Micheluzzi is the only player in the 70-man field at Yas Links to be playing their first Rolex Series event, a remarkable achievement in his rookie season on the DP World Tour.

The Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winner has scratched and clawed his way to the point where he finished as one of the top 70 players on the Race to Dubai rankings available for week one of the DP World Tour Playoffs.

He will now contest a penultimate event of the season worth $US9 million at a venue that the 28-year-old says is bring major championship vibes.

“It almost has that major feel to it,” Micheluzzi says of taking his place alongside fellow Aussies Adam Scott and Min Woo Lee and superstars the calibre of Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry, Tommy Fleetwood and Robert MacIntyre.

“I’ve been fortunate to play a couple of majors and it just has that vibe to it.

“I couldn’t wait for Hero Dubai Desert Classic to be my first one (next season) and then obviously I got into this week.

“I’m stoked.”

In 23 starts this season Micheluzzi has four top-10 finishes, his best result a tie for second at the BMW International Open in Germany.

He has banked €556,761.72 in prize money, thanks in no small part to his proficiency with the putter.

“I’ve actually struggled quite a bit. Battled with my swing, battled off the tee, into greens and my putting and my short game have really saved me this year,” said Micheluzzi, who is ranked 10th in Average Putts Per Round and 12th in Putts Per Green In Regulation.

“The more tournaments I’ve played, the more comfortable I’ve become. But overall, to make Abu Dhabi is a massive achievement.

“I had one good result in Munich. I think I made the last four cuts at the end of the season which actually got me into the top 70. Overall, very happy.”

Grace Kim is also in a happy place as she returns to defend her LOTTE Championship in Hawaii.

A shift in tournament date has kept Kim waiting 18 months to put her title on the line, the 23-year-old unsure of the giant champion’s poster that greeted her upon arrival at Hoakalei Country Club.

“They probably chose a very terrible photo of me up on the banner, but that’s fine. My face is still up there,” said Kim.

“Someone said, ‘Welcome home’, so that’s really cool.”

Just a little putting perfection from 2023 @LPGALOTTE Champion @gracekimeyy 😮‍💨 #LPGALookback pic.twitter.com/JACT2CdOzl

— LPGA (@LPGA) November 5, 2024

Tied for 34th last week in Japan, Kim has three top-10 finishes in her second LPGA Tour season and is currently 47th in the Race to CME Globe standings.

Although she has had some disappointing finishes in 2024 after playing her way into contention, Kim believes the win in her rookie season will continue to help throughout her career.

“Obviously was still fresh into my rookie season, so very low expectations. No additional pressure was added,” Kim said of a win that came just three starts into her LPGA career.

“I think I had more pressure this year when I was in the two contending days. That’s just a learning experience itself. I probably got a little bit too ahead of myself or getting to the golf course a little bit too early.

“I still sometimes think when I’m down like might have been a fluke. Obviously it wasn’t, so try to use that as momentum into the rest of my career for sure.”

Although there are six Aussies in the field, Victorian Richard Green is the only Australian who can still win the Charles Schwab Cup on the PGA TOUR Champions and nine Aussies will contest the Final Stage of DP World Tour Qualifying School in Spain.

Photo: Andrew Redington/Getty Images

Round 1 tee times AEST

PGA TOUR
World Wide Technology Championship
El Cardonal at Diamante Cabo San Lucas, Los Cabos, Mexico
12:41am          Aaron Baddeley
5:05am            Tim Wilkinson (NZ)

Defending champion: Erik van Rooyen
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US7.2 million
TV times: Live 6am-9am Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.

DP World Tour
Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship
Yas Links, Abu Dhabi, UAE
2:28pm            David Micheluzzi
3:01pm            Adam Scott
5:28pm            Min Woo Lee

Defending champion: Victor Perez
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US9 million
TV times: Live 3pm-12am Thursday, Friday; Live 6pm-12am Saturday; Live 6pm-11:30pm Sunday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.

Qualifying School – Final Stage
Infinitum Golf (Lakes & Hills Cses), Tarragona, Spain
Australasians in the field: Sam Jones (NZ), Hayden Hopewell, Haydn Barron, Todd Sinnott, Danny List, Tom Power Horan, Matthew Griffin, Brett Coletta, Cameron John, Andrew Kelly

Defending champion: Freddy Schott
Past Aussie winners: Nil

LPGA Tour
LOTTE Championship
Hoakalei Country Club, Ewa Beach, Hawaii
4:40am             Stephanie Kyriacou
8:53am            Grace Kim
9:15am*           Hira Naveed
9:37am*           Robyn Choi

Defending champion: Grace Kim
Past Aussie winners: Minjee Lee (2016), Grace Kim (2023)
Prize money: $US3 million
TV times: Live 11am-2pm Thursday, Friday and Saturday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.

Japan Golf Tour
Mitsui Sumitomo VISA Taiheiyo Masters
Pacific Club (Gotemba Cse), Shizuoka
11:05am          Michael Hendry (NZ)
12:15pm          Brad Kennedy

Defending champion: Shugo Imahira
Past Aussie winners: Graham Marsh (1987), Roger Mackay (1991), Greg Norman (1993), Brendan Jones (2007)
Prize money: ¥200,000,000

Korean PGA Tour
KPGA Tour Championship
Cypress Golf & Resort, Korea
1:35pm*          Sungjin Yeo (NZ)

Defending champion:
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: KRW1.1 billion

PGA TOUR Champions
Charles Schwab Cup Championship
Phoenix Country Club, Phoenix, Arizona
Australasians in the field: Steven Alker (NZ), Stuart Appleby, Greg Chalmers, Richard Green, Mark Hensby, Rod Pampling, Cameron Percy.

Defending champion: Steven Alker
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US3 million
TV times: Live 9am-11am Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.

Legends Tour
Farmfoods European Senior Masters
La Manga Club, Murcia, Spain
Australasians in the field: Michael Campbell (NZ), Michael Long (NZ), Scott Hend

Defending champion: Patrik Sjöland
Past Aussie winners: Nil

The 26-year-old from Perth finished tied-17th in the Toto Japan Classic at the weekend, jumping four places to No. 70 on the points rankings.

