong Kong Golf Club, Hong Kong
1 Ben Campbell (NZ) 66-64-65-66—261 $US360,000
2 Cameron Smith 63-66-65-68—262 $220,000
T8 Harrison Crowe 65-65-69-67—266 $41,225
T30 Douglas Klein 69-69-69-65—272 $14,225
T42 Zach Murray 70-68-66-69—273 $10,036.36
T42 Scott Hend 70-67-65-71—273 $10,036.36
T42 Travis Smyth 69-68-69-67—273 $10,036.36
T66 Jediah Morgan 67-71-70-69—277 $5,200
T69 Andrew Dodt 66-71-70-71—278 $4,600
MC Todd Sinnott 69-70—139
MC John Lyras 68-71—139
MC Kevin Yuan 71-68—139
MC Jack Thompson 67-73—140
MC Terry Pilkadaris 73-67—140
MC Wade Ormsby 70-71—141
MC Sam Brazel 74-68—142
MC Tom Power Horan 69-74—143
MC Marcus Fraser 73-71—144
MC Shane Kuiti 72-73—145
Japan Golf Tour
Sumitomo Mitsui VISA Pacific Masters
Pacific Club (Gotemba Cse), Shizuoka
1 Shugo Imahira 67-66-65-70—268 ¥40m
T29 Brad Kennedy 67-74-69-70—280 ¥1,252,500
T50 Brendan Jones 70-73-71-71—285 ¥554,666
MC Anthony Quayle 75-75—150
PGA TOUR Champions
Charles Schwab Cup Championship
Phoenix Country Club, Phoenix, Arizona
1 Steven Alker 67-64-65-70—266
T4 Richard Green 69-64-71-66—270
T30 Mark Hensby 75-66-72-72—285
35 Rod Pampling 71-74-74-73—292
Photos: Jason Butler/Getty Images (Smith); Gregory Shamus/Getty Images (Scott)
Twenty-four hours after his place in the tournament was in jeopardy, New Zealand’s Kerry Mountcastle broke through for his first win on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia at the 2023 Gippsland Super 6 at Warragul Country Club.
It has been a strong debut Tour season so far for the Kiwi, with top-10s at the PNG Open (T10), and the WA Open (T4), but this victory takes his professional career to new heights.
As well as securing Mountcastle a spot in both the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship and the ISPS HANDA Australian Open in the coming weeks, he has now taken over No.1 spot in this season’s Order of Merit standings.
But there was a chance on Saturday that he would not even make it through to the final day with the former New Zealand amateur representative having to survive a 10-man playoff to reach the last 24 who contested the sudden-death medal match-play rounds.
He finished the 54 holes of strokeplay in a tie for 17th at 6-under-par, and then had to get through five opponents on Sunday (a total of 30 holes) on his way to the trophy.
Jye Pickin, Lawry Flynn, Michael Wright, and Jak Carter were Mountcastle’s final-day victims before he faced the formidable Jake McLeod in the final.
“I only just snuck in today through the playoff yesterday, so I kind of came into today just trying to finish as high as I could for the Order of Merit… and all of a sudden I was in the final,” he laughed.
“I was probably more nervous in that (Saturday) playoff than I was at any point today.
“To get into those (the Australian PGA and Open) is massive, because obviously they’re worth the most money and points. It means a lot. I can now plan what I want to do.”
Mountcastle is coached by Dom Azzopardi, coach of Lucas Herbert and Mouncastle’s partner Momoka Kobori, and said the work they’ve put in has changed his game dramatically.
“The major changes happened end of last year, beginning of this year and then I was able to work on them through winter,” he said.
“It’s made my game a lot more consistent what I’ve done with Dom. I don’t have the massive miss off the tee that I used to have and putting and chipping has got a lot better.”
Mountcastle will be heading to Moonah Links for the Victorian PGA Championship next week, but is happy he doesn’t have to worry about qualifying for the week after.
Runner-up Jake McLeod (Qld) played near-flawless golf until the final, and took down the No.1 seed Jarryd Felton (WA) in the quarter-finals.
The McLeod versus Felton match was the pick of the day, with both players finishing at three-under after the six-hole match. Two knockout holes were required, with McLeod eventually making birdie on the second.
A previous PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winner on the back of his 2018 NSW Open win, McLeod’s finish this week marks a strong return to form, and the pointy end of the leaderboard.
WA amateur Joseph Owen, who made an ace on the 15th hole in round one, made it all the way to the semi-finals before being knocked out by McLeod.
The Lake Karrinyup member, a previous Victorian Amateur champion, battled Jak Carter in the match for third but the South Australian was too strong.
