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Dabble, one of Australia’s fastest growing sports betting brands, is throwing one million dollars worth of extra excitement into the famous Party Hole at this year’s BMW Australian PGA Championship.
For the first time in Australian tournament golf history, it will be the lucky fans on site who will share the massive cash bonus if a player produces the perfect shot and makes a hole-in-one on the par-3 17th on Saturday, November 23.
Thanks to Dabble, the newest partner of the BMW Australian PGA Championship, the one million dollars will be up for grabs for the first ace on 17 during the tournament broadcast window, between 11am and 4pm (Qld time).
To be eligible to share in the million-dollar prize, fans must have a valid 2024 BMW Australian PGA Championship ticket for the day’s play, be 18 years of age or older and register via the QR codes at the Dabble Party Hole.
PGA of Australia Chief Commercial Officer Michael McDonald said: “There’s always an awesome vibe at the Party Hole and this new Million Dollar Hole-in-One promotion thanks to our new partner Dabble is going to raise the level even higher.
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“Every shot on the Dabble Party Hole during the Million Dollar Hole-in-One on the Saturday afternoon is going to be huge. There’ll be thousands of expectant eyes on the ball every time someone tees off.
“We’ve seen holes-in-one on the Party Hole in previous championships, including by Curtis Luck last year. Hopefully we will see a repeat so everyone in the crowd can go home with extra dollars to their name.”
Over the past three years, Dabble has revolutionised the market with its socially-led product, combining features of Instagram, X and WhatsApp with a sports betting app. Dabble provides an innovative platform for their community who enjoy a more inclusive, social and engaging betting experience.
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To be a chance of sharing in the million dollars, head to ticketek.com.au for your PGA tickets.
About Dabble
Formed in 2020, Dabble is one of Australia’s fastest growing online wagering brands, offering
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an immersive, social betting experience via a community of people who enjoy a more inclusive,
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Prodigal talent Elvis Smylie has vowed to focus on the positives after he saw a growing lead evaporate late on day three of the CKB WA PGA Championship at Kalgoorlie Golf Course.
Smylie looked like building a big buffer heading into Sunday’s final round but had to settle for a share of the lead through 54 holes after a bogey, double-bogey finish in a round of 2-under 70.
Joining Smylie at 12-under is course record holder Cameron John (66), who is hunting a second straight Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia win, while West Australian rookie Jordan Doull (67) can record a maiden victory just five months after joining the pro ranks.
Now in his fourth year as a professional, a breakthrough win is again tantalisingly within reach for the 22-year-old Smylie.
Five-under through 16 holes of his third round, a tricky chip from left of the green at the par-3 17th saw the Queenslander drop to 14-under-par and then a wayward tee shot that nestled in the desert debris led to a double-bogey at the par-5 18th.
As a result, Smylie finds himself in a three-way tie at the top of the leaderboard with Brett Rankin (67), Jack Buchanan (68) and Will Florimo (68) all now just one stroke off the lead.
“This is why I practise, and the fact that I get to put myself in a position like that again tomorrow, it’s only going to help me improve, not only as a golfer, but as a player,” said Smylie.
“I’m taking the positives out of today’s round heading into tomorrow. There was lots of good stuff. I made a lot of great putts when I needed to.
“Perhaps just a bit of a mental switch off on the last tee shot and I got into a bad position and then that led to a poor decision for my second shot and so on.
“But there’s lots of good stuff and my game feels great.”
After getting out of position with his tee shot on 18, Smylie went from bad to worse when his punch-out 7-iron went from one side to the other and coming to rest under a shrub.
He and caddie Andrew Evans were left with little option but to take a drop for an unplayable lie, Smylie unable to get up-and-down for bogey from right of the 18th green.
“I thought the 7-iron was going to come out a little bit softer,” Smylie admitted.
“The reason why I hit the 7-iron was because there were trees overhanging that I wanted to keep under.
“Just little decisions like that, obviously I would’ve liked to have over, but I think there’s lots of positives to take out of today.”
Winner of the season-ending National Tournament in March, John was leading the DP World Tour’s Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in Scotland just eight days ago.
He ultimately finished in a tie for 54th at St Andrews but says the experience of holding the 36-hole lead will hold him in good stead on Sunday.
“I feel like I got an extra week in the schedule, something massive to lead into these Aussie events and I played really well,” said John, who shares the Kalgoorlie course record of 9-under 63 with 2023 champion Ben Eccles.
“I took a lot of confidence playing with some of the best players in the world and being able to sort of tick that box. Play really well, give myself a chance going into the weekend to win.”
He is in position to win again after a 66 on Saturday that culminated with four birdies in his final five holes, a position he perhaps didn’t expect given the travel required to tee it up at all.
“First day I was pretty much half asleep,” said the 25-year-old Victorian.
“Second day it got a little bit better. Jet lag, wasn’t so bad.
“It was a long, long journey back to Kalgoorlie, but it’s definitely been worth it so far.”
The CKB WA PGA presented by TX Civil & Logistics is live on Fox Sports, available on Foxtel and Kayo. Broadcast of the final round will begin at 2pm AEDT.
Photo: Alex Verhagen/PGA of Australia
The first television broadcast of the new Summer of Golf season will get underway this weekend with exciting improvements and more tournaments for golf fans to watch the best in Australasian golf.