The top 60 play off for $US11 million in the CME Group Tour Championship in Florida in November, with Naveed, who is 130 points behind the 60th player on the points list, teeing it up this week in Hawaii at the Lotte Championship with high hopes of grabbing a share of the 500 points on offer.

There are two tournaments remaining before the CME Group Tour Championship in Naples, Florida, from 21 November, in Hawaii this week and back in Florida from 14 November.

The Australasian players certain to be teeing it up in Florida are Lydia Ko (ranked 3rd), Hannah Green (6), Gabriela Ruffels (25) and Grace Kim (47). A slightly out-of-sorts Minjee Lee (54) and Steph Kyriacou (57) are likely to hold on to their places as well, although not certain, with Lee not on the start list for Hawaii this week.

Naveed was born in New Zealand but grew up in Perth, working through the junior programs and winning a Victorian Junior Masters and The Dunes medal as an amateur, before picking up a scholarship at Pepperdine University in the United States and spending four years in the college system.

She graduated to the LPGA Tour via the Epson Tour and earlier this year finished runner-up to Nelly Korda in the Ford Championship at just her second start as a full member of the LPGA Tour. She has earned more than $US340,000 in her first year.

Meanwhile Queenslander Maverick Antcliff is inside the top 15 on the Asian Tour order of merit after he finished tied-13th in the Indonesian Masters over the weekend.

Western Australian Haydn Barron is through to the third and final stage of DP World Tour School in Spain this week after he won the second stage at Fontanals Golf Club over the weekend.

PHOTO: Hira Naveed has won more than $US340,000 in her rookie season on the LPGA Tour. Image: Getty

Results

Asian Tour
BNI Indonesian Masters
Royale Jakarta Golf Club, Indonesia

1 Richard T Lee 62-67-66-70 – 265 $US 360,000
T6 Ben Campbell (NZ) 67-70-68-67 – 272 $61,800
T13 Danny Lee (NZ) 70-67-69-68 – 274 $27,133
T13 Maverick Antcliff 67-68-70-69 – 274 $27,133
19 Kazuma Kobori (NZ) 67-70-69-69 – 275 $23,100
T25 Nick Voke (NZ) 73-66-69-69 – 277 $18,200
T30 Wade Ormsby 71-69-70-68 – 278 $16,300
T37 Scott Hend 71-68-71-70 – 280 $13,000
T44 Jordan Zunic 68-71-71-72 – 282 $10,085
T44 Jack Thompson 69-70-72-71 – 282 $10,085
T51 Douglas Klein 71-70-71-71 – 283 $7800
T60 Sam Brazel 68-69-74-74 – 285 $6200
T63 Jed Morgan 69-72-71-74 – 286 $5400
T63 Justin Warren 67-73-74-72 – 286 $5400
MC Travis Smyth 72-70—142
MC Deyen Lawson 68-74—142
MC Kevin Yuan 71-72—143
MC Andrew Dodt 68-76—144
MC Aaron Wilkin 76-73—149
MC Marcus Fraser 77-75—152
MC Zach Murray 77-75—152

LPGA Tour
TOTO Japan Classic
Seta Golf Course, Otsu-shi, Shiga, Japan
1 Rio Takeda 69-65-67 – 201 $US 300,000
T17 Hira Naveed 70-66-72 – 208 $23,945
T34 Grace Kim 69-72-70 – 211 $12,292
T64 Minjee Lee 67-75-74 – 216 $4347
T64 Gabriela Ruffels 73-67-76 – 216 $4347

Ladies European Tour
Aramco Team Series Presented by PIF
Riyadh Golf Club, Saudi Arabia
1 Charley Hull 65-67-66—198 $US69,190.50
T29 Momoka Kobori (NZ) 69-72-72—213 $4,289.81
MC Kirsten Rudgeley 73-73—146

Challenge Tour
Rolex Challenge Tour Grand Final supported by The R&A
Club de Golf Alcanada, Port d’Alcúdia, Mallorca, Spain
1 Kristoffer Reitan 65-64-64-68 – 265 €85,000
27 Hayden Hopewell 69-68-72-72 – 271 €4650

KPGA Tour
Dong-A Membership Exchange Group Open
1 Dongmin Lee 63-70-65-67 – 265
T15 Sungjin Yeo (NZ) 69-67-71-68 – 275
T57 Wonjoon Lee 69-69-75-73 – 286
MC Kevin Chun 74-70 – 144

DP World Tour
Q School – Second Stage
Fontanals Golf Club, Girona, Spain
1 Hayden Barron 65-67-64-70 – 266 €2125

Golf Las Pinaillas, Albacete, Spain
1 David Booraboonsub 67-67-60-68 – 262 €2125
T16 Danny List 69-68-68-69 – 274 (qualifies)
25 Andrew Kelly 69-74-67-65 – 275

Isla Canela Links, Huelva, Spain
1 Clement Sordet 68-65-66-62 – 261 €2125
T17 Todd Sinnott 66-66-71-71 – 274 (qualifies)
T43 Jimmy Zheng (NZ) 76-69-69-66 – 280
T51 Josh Greer 74-70-69-69 – 282
T72 Matias Sanchez 72-68-72-78 – 290

Desert Springs Golf Club, Almería, Spain
Play suspended in round 3

The Australian contingent will be double the number who made it into the tour championship in 2023 when Steve Stricker won the 36-player final.

Australians will represent 16 percent of the field in the $US3 million climax to the seniors’ season at Phoenix Country Club from 7 November.

This year’s group is headed by lefty Richard Green (ranked No. 6 in the standings) and the big finisher was Victorian Cam Percy, who shot a closing 68 in today’s Simmons Bank Championship, at one point moving into a share of the lead.

Percy’s T5 finish lifted him from 40^th in the standings and outside the qualifiers for the tour championship to No. 36, meaning that he will take the last remain spot in the Schwab Cup.