Carter’s third marks his best finish this season, and adds to top-10s at the WA Open, and WA PGA Championship to move him to ninth on the Order of Merit.
The South Australian had a local Warragul member on his bag this weekend, and praised him for his green-reading skills.
Other strong finishes came from Victorian Darcy Brereton, and South Australia’s Jack Buchanan, who both made it to the quarter finals.
In just his second event as a professional, Buchanan shot an incredible 63 in round 3 to start in a strong position on Sunday. He was able to triumph over Andrew Martin (Vic) in his first match, after sitting out round one, but was eventually knocked out by the amateur Owen.
For Brereton. this week marks his best finish as a professional and backs up a tied-12th finish at last week’s Queensland PGA.
Having finished outside the top-eight from the first three rounds, Brereton was victorious over James Grierson (NSW), and the No.2 seed Cameron John (Vic) on his way to the semi-finals. A long Jak Carter putt from off the green on the knockout hole led Brereton’s eventual demise.
Jason Norris used some distraction techniques and an aggressive mindset to triumph at the Nova Employment Australian Senior PGA Championship on Sunday at Richmond Golf Club.
Firing a second straight round of 6-under-par 64 to reach 14-under-par for the week, Norris secured a five-shot win over Peter Lonard and Stephen Allan to join the likes of Lee Trevino, Orville Moody, Peter Fowler, Rodger Davis and Peter Senior on the trophy.
“What an event to win … I’m so excited,” Norris said clutching the trophy and looking at the names to come before him.
“I just saw a name that I was lucky enough to have a lunch with, Billy Dunk. He’s on it a couple of times.
“What an event, anything with ‘Australian’ in front of it is awesome.”
Out in the last group of the day as the joint overnight leader with Lonard, things fell favourably for Norris early when he birdied the par-4 3rd immediately after Lonard made just his second bogey of the week at the short par-3 2nd.
Continuing to press ahead and put some space between himself and the chasing pack, Norris added birdies at the 6th and 7th despite admitting his usually stellar iron play was well below its typical standard.
As the South Australian-born, now Queensland-based Norris was moving deeper into red figures, the man who appeared to be his main challenger was stuck on a 10-hole par streak as Lonard burned the edge of the cup with regularity after finding almost every green with his exemplary ball striking.
The very recently turned 50 Allan, back home from the United States, started to make his move in the group ahead when Norris finally gave some hope to the rest of the field that he was indeed human after all.
A surprising three-putt bogey, also his second for the week, at the 11th offered the slightest glimmer that nerves would get the better of him on the back nine.
Getting the shot back on the next with a mid-range putt, Norris looked relieved before Lonard finally made a birdie at 13 to produce a passionate cheer from the crowd and slight concern for Norris.
“It was very tough, and he started playing really well on the back nine, the normal Pete that we know, he can just sling birdies on every hole coming home,” Norris said of Lonard.
“So I just tried to stick to one shot at a time and just enjoy the day.”
Enjoy he did as Norris pulled away with a hat-trick of birdies starting at the 15th, the former Fiji International winner reaching the 18th tee with a four-shot lead. An advantage that would become five after Allan dropped a shot following a miscue trying to drive the final green and apply some pressure.
Norris stuck with his aggressive approach by taking driver on the 54th and final hole as he continued to distract himself with thoughts of other events to help temper nerves.
“I think a good thing for me is last night I decided to, in the back of my mind, think about the Australian PGA and the Australian Open, just a chance to get into there, this might help my chance,” he said.
“That was a good way to take my mind off this event.”
A brilliant shot to the front edge of the green and a straightforward par was the result, with Lonard resigned to finishing runner-up at the Australian PGA Senior Championship for a third time while Norris was presented with the trophy by past champion and PGA of Australia Chairman Rodger Davis.
“He’s the king isn’t he? What a legend,” Norris said.
“He’s also on the trophy as well. Nice of him to come and celebrate with us. “
Scores: https://pga.org.au/report/?tourn=2223&report=tmresult~season=2023~result=PF~&class=snr
FORMER CHAMPIONS
2022: Richard Green
2021: Guy Wall
2020: Andre Stolz
2019: Peter Senior
Photo: New champion Jason Norris with PGA of Australian chairman Rodger Davis and Nova Employment’s Kerry Spindler
When you look at Peter Lonard’s resume, there are very few holes in the wins category around Australia.
A three-time winner of the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship, two-time ISPS HANDA Australian Open winner and twice the champion of the Australian Masters, the New South Welshman has nine total Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia titles.
Also a winner on the PGA TOUR in America for good measure, many would have assumed when he joined the over-50s crowd of the PGA Legends Tour, Lonard would regularly have his name up in lights.