Percy, who is in his first season on the Champions tour, was 7-under for the day standing on the 15^th tee but an errant tee shot took away his chance of unseating Padraig Harrington at the top. Bogeys at the 15^th, 16^th and 17^th saw the 50-year-old tumble a few spots.

The most frustrated would be David Bransdon and Steve Allan, who finished 38^th and 39^th in the standings with only the top 36 graduating.

Green, Percy and No. 2 ranked Alker will be joined in the Charles Schwab Cup from November 7 by Greg Chalmers (28), Mark Hensby (29), Rod Pampling (33) and Stuart Appleby (34).

Elsewhere in the world it was another good week for the red hot Hannah Green, who finished strongly in the LPGA Tour’s Maybank Championship with a 65 to be tied-sixth behind Ruoning Yin of China.

Green has won three times on the tour this year and last week was at an equal career-high No. 5 in the world rankings.

Min Woo Lee’s T27 at the Zozo Championship on the PGA Tour did his quest for more world ranking points no harm and he is one of two Australians (with Adam Scott) to qualify for the next phase of the DP World Tour beginning in Abu Dhabi next week.

David Micheluzzi was the best placed of the other Australians to reach the playoffs and his T22 finish in South Korea over the weekend left him at No. 73 in the rankings, just outside the 70 who automatically play in Abu Dhabi next week. It leaves him waiting on any last-minute withdrawals from the DP World Tour field in Abu Dhabi to earn a spot in the playoffs.

PHOTO: Cam Percy sneaked in as 36th qualifier in the 36-player Schwab Cup field. Image: Getty

Results

PGA TOUR

Zozo Championship

Accordia Golf, Narashino Country Club, Japan

1          Nico Echavarria            64-64-65-67—260        $US1.53m

T27       Min Woo Lee                69-69-69-65—272        $57,035

T65       Ryan Fox (NZ)               72-70-68-71—281        $15,725

LPGA Tour

Maybank Championship

Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club

1          Ruoning Yin                 67-67-66-65—265        $US450,000

T6        Hannah Green              71-69-68-65—273        $81,887

T18       Gabriela Ruffels            69-66-71-71—277        $36,661

T46       Grace Kim                    67-73-73-69—282        $11,869

T51       Hira Naveed                 70-75-68-70—283        $9,916

Q-Series – Qualifying Stage

Venice, Florida

T1        Mimi Rhodes                70-71-68-65—274

Failed to advance to Final Stage

T53       Caitlin Peirce (a)           71-73-72-70—286

T66       Su Oh                           74-70-69-74—287

T80       Kelsey Bennett             73-73-73-69—288

T88       Amelia Garvey (NZ)      71-72-71-75—289

T111     Jess Whitting                74-74-74-70—292

T121     Lion Higo (a)                75-71-73-74—293

T128     Claire Shin (NZ)            74-70-77-73—294

T154     Maddison Hinson-Tolchard       74-78-76-69—297

T154     Jennifer Herbst             76-72-70-79—297

T166     Sarah Yamaki Branch    75-75-74-75—299

DP World Tour

Genesis Championship

Jack Nicklaus Golf Club, Incheon, South Korea

1          Byeong Hun An            67-66-71-67—271        €628,388.68

T14       Jason Scrivener             72-71-68-67—278        €49,208.38

T22       David Micheluzzi          70-68-71-70—279        €40,105.98

T22       Daniel Hillier (NZ)         68-71-68-72—279        €40,105.98

MC       Haydn Barron               77-73—150

MC       Sam Jones (NZ)            77-76—153

MC       Tom Power Horan         79-75—154

Asian Tour

International Series Thailand

Thai Country Club, Bangkok

1          Lee Chieh-po                64-65-67-63—259        $US360,000

T7        Nick Voke (NZ)             67-66-67-64—264        $44,380

T7        Maverick Antcliff          63-64-69-68—264        $44,380

T12       Jed Morgan                  63-68-67-67—265        $27,900

T19       Marcus Fraser               69-67-65-65—266        $21,800

T19       Kazuma Kobori (NZ)     67-65-67-67—266        $21,800

T19       Travis Smyth                 65-67-66-68—266        $21,800

T31       Jack Thompson            69-67-66-66—268        $14,625

T39       Wade Ormsby              67-67-69-66—269        $12,060

T47       Ben Campbell (NZ)       65-70-68-68—271        $9,000

T54       Zach Murray                 66-68-70-68—272        $7,300

T64       Aaron Wilkin                69-67-71-69—276        $5,400

T67       Andrew Dodt                67-69-70-73—279        $5,000

MC       Todd Sinnott                69-68—137

MC       Harrison Crowe            68-69—137

MC       Sam Brazel                   72-65—137

MC       Kevin Yuan                   69-68—137

MC       Lachlan Barker              70-69—139

MC       Scott Hend                   74-66—140

MC       Justin Warren               70-70—140

MC       Danny Lee (NZ)            71-71—142

MC       Douglas Klein               71-72—143

MC       Deyen Lawson              76-71—147

Ladies European Tour

Hero Women’s Open

DLF Golf and Country Club, New Delhi

1          Liz Young                     74-73-67-72—286        $US55,534.65

T2        Momoka Kobori (NZ)    72-73-72-70—287        $21,380.84

10        Kirsten Rudgeley          72-72-73-74—291        $8,515.31

PGA TOUR Champions

Simmons Bank Championship

Pleasant Valley Country Club, Massachusetts

1 Padraig Harrington               67-65-67 – 199 $US 365,000

T5 Cam Percy                           69-66-68 – 203 $104,250

T12 Steve Allan                        69-70-66 – 205 $45,425

T12 Steve Alker (NZ)                62-70-73 – 205 $45,425

T12 Rod Pampling                   70-64-71 – 205 $45,425

T16 Richard Green                   69-67-70 – 206 $37,950

T24 Michael Wright                 73-66-71 – 210 $23,575

T26 Stuart Appleby                  70-72-69 – 211 $18,716

T34 David Bransdon                 74-69-69 – 212 $14,145

T34 Mark Hensby                     70-71-71 – 212 $14,145

T50 Greg Chalmers                   73-71-77 – 221 $6900

Legends Tour

Sergio Melpignano Senior Italian Open

San Domenico GC, Italy

1          Thomas Gogele            64-66-67—197

T18       Michael Long (NZ)        71-73-65—209

T40       Michael Campbell (NZ) 71-73-71—215

Lee has another stint at home in Australia coming up, defending his BMW Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland and playing the ISPS HANDA Australian Open in Melbourne, but he has some jobs to do first.

The Fall Series of the US Tour has three tournaments remaining from this week, and Lee is trying to improve his status for the 2025 season, having already secured his playing card.

Currently he is ranked 63^rd on the points list and he needs to vault into the bracket between 50^th and 60^th to earn a spot in two signature events, worth $US 20 million, on the tour in 2025 – at Pebble Beach and the Genesis in January-February.

There’s also the matter of the Masters tournament in April and the other majors. Currently he would get into the field for Augusta and the others with his official world ranking of 42^nd, but he needs to be inside the top 50 at year’s end. It is tighter than he would have liked.

Which is why the 26-year-old from Perth is in Japan this week, playing an event in which he finished tied-sixth last year with a closing 65. It was largely on the back of that performance that he earned his PGA Tour card and headed to America.

In a limited field (78 players) and on a course where he has played well before, it is a big opportunity to set himself up and return to Australia for the marquee events and the Christmas break with some security for 2025.

Meanwhile Hannah Green, another Ritchie Smith disciple, has risen back to an equal career-high No. 5 in the women’s world rankings after her third win of the LPGA Tour season, and Green is now after the No. 1 spot as she tees it up in Kuala Lumpur from Thursday.

The LPGA has four more tournaments for 2024 culminating with the tour championship in November and while Green is secure at No. 5 on the points list along with Gabriela Ruffels (25), the likes of Grace Kim (45), Minjee Lee (49) and Steph Kyriacou (52) have work to do to make sure they are playing in that $US 11 million season-ender.

Also in Asia, the DP World Tour has its final event in South Korea before the playoffs begin, while 21 Australasians are in the field for the Asian Tour’s International Series Thailand.

PHOTO: Min Woo Lee still has to secure his place in the majors for 2025. Image: Getty

Tee times

PGA TOUR

Zozo Championship

Accordia Golf, Narashino Country Club, Japan

11.40am Ryan Fox (NZ)

12.24pm Min Woo Lee

Defending champion: Collin Morikawa

Past Aussie winners: nil

Prize money: $US8.5 million

TV times: Live 2pm-6pm Thursday-Sunday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.

LPGA Tour

Maybank Championship

Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club

10.48am Gabriela Ruffels*

11.43am Grace Kim*

12.27pm Hannah Green

Defending champion: Celine Boutier

Past Aussie winners: nil

Prize money: $US 3 million

TV times: Live 12.30pm-5.30pm Thursday-Sunday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.

DP World Tour

Genesis Championship

Jack Nicklaus Golf Club, Incheon, South Korea

9.10 am Sam Jones (NZ)

9.50 am Daniel Hillier (NZ)*

10.40 am Jason 2crivener*

1.30 pm Haydn Barron*

2 pm Tom Power Horan*

2.20 pm David Micheluzzi

Defending champion: Sang-Hyun Park

Past Aussie winners: nil

Prize money: $US 4 million

TV times: Live 2pm-7pm Thursday-Sunday on Fox Sports 507 and Kayo.

Asian Tour

International Series Thailand

Thai Country Club, Bangkok

10.30 am Harrison Crowe

10.30 am Aaron Wilkin*

10.40 am Andrew Dodt

11 am Sam Brazel

11.10 am Danny Lee (NZ)

11.10 am Wade Ormsby*

11.20 am Kevin Yuan

11.30 am Marcus Fraser

11.50 am Deyen Lawson

12.00 Justin Warren**

12.10 pm Douglas Klein

1.10 pm Todd Sinnott*             

3.30 pm Scott Hend

3.40 pm Kazuma Kobori (NZ)*, Zach Murray*

3.50 pm Ben Campbell (NZ)*

4.10 pm Travis Smyth

4.10 Jack Thompson*

4.20 pm Nick Voke (NZ)

4.30 pm Jed Morgan

4.40 pm Maverick Antcliff*

5 pm Lachlan Barker*

Defending champion: Sang-Hyun Park

Past Aussie winners: nil

Prize money: $US 4 million

TV times: Live 6pm-9pm Thursday-Sunday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.

LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR

Hero Women’s Open

DLF Golf and Country Club, New Delhi

Australasian entries: Momoka Kobori (NZ), Kirsten Rudgeley.

Defending champion: Aline Krauter

Past Aussie winners: nil

Prize money: $US 400,000

Green, the 27-year-old Mt Lawley product won the BMW Ladies Championship in South Korea by a shot to become the first Australian since Karrie Webb in 2006 to win three times in a season on the LPGA Tour.

She joins Nelly Korda and Lydia Ko as three-time winners in 2024.

Green started the week ranked No. 8 in the world but she will likely jump to a new career-high inside the top five when this week’s rankings are released.

“I did not know that about Webby’s statistics,” she said after closing out the victory with rounds of 64-64-70-71. “But yeah, I’ve playing really solid this year. Obviously having two wins and a runner-up and things like that. But I just felt really different this off-season. I felt much more motivated.

“I got married in January. So this has been a very special year. But it helps that I’ve been hitting the ball well, and when the putter goes well, it does go well. So just making sure that I can stay consistent. But I still have four or five more tournaments for the rest of the year, so I want to continue to work hard and have myself in these type of positions.”

France’s Celine Boutier made a determined final-day run with a 66 but Green’s birdie at the 17^th hole proved to be the difference.

“It was a crazy finish, I guess,” Green said. “I think I had 127 metres to the pin, and so I hit my 8-iron. The wind was a little bit swirly. It was sometimes into the wind, sometimes from the right. So I wasn’t sure if it was 8-iron but I got lucky with the timing of when I hit my shot.