Lonard has certainly been no slouch, winning 10times on the PGA Legends Tour after finishing T3 in the 2017 Senior Open Championship immediately after turning 50.
However, one title has alluded him to date, the Nova Employment Australian PGA Senior Championship, the marquee event on the senior circuit in this country.
Played at Richmond Golf Club in north-west Sydney once again this year, the eighth time the club will host the event, Lonard has gone close in recent years including as runner-up in both 2019 and 2020.
“I suppose I’m near the end of my career, it would be nice just to win one of the big ones in the seniors,” said 56-year-old ahead of Friday’s first round.
“I was probably more competitive early on when I turned 50. I put a lot more effort into this year, the last three months I’ve actually practiced and done a lot of work.”
That work, and the hope of winning, coming via a different motivation than when he was winning with regularity on the main Tour and overseas.
“It would be great for my little girl to actually see me win something, rather than think I’m the garbage man,” he joked. “But other than that, at the end of the day it’s not going to kill me if I don’t, but I would love to.”
To do that he will need to overcome an impressive field that includes the likes of Peter O’Malley, Peter Fowler, John Senden, Stephan Allan and Andre Stolz to name just a few.
Lonard believes his experience growing up on Sydney courses similar in tree-lined style and across similar playing surfaces will deliver an edge this week.
“It’s kikuyu, I grew up on kikuyu so that’s a bit of an advantage. I think, if there is an advantage here, you have to hit pretty straight and I am reasonably straight,” he said.
“That’s my thing. Last year I hit it sideways, and it was no good. This place really penalises you if you don’t hit it straight.”
Whether or not Lonard is able to join the honour roll that includes Rodger Davis, Peter Senior, Ian Stanley, Bill Dunk and American major winners Orville Moody and Lee Trevino, won’t be the end of the world for the one-time world No.23.
But in his in words “it would be a nice bonus”, and produce a slightly different Sunday night than a similar result would have in his heyday.
“Well I suppose you get home from six o’clock in the morning for starters. Outside of that, it will be a much quieter finish to the week if I manage to get up in any tournament in any way, I’m sure I would probably be in bed by 7:30, 8pm. I might stretch it out.”
The PGA Legends Tour has arrived in Sydney for its marquee event on a schedule that traverses the country, with the Richmond Golf Club hosting the Nova Employment Australian PGA Senior Championship starting on Friday.
By Jimmy Emanuel
Hosting the jewel in the over-50s Tour crown for the eighth time, Richmond will welcome some very well-known names in Australian golf, with the likes of Peter Lonard, Peter O’Malley, John Senden and Peter Fowler teeing it up in the $150,000 event.
Joining those players are some of the “newbies” to senior golf in 2002 ISPS HANDA Australian Open champion Stephen Allan and David Bransdon, who will be hoping for a hot start to his PGA Legends Tour like last year’s winner at Richmond, Richard Green.
The Victorian is not in town to defend his Australian PGA Senior title, but instead will be teeing it up at the final event of the lucrative PGA Tour Champions season in the United States.
“It’s a good bunch of guys, exciting again,” Bransdon said of joining the Legends Tour.
“It’s almost like a kid in the candy store. The last six months, it has just been ‘Let me at’.
“It’s been fun playing Tour events, but I am a competitive beast, and not being near the pointy end of leaderboards, I’m making cuts and stuff, the juices don’t get flowing.”
Those competitive juices were on immediate display when the Victorian-based Bransdon made his first start at the Cowra Lamb Legends Pro-Am and finished in a tie for a second, a result he followed up with a share of third at Moss Vale this week.
Given his birthday fell during the second round of the NSW Senior Open at Thurgoona, Bransdon wasn’t able to contest one of the PGA Legends Tour’s other big events, one that Adam Henwood claimed in impressive fashion and where Allan made his own senior debut with a T3 finish.
Henwood will be hoping his form has travelled north, as he seeks to follow Green’s example of winning both the NSW Senior Open and Australian PGA Seniors titles in succession.
Bransdon is also looking to emulate his fellow revhead Green overseas later this month.
“I’m heading to the U.S. Senior Q School at the end of this month. The immediate plan is to do the next few weeks here, a couple of weeks here in Sydney, including the PGA here at Richmond,” Bransdon said.
Already enjoying the comaraderie that leads Legends Tour players to call the circuit a “family”, Bransdon is like the members at Richmond playing in the pre-tournament pro-am and coming out to watch the three rounds of action that kick off on Friday, November 10.
“Some of these guys I idolised growing up, they were winning the Aussie Opens, the Aussie PGAs, the Aussie Masters back in the day. You talk about all the Peters. The Lonards, Seniors, O’Malleys,” he said.