“I left myself a very difficult putt down the hill, and I guess I was fortunate enough to see Ashleigh Buhai’s putt and she didn’t hit a great putt. So I knew that it was going to be very quick and felt confident even though I was very nervous, and yeah, it went into the middle. So that was really nice, and I knew that gave me the one-shot lead.”

The LPGA Tour has five more events for the season concluding with the tour championship in Florida after which Green will jump on a plane to Melbourne to take her place in the field for the ISPS HANDA Australian Open at Kingston Heath and The Victoria Golf Club.

Meanwhile nine Australians and Kiwis have made it through to the next round of the PGA Champions playoffs, with David Bransdon (third) and Rod Pampling (tied-fifth) showing strong form in Richmond, Virginia over the weekend. The top 54 players advanced, with Michael Wright grabbing the 54^th and final place.

Results

PGA TOUR

Shriners Children’s Open

TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada

1 JT Poston 64-65-66-67 – 262  $US 1.26 million

T34 Ryan Fox (NZ)                      70-69-65-69 – 273 $36,470

MC Aaron Baddeley                  70-76 – 144

MC Cam Davis                           75-78 – 153

LPGA Tour

BMW Ladies Championship

Seowon Valley Country Club, Seowon Hills, Republic of Korea

1          Hannah Green              64-64-70-71—269       $US330,000

T12      Lydia Ko (NZ)                67-66-71-71—275       $37,438

T33      Minjee Lee                   67-73-66-77—283       $13,901

T46      Gabriela Ruffels            72-69-70-74—285       $8,559

T57      Grace Kim                     67-71-75-74—287       $6,405

T67      Hira Naveed                 70-72-70-78—290       $4,804

DP World Tour

Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters

Real Club de Golf Sotogrande, Andalucía, Spain

1          Julien Guerrier              62-72-63-70—267       €509,516.60

Won on ninth hole of sudden-death playoff

T43      Daniel Hillier (NZ)         68-69-72-72—281       €15,285.50

WD      David Micheluzzi

Asian Tour

Black Mountain Championship

Black Mountain Golf Club, Thailand

1          Michael Maguire          68-64-68-65—265       $US360,000

T4        Ben Campbell (NZ)       68-70-66-64—268       $82,866.67

T7        Nick Voke (NZ)             68-67-69-65—269       $53,000

T33      Aaron Wilkin                 66-71-69-69—275       $14,000

T44      Todd Sinnott                64-72-72-69—277       $10,600

T59      Kevin Yuan                   65-68-76-71—280       $6,300

MC       Douglas Klein               67-72—139

MC       Jack Thompson             69-70—139

MC       Kazuma Kobori (NZ)     73-67—140

MC       Andrew Dodt                70-70—140

MC       Justin Warren               70-71—141

MC       Jed Morgan                  73-69—142

MC       Travis Smyth                 70-72—142

MC       Jordan Zunic                 68-74—142

MC       Sam Brazel                   71-72—143

MC       Wade Ormsby              71-74—145

MC       Marcus Fraser               73-72—145

MC       Deyen Lawson              77-68—145

MC       Zach Murray                 72-74—146

MC       Lachlan Barker              73-74—147

MC       Maverick Antcliff           74-75—149

MC       Taewook Koh (NZ)        72-80—152

WD      Brendan Jones

WD      Harrison Crowe           

PGA TOUR Champions

Dominion Energy Charity Classic

The Country Club of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia

1          Tim O’Neal                   71-67-65—203 $US350,000

3          David Bransdon            70-69-67—206 $165,000

T5        Rod Pampling               74-67-68—209 $80,650

T20      Mark Hensby                72-73-67—212 $26,333

T26      Cameron Percy             71-75-67—213 $19,122

T26      Stuart Appleby              71-71-71—213 $19,122

T37      Steven Alker (NZ)          71-75-69—215 $12,190

T37      Greg Chalmers             67-72-76—215 $12,190

T51      Richard Green              73-76-69—218 $6213

T54      John Senden                 72-74-73—219 $6213

T61      Steve Allan                   73-78-70—221 $3565

T65      Michael Wright             78-67-77—222 $2875

Challenge Tour

Hangzhou Open

Hangzhou West Lake Golf Club, Hangzhou, China

1          Conor Purcell                63-69-67-67—266       €73,776.16

T54      Hayden Hopewell         67-73-68-75—283       €1,683.02

MC       George Worrall             77-68—145

Korean PGA Tour

The Charity Classic 2024

Sulhaewon CC, Republic of Korea

1          Wooyoung Cho            69-67-64—200

T38      Scott Hend                   71-67-74—212

MC       Sungjin Yeo (NZ)           68-76—144

MC       Kevin Chun (NZ)           75-75—150

MC       Junseok Lee                  76-75—151

MC       Wonjoon Lee                76-75—151

Sunshine Tour

Fortress Invitational

Glendower Golf Club, Edenvale, South Africa

1          Robin Williams              64-65-70-67—266

T48      Austin Bautista             70-68-72-76—286

Lee has not won since her playoff victory over Alison Lee at Seowon Valley Country Club 12 months ago, the return to a familiar setting with family support all around here – not to mention the Korean food – putting her in the right frame of mind for a successful defence.

Paired with New Zealand’s Lydia Ko and local hope Haeran Ryu for Thursday’s opening round, the 28-year-old is drawing on every positive memory she can to bring an end to her winning drought.

“It’s always a special week when I get to come back, and I enjoy the Korean food,” said Lee, who was part of an LPGA entourage who feasted on Korean barbecue on Tuesday.

“It’s very close to my heritage and I get to see my extended family as well. That’s always nice.

“And coming back to a golf course where you’ve won before and the memories, that’s cool, too.

“I just played one of the nines, and was like, Oh, this is where I holed a putt. And with Brad (caddie Brad Beecher) out there, we were talking about it just then.

“It’s just nice to come back; we have such great memories.”

Lee is one of five Aussies in the field this week, Hannah Green chasing a third win for the year, Grace Kim seeking her second LPGA Tour title and Gabi Ruffels and Hira Naveed both hunting their first.

The competition between Aussies will be strong in Thailand, too, with a total of 19 to contest the Black Mountain Championship on the Asian Tour.

Currently seventh on the Order of Merit, Travis Smyth will be out to continue his excellent season while Wade Ormsby returns to the same venue where he was victorious in the International Series a year ago.

Like Lee, Ormsby hopes to draw on that experience, albeit in a different tournament.

“It’s always nice to come back to a place where you have had success,” Ormsby said.

“The conditions are a little bit different this year, course looks a little bit wetter.

“They’ve had a lot of rain around here lately but the course looks in great shape.”

Ten Australians have qualified for week one of the PGA TOUR Champions playoffs while Cam Davis and Aaron Baddeley will fly the Aussie flag at the Shriners Children’s Open in Las Vegas.

Round 1 tee times

PGA TOUR
Shriners Children’s Open
TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada
6:07am            Aaron Baddeley
6:29am            Cam Davis
7:02am*           Ryan Fox (NZ)

Defending champion: Tom Kim
Past Aussie winners: Greg Norman (1986), Stuart Appleby (2003), Andre Stolz (2004), Rod Pampling (2016)
Prize money: $US7 million
TV times: Live 4am-11am Friday, Saturday; Live 8am-11am Sunday, Monday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.

LPGA Tour
BMW Ladies Championship
Seowon Valley Country Club, Seowon Hills, Republic of Korea
10:21am*         Grace Kim
10:54am*         Hira Naveed
11:49am          Hannah Green
12pm               Gabriela Ruffels
12:22pm          Lydia Ko (NZ), Minjee Lee

Defending champion: Minjee Lee
Past Aussie winners: Minjee Lee (2023)
Prize money: $US2.2 million
TV times: Live 2pm-6pm Thursday, Friday on Fox Sports 503; Live 2pm-6pm Saturday on Fox Sports 505; Live 2pm-6pm on Fox Sports 507 and Kayo.

DP World Tour
Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters
Real Club de Golf Sotogrande, Andalucía, Spain
10:50pm*         David Micheluzzi
11:50pm          Daniel Hillier (NZ)

Defending champion: Adrian Meronk
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US3.25 million
TV times: Live 11pm-4am Thursday, Friday; Live 10:30pm-3am Saturday; Live 8pm-1am Sunday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.

Asian Tour
Black Mountain Championship
Black Mountain Golf Club, Thailand
10:45am*         Travis Smyth
10:55am*         Ben Campbell (NZ)
11:05am*         Nick Voke (NZ)
11:15am          Zach Murray
11:25am*         Jack Thompson
11:45am*         Jordan Zunic
3:05pm*          Douglas Klein
3:15pm            Kazuma Kobori (NZ)
3:15pm*          Harrison Crowe
3:25pm*          Todd Sinnott
3:45pm            Wade Ormsby
3:35pm*          Andrew Dodt
4:05pm*          Aaron Wilkin
4:15pm            Brendan Jones, Kevin Yuan
4:15pm*          Maverick Antcliff, Marcus Fraser
4:25pm            Deyen Lawson
4:25pm*          Justin Warren
4:35pm            Jed Morgan, Sam Brazel
4:35pm*          Lachlan Barker

Defending champion: Inaugural event
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US2 million
TV times: Live 5pm-6pm Thursday on Fox Sports 505; Live 6pm-9pm Thursday on Fox Sports 503; Live 5pm-6pm Friday on Fox Sports 505; Live 3pm-7pm Saturday on Fox Sports 507; Live 6pm-7:15pm Sunday on Fox Sports 507 and Kayo.

PGA TOUR Champions
Dominion Energy Charity Classic
The Country Club of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia
Australasians in the field: Steven Alker (NZ), Steve Allan, Stuart Appleby, David Bransdon, Greg Chalmers, Richard Green, Mark Hensby, Rod Pampling, Cameron Percy, John Senden, Michael Wright.

Defending champion: Harrison Frazar
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US2.3 million
TV times: Live 5am-8am Saturday on Fox Sports 505; Live 5am-8am Sunday, Monday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.

Challenge Tour
Hangzhou Open
Hangzhou West Lake Golf Club, Hangzhou, China
2:20pm*          George Worrall
2:40pm*          Hayden Hopewell

Defending champion: Inaugural event
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US500,000

Korean PGA Tour
The Charity Classic 2024
Sulhaewon CC, Republic of Korea
9am                 Sungjin Yeo (NZ)
9:40am            Kevin Chun (NZ)
10:20am*         Wonjoon Lee
2pm*               Junseok Lee
2:10pm            Scott Hend

Defending champion: Inaugural event
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize Money: KRW1 billion

Sunshine Tour
Fortress Invitational
Glendower Golf Club, Edenvale, South Africa
Australasians in the field: Austin Bautista

Defending champion: Robin Williams
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: R2 million

From the point of an opening round of 5-under 67 Minjee was never far from the top of the leaderboard at the Buick LPGA Shanghai event in China.

A second consecutive 67 on Friday saw Minjee enter the weekend just two strokes off the lead, ultimately finishing in eighth position after rounds of 71-69 over the final two days.

Now ranked No.16 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Ranking, it is a second straight top-finish for Minjee, replicating her strong end to the season of a year ago.

“I like playing in Asia. A lot of my family come out to watch, and I have a nice fan support group here as well,” Lee said about playing in Shanghai for the fourth time.

“It makes me feel more at home. Obviously, I enjoy playing everywhere, but Asia, it’s close to my heritage, and just nice to be here.”

Min Woo was also in Asia this past week, defending his SJM Macao Open crown at Macau Golf and Country Club.

Thailand’s Rattanon Wannasrichan shot 9-under 61 and was never headed, Min Woo making steady progress up the leaderboard through the week with rounds of 68-68-67-66 to earn a share of ninth.

The putter proved to be Min Woo’s greatest weapon in his 4-under round on Sunday, needing just 12 putts on the back nine and 26 total to secure just his third top-10 of the year.

David Micheluzzi kept his hopes alive of qualifying for the DP World Tour Playoffs with a tie for 27th at the FedEx Open de France while Phoenix Campbell claimed low amateur honours at the Japan Open in his final event before turning professional.