“They’re legends of our sport in Australia and it’s still exciting to play with those guys.”
Believing his length off the tee will be an advantage as one of the “young guys”, Bransdon is also thankful that he set a plan for when he did reach golf’s magic number for career rejuvenation. Not that he believed he had any other career options after a life in golf.
“Anytime I have thought about quitting, I realised I couldn’t do anything else,” the 2015 Queensland Open champion joked.
“I’ve been doing this as a full-time pro since I was 21, and I played full time amateur golf from 18 to 21. So I’ve known nothing else. Every time I thought about it scared the crap out of me, so I went to practice.”
Photo: David Bransdon in action at the WA PGA Championship last month.
HOW TO FOLLOW
For live scoring and the latest news visit www.pga.org.au Exclusive content and tournament updates will also be posted regularly on the PGA Tour of Australasia’s social media channels.
Instagram: @pgaofaustralia
Twitter: @PGAofAustralia
Facebook: @PGAofAustralia
Official hashtag: #AusPGASeniors
HOW TO WATCH
Catch the action of the second and final rounds on Saturday and Sunday, broadcast live, on Foxtel (Channel 503) and Kayo Sports.
Round 3: Saturday, 1pm-4pm AEDT
Round 4: Sunday, 11am-2pm AEDT
FORMER CHAMPIONS
2022: Richard Green
2021: Guy Wall
2020: Andre Stolz
2019: Peter Senior
COURSE RECORD
63 Michael Harwood (Round 1, 2018)
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Adam Henwood, 2023 NSW Senior Open champion
Guy Wall, 2021 Nova Employment Australian PGA Senior champion
Andre Stolz, 2022 Nova Employment Australian PGA Senior runner-up & 2020 champion
Peter Lonard, Three-time Australian PGA champion, two-time Australian Open winner
Jason Norris, 2023 WA Open runner-up
Peter O’Malley, Three-time DP World Tour winner
John Senden, PGA TOUR winner
The Australian Summer of Golf has received another international boost, with three-time DP World Tour winner and Ryder Cup hero Nicolas Colsaerts confirmed for three events – the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship, ISPS HANDA Australian Open and Cathedral Invitational.
By Jimmy Emanuel
Now splitting his time between competing and a commentary career that has proven exceptionally popular, Colsaerts is no stranger to Australian shores having teed it up regularly in past years and through his Australian wife, Rachel.
Ten times a winner as a professional, the Belgian was one of the stars of the “Miracle at Medinah” when the Jose Maria Olazabal led European team staged an historic comeback to claim the Ryder Cup in 2012 on American soil.
Representing his native Belgium at the 2016 Olympic Games, Colsaerts’ most recent win came in 2019 at the Amundi Open de France, adding to the former World No.32’s DP World Tour wins at the Volvo China Open (2011) and Volvo World Match Play (2012).
He recently finished in a tie for sixth at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in Scotland.
Joining fellow Ryder Cup representative Robert MacIntyre at the two Australian majors, the 40-year-old is the latest player to commit to an impressive field gathering for the two-day Cathedral Invitational at the highly rated Cathedral Lodge and Golf Club in Victoria.
Adam Scott, Cameron Smith, Marc Leishman, Geoff Ogilvy, defending champion Nick Flanagan, top-ranked All Abilities player Kipp Popert and reigning Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winner David Micheluzzi have all confirmed for the Cathedral Invitational on the men’s side for its second staging.
Meanwhile, the tournament which pits men and women against one another from scaled tees will also feature rising Australian stars Gabi Ruffels, Cassie Porter and Grace Kim, as well as LPGA Tour veteran Sarah-Jane Smith.
The latest international player set to contest Australian golf’s biggest prizes, Colsaerts will first tackle Royal Queensland Golf Club at the Australian PGA Championship, where Smith, Scott, Leishman and MacIntyre will also be joined by Adrian Meronk, Min Woo Lee, Cameron Davis and Lucas Herbert, beginning November 23.
Moving to Sydney, that group will be joined by more overseas hopes in Nick Hardy and Patrick Rodgers from the United States, as well as Chile’s Mito Pereira and Joaquin Niemann, with the men’s and women’s Australian Opens again played concurrently across The Australian and The Lakes Golf Clubs from November 30.
The first national Open to be played in a dual gender format last year, having Minjee Lee, Hannah Green, Steph Kyriacou, Sarah Kemp, Jiyai Shin, Smith, Kim and Ruffels, as well as defending champion Ashleigh Buhai confirmed as starters.