Photos: Zhe Ji/Getty Images (Minjee Lee); Asian Tour (Min Woo Lee)

Results

PGA TOUR
Black Desert Championship
Black Desert Resort, Ivins, Utah
T46      Ryan Fox (NZ)               65-72-68-70—275
MC       Tim Wilkinson (NZ)       69-69—138
MC       Aaron Baddeley           70-74—144

LPGA Tour
Buick LPGA Shanghai
Qizhong Garden Golf Club, Shanghai, China
1          Ruoning Yin     70-66-63-64—263       $US315,000
8          Minjee Lee       67-67-71-69—274       $52,307
T47      Hannah Green  77-70-69-69—285       $7,608
T53      Hira Naveed     73-68-71-74—286       $6,657

DP World Tour
FedEx Open de France
Le Golf National, Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France
1          Dan Bradbury              67-66-69-66—268       €505,265.12
T27      David Micheluzzi          72-67-67-70—276       €27,343.76

Asian Tour
SJM Macao Open
Macau Golf and Country Club, Macao, China
1          Rattanon Wannasrichan           61-66-67-66—260       $US180,000
T9        Min Woo Lee                            68-68-67-66—269       $18,550
T19      Sam Brazel                               63-69-70-70—272       $11,050
T23      Douglas Klein                           67-68-69-69—273       $9,550
T23      Kevin Yuan                               69-67-68-69—273       $9,550
T23      Jack Thompson                        72-64-68-69—273       $9,550
T37      Maverick Antcliff                      73-66-70-68—277       $6,410
T37      Scott Hend                               70-68-73-66—277       $6,410
T56      Wade Ormsby                          70-68-70-75—283       $3,400
T56      Denzel Ieremia (NZ)                 70-65-74-74—283       $3,400
T61      Aaron Wilkin                            72-68-70-74—284       $3,050
T63      Marcus Fraser                          74-66-75-70—285       $2,850
T68      Justin Warren                           68-71-80-69—288       $2,350
MC       Jordan Zunic                            71-70—141
MC       Zach Murray                            71-70—141
MC       Todd Sinnott                            71-70—141
MC       Jed Morgan                             72-70—142
MC       Lachlan Barker                          71-72—143
MC       Harrison Crowe                        70-74—144
MC       Deyen Lawson                         70-74—144
MC       Nick Voke (NZ)                         73-72—145
WD      Brendan Jones                         71
WD      Andrew Dodt

Ladies European Tour
Wistron Ladies Open – Taiwan
Sunrise Golf and Country Club, Chinese Taipei
1          Chiara Tamburlini         66-73-68-69—276       $US182,902.40
T46      Kirsten Rudgeley          71-76-73-73—293       $4,618.29

Japan Golf Tour
Japan Open
Tokyo Golf Club, Saitama
1          Shugo Imahira             66-72-70-68—276       ¥42m
T25      Michael Hendry (NZ)    74-74-73-71—292       ¥1.533m
T31      Brad Kennedy              72-76-67-78—293       ¥1.365m
T34      Phoenix Campbell        70-78-74-72—294       ——-
MC       Adam Scott                  75-76—151

PGA TOUR Champions
SAS Championship
Prestonwood CC, Cary, North Carolina
1          Jerry Kelly                     67-69-67—203 $US315,000
T5        Steven Alker                 69-70-69—208 $92,000
T11      Michael Wright            69-73-69—211 $42,000
T29      Steve Allan                   73-71-70—214 $14,560
T29      Cameron Percy             71-69-74—214 $14,560
T45      Rod Pampling              74-69-74—217 $8,400
T47      Mark Hensby               73-74-71—218 $6,720
T53      Greg Chalmers             70-74-75—219 $4,935
T61      David Bransdon           74-76-72—222 $3,150
T68      Stuart Appleby             80-74-70—224 $2,037
73        John Senden                81-73-73—227 $1,470
WD      Richard Green              72-70—142

Challenge Tour
Hainan Open 2024
Sanya Luhuitou GC, Donghai Bay, China
1          Hamish Brown             66-70-67-66—269       €73,160.56
T49      Hayden Hopewell        70-71-74-69—284       €1,920.46
MC       George Worrall            75-72—147

Korean PGA Tour
Baeksong Holdings-Asiad CC Busan Open
Asiad Country Club, Korea
1          Jang Yu-bin                  65-69-73-68—275
Won on first hole of sudden-death playoff
T42      Sungjin Yeo (NZ)          70-72-73-70—285
T48      Wonjoon Lee                74-68-74-71—287
T62      Kevin Chun                  75-68-76-75—294
MC       Junseok Lee                  74-73—147
MC       Changgi Lee (NZ)         73-75—148

Sunshine Tour
Vodacom Origins of Golf – Wild Coast
Wild Coast Sun Country Club, Port Edward, South Africa
1          Jonathan Broomhead  70-66-63—199
MC       Austin Bautista             68-74—142

Entering the Korn Ferry Tour Championship in 18th position with 30 PGA TOUR cards on offer, Vilips responded to a nervy 75 in Round 1 with rounds of 70-71-70 to finish tied 20th and end the year 19th on the points list.

It continues a remarkable rise for the former child prodigy who grew up in Melbourne before moving to Perth and who only graduated from Stanford College in June.

He collected an exemption on the PGA TOUR Americas at the completion of his college career through the PGA TOUR University Ranking yet made just two appearances before taking a step up to the Korn Ferry Tour.

Affectionately known as ‘Koala Karl’, Vilips posted top 15 finishes in each of his first four Korn Ferry Tour starts, culminating in a victory at the Utah Championship.

Porter’s grip on one of 15 LPGA Tour cards was far less tenuous entering the Epson Tour season finale.

Starting the week 11th in the Race For The Card standings, Porter had to dig deep to hold hopefuls at bay.

A 5-under-par round of 66 in Round 3 elevated Porter from 42nd to 22nd on the Tour Championship leaderboard, a 2-under 69 in the final round enough to end the week 17th and claim the 10th of the LPGA Tour cards on offer.