Starting on December 5, the second day of play at the Cathedral Invitational (December 6) will offer a rare chance for public to wander the Cathedral Lodge & Golf Club property where the tournament’s second winner will be crowned and awarded the $100,000 first prize.
Tickets for the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship, ISPS HANDA Australian Open and Cathedral Invitational are available via www.ticketek.com
The ISPS HANDA Australian Open is proudly supported by the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency Destination NSW and naming rights partner ISPS HANDA.
The Fortinet Australian PGA Championship is proudly supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland, and Brisbane City Council via Brisbane Economic Development Agency.
Two tournaments for the price of one. That’s the unique position the Gippsland Super 6 holds on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia schedule.
Now in its fifth year, the Gippsland Super 6 at Warragul Country Club 90 minutes south-east from Melbourne starts out as a 54-hole stroke play event over three days before morphing into a final day of six-hole knockout matches culminating in a two-man finale.
Two-time champion Tom Power Horan is not in the field this year and neither is 2021 champ Jack Thompson or 2020 victor Marcus Fraser, opening the door for a new winner to be crowned in 2023.
Last week’s Queensland PGA champion, Phoenix Campbell, has opted not to turn professional so is not in the field but fellow Victorian amateur and recent Asia-Pacific Amateur champion, Jasper Stubbs, will pit his game against the pros after taking up one of six ‘Elite Amateur’ invitations.
Coffs Harbour’s Jack Pountney and Orange’s James Conran played their way into the field this week by virtue of their top-10 finishes at Nudgee Golf Club, Pountney finishing one back of Campbell in a tie for second while Conran shot 67 in the final round to earn a share of ninth.
Leading by one with four holes to play, a bogey at the par-5 17th would see Pountney finish one shot shy of forcing a playoff yet the 25-year-old was proud of how his game held up playing in contention for the first time.
“It was pretty cool to be honest,” Pountney said of his Sunday in the hunt.
“I was quite comfortable out there, just a couple of errors coming home.
“Definitely a huge boost going forward knowing that you can get yourself into those situations.
“Now it’s just wanting to get back in there more and more.
“Hopefully I can take the form into Gippsland and go one better.”
Three of this season’s winners – Lachlan Barker, Ben Eccles and Austin Bautista – will be out to further strengthen their positions as the top three on the Order of Merit as the likes of Pountney, Lawry Flynn, Blake Proverbs and Nick Voke look to build on their runner-up finishes in Brisbane.
At the completion of 54 holes on Saturday, the top 24 players advance to the match play section. A playoff will be used if there is a tie for the 24th and final spot.
The top eight players after 54 holes receive a bye in the first round of match play and must then win four matches to be crowned champion.
In the four previous editions of the Gippsland Super 6, Jack Thompson is the only winner to come from outside the top eight after the stroke play section.
In 2021, Thompson finished tied for 17th after 54 holes and needed extra holes to defeat Jackson Bugdalski in the first round of match play.
He knocked off No.1 seed Michael Sim in the second round and then defeated Brett Rankin and Rohan Blizard on his way to facing Jordan Zunic in the final, again requiring a playoff to clinch his maiden win on Tour.
You can watch the Gippsland Super 6 live and free on Kayo Freebies, available on Foxtel on Fox Sports.
Coverage starts at 4pm on Saturday with the excitement of the knockout matches to begin from 2pm on Sunday AEDT.
HOW TO FOLLOW
For live scoring and the latest news visit www.pga.org.au. Exclusive content and tournament updates will also be posted regularly on the PGA Tour of Australasia’s social media channels.
Instagram: @pgatouraus
Twitter: @PGAofAustralia
Facebook: @PGAofAustralia, @PGATourAus
Official hashtag: #GippslandSuper6
HOW TO WATCH
Catch the action of the third and final rounds on Saturday and Sunday, broadcast live, on Foxtel (Channel 505) and Kayo Sports.
Round 3: Saturday, 4pm-7pm AEDT
Round 4: Sunday, 2pm-7pm AEDT
FORMER CHAMPIONS
2022 Tom Power Horan
2021 Jack Thompson
2020 Marcus Fraser
2019 Tom Power Horan
COURSE RECORD
61 Chris Wood (Round 2, 2021)
COURSE DESIGNER
Syd Bennett (1926)
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Austin Bautista, 2023 Webex Players Series SA champion
Brett Coletta, 2023 Webex Players Series Hunter Valley champion
Ben Eccles, 2023 WA PGA champion
Michael Hendry, 2023 Vic Open champion
Lachlan Barker, 2023 PNG Open winner
Jasper Stubbs, 2023 Asia-Pacific Amateur champion
Nick Voke, 2023 Queensland PGA runner-up