By moving inside the top 10, Porter receives the Category 9 exemption category while those who finish 11-15 earn the Category 15 exemption category.

“I am actually really struggling to believe it,” said Porter.

“Even when I finished on 18, I had no idea… In my brain, I was like, Oh, there’s no way I’m making top 10. Obviously, I’m so excited for top 15, but I was like, there’s no chance.

“As things progressed, we moved up into 10 and I’m stoked. I can’t believe it. Hopefully it sinks in soon.

“I’ve dreamed about this since I was a little girl, so for it to be real so soon, I’m stoked.”

A member of the Golf Australia Rookie Squad, the highlight of Porter’s second season on the Epson Tour was her breakthrough victory at the FireKeepers Casino Hotel Championship in June.

The 22-year-old from the Sunshine Coast turned professional in 2021 and in 2022 won the Melbourne International on the WPGA Tour of Australasia.

Elsewhere this week, 50-year-old Brad Kennedy was tied for third at the CAN Championship in June, Greg Chalmers was outright third at the Constellation Furyk and Friends on the PGA TOUR Champions and Maverick Antcliff’s tie for seventh was the best of the Aussies at the typhoon-affected Mercuries Taiwan Masters.

Results

PGA TOUR
Sanderson Farms Championship
The Country Club of Jackson, Jackson, Mississippi
1          Kevin Yu                       66-66-66-67—265
T11      Ryan Fox (NZ)               67-66-68-69—270
MC       Tim Wilkinson (NZ)       74-73—147
MC       Aaron Baddeley           73-77—150

DP World Tour
Alfred Dunhill Links Championship
Old Course St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland
1          Tyrrell Hatton               65-68-61-70—264       €739,482.05
T12      Kazuma Kobori (NZ)     70-70-67-65—272       €64,502.72
T19      David Micheluzzi          64-70-70-69—273       €50,023.79
T25     Daniel Hillier (NZ)         63-69-70-72—274       €39,366.54
T43      Sam Jones (NZ)            67-71-67-71—276       €20,444.50
T54      Cameron John              62-68-74-73—277       €13,919.66
MC       Daniel Gale                  68-74-66—208
MC       Kade McBride               69-69-71—209
MC       Brett Coletta                69-68-73—210
MC       Jordan Zunic                70-69-71—210
MC       Matt Jones                   72-70-71—213
MC       Lachlan Barker              76-68-71—215
MC       Matthew Griffin            76-73-69—218
MC       Jak Carter                     75-78-66—219

Asian Tour
Mercuries Taiwan Masters
Taiwan Golf and Country Club, Chinese Taipei
1          Jbe Kruger                   68-71-69—208 $US200,000
T7        Maverick Antcliff          73-71-68—212 $25,000
T13      Andrew Dodt               71-69-74—214 $13,000
T26      Todd Sinnott                74-71-72—217 $8,800
T31      Scott Hend                   71-73-74—218 $7,716.67
T37      Jed Morgan                 69-73-77—219 $6,880
T42      Brendan Jones             69-75-76—220 $6,450
47        Kevin Yuan                   71-74-78—223 $5,900
MC       Deyen Lawson             72-76—148
MC       Aaron Wilkin                72-76—148
MC       Zach Murray                74-74—148
MC       Jack Thompson            75-76—151
MC       Sam Brazel                   74-77—151
MC       Justin Warren               73-78—151
MC       Harrison Crowe            81-75—156

Japan Golf Tour
ACN Championship Golf Tournament
Miki Golf Club, Hyogo
1          Takumi Kanaya             68-68-65-63—264       ¥20m
Won in sudden-death playoff
T3        Brad Kennedy              67-71-63-66—267       ¥5.2m
MC       Michael Hendry (NZ) 75-73—148

Ladies European Tour
Aramco Team Series Presented by PIF – Shenzhen
Mission Hills Resort (World Cup Cse), China
1          Celine Boutier              66-68-66—200 $US67,970.25
T26      Kelsey Bennett             70-71-71—212 $5,256.37
T37      Kirsten Rudgeley          71-72-72—215 $3,262.57

Korn Ferry Tour
Korn Ferry Tour Championship
French Lick Golf Resort (Pete Dye Cse), French Lick, Indiana
1          Braden Thornberry       71-72-70-66—279      
T20      Karl Vilips                     75-70-71-70—286      

Epson Tour
Epson Tour Championship at Indian Wells
Indian Wells Golf Resort (Players Cse), Indian Wells, California
1          Heather Lin                  67-63-71-67—268
T13      Amelia Garvey (NZ)      66-68-71-68—273
T17      Cassie Porter                70-70-66-69—275
MC       Fiona Xu                      73-72—145

Challenge Tour
D+D REAL Czech Challenge
Royal Beroun Golf Club, Beroun, Czech Republic
1          Benjamin Follett-Smith 63-62-63-64—252       €43,200
MC       Hayden Hopewell        68-68—136
MC       Connor McKinney        73-67—140

LET Access Series
Iberdrola Calatayud Ladies Open
Gambito Golf Calatayud, Spain
1          Ellie Gower                   73-65-68—206 €7,200
MC       Laura Hoskin (NZ)        78-75—153

PGA TOUR Champions
Constellation FURYK & FRIENDS
Timuquana Country Club, Jacksonville, Florida
1          Rocco Mediate             67-66-71—204 $US315,000
3          Greg Chalmers             69-69-68—206 $151,200
T10      Steven Alker (NZ)         70-68-70—208 $46,620
T15      Rod Pampling              68-70-71—209 $35,700
T34      Stuart Appleby             70-73-69—212 $12,642
T45      John Senden                70-68-77—215 $7,770
T50      David Bransdon           79-68-69—216 $6,090
T53      Steve Allan                   73-75-69—217 $5,145
T65      Michael Wright            76-76-69—221 $2,327
T65      Cameron Percy             72-74-75—221 $2,327

Sunshine Tour
SunBet Challenge hosted by Sun Sibaya
Umhlali Country Club, Ballito, South Africa
1          Luke Jerling                  66-66-68—200
MC       Austin Bautista             75-74—149