Starting from this week’s CKB WA PGA Championship presented by TX Civil and Logistics in Kalgoorlie through to The National Tournament in late March, all Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia events in Australia will be available for viewing by golf fans around the country – with WPGA Tour of Australasia and PGA Legends Tour action adding to the largest amount of live broadcast golf ever shown on Australian screens.
Fox Sports will cover 18 events via Foxtel and Kayo, while the BMW Australian PGA Championship and ISPS HANDA Australian Open will also be simulcast on the NINE Network and 9Now.
Sky Sport NZ, the presenting partner of the NZ Open, will also screen all Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia tournaments.
Among the improvements to the broadcasts that viewers will see from week-to-week, delivered by the PGA of Australia production partner JAM TV, will be enhanced live data presentation of scores and hole information, as well as leaderboards and Order of Merit updates as the chase for titles and opportunities runs throughout the summer.
Augmented drone footage, dynamic first-person view fly throughs and inside access to players and more will also help bolster the coverage each and every week, while the two Australian majors will see an increase in not only live golf but coverage.
The BMW Australian PGA will have all four rounds shown live across Foxtel, Kayo, NINE and 9Now, before the ISPS HANDA Australian Open sees the introduction of a new week-long Australian Open channel on Foxtel and Kayo.
Featuring historical footage and other presentations, the Australian Open Channel will be in the mould of the content delivered to Australian fans during The Masters and The Open each year.
As in previous seasons, Trackman will offer an insight into ball flights and data from the impressive play of the next wave and well-known names of the Australian golf scene.
Delivering that data alongside insights from years playing and covering the game at the highest level, the commentary team has been bolstered and will be led throughout the season by two of the pre-eminent voices in Australian golf alongside Fox Sports News rising star Isabella Leembruggen as host.
Former PGA TOUR regulars and winners on their home circuit, the familiar faces and voices of Nick O’Hern and Paul Gow will lead the coverage each week across the season with support provided by a growing group of experts in their field.
O’Hern and Gow will feature in the booth taking fans through what is seen on screen, as well as what can’t be seen, while also offering up their opinions on thoughts on play and the game of golf overall.
The pair supported by Leembruggen and an outstanding line-up of experts and on-course commentators including Ryan Lynch, Jimmy Emanuel, Ali Whitaker, Warren Smith, Ewan Porter, Mark Allen, Stacey Peters, Brenton Speed, Mathew Thompson and more.
The WA PGA Championship coverage this weekend starts with Saturday’s third round live from 4pm–7pm (AEDT) with Sunday’s final day action from 2pm–7pm.
2024/25 CHALLENGER PGA TOUR OF AUSTRALASIA BROADCAST SCHEDULE
FOXTEL/KAYO/NINE/9NOW/SKY SPORT NZ
CKB WA PGA Championship presented by TX Civil & Logistics
Kalgoorlie Golf Course
October 12 – 13
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
Bowra & Odea Nexus Advisernet WA Open
Mandurah Country Club
October 19 – 20
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
Webex Players Series South Australia hosted by Greg Blewett
Willunga Golf Course
October 26 – 27
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
Queensland PGA Championship
Nudgee Golf Club
November 2 – 3
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
BMW Australian PGA Championship
Royal Queensland Golf Club
November 21 – 24
Nine/9Now/Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
ISPS HANDA Australian Open
Kingston Heath Golf Club and Victoria Golf Club
November 28 – December 1
Nine/9Now/Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
Victorian PGA Championship
Moonah Links Resort
December 7 – 8
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
Gippsland Super 6
Warragul Country Club
December 14 – 15
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
Webex Players Series Perth hosted by Minjee and Min Woo Lee
Royal Fremantle Golf Club
January 11 – 12
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
Webex Players Series Victoria
Rosebud Country Club
January 23 – 26
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
Webex Players Series Murray River in honour of Jarrod Lyle
Cobram Barooga Golf Club
February 1 – 2
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
Tournament TBC
February 8 – 9
Webex Players Series Sydney
Castle Hill Country Club
February 22-23
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
NZ Open presented by Sky Sport
Millbrook Resort
February 27 – March 2
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
Heritage Classic
The Heritage Golf and Country Club
March 22 – 23
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
The National Tournament
The National Golf Club, Old Course
March 29 – 30
Foxtel/Kayo/Sky Sport NZ
After recording matching 4-under-par opening rounds, Elvis Smylie and Lucas Higgins again signed for the same score, with 66 seeing them on top of a congested leaderboard at the CKB WA PGA Championship presented by TX Civil & Logistics heading into the weekend.
Sitting on a total of 10-under, Smylie and Higgins hold a two-shot advantage over Tom Power Horan who led for most of the day before the co-leaders surged past late Friday at Kalgoorlie Golf Course as they chase a first Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia.
Smylie’s second round was a case of more of the same, with his new putter that went into the bag in September helping him to four birdies on the par-5s having recorded three eagles on Thursday, while Higgins made his first bogey of Friday at the par-5 18th to make it a tie at the top.
“I played really well. I felt like today was a bit more of a solid round,” Smylie said.
“I didn’t have as many bogeys and the time that I did make the bogeys that were just kind of soft. But yeah, lots of good stuff, especially coming in on the back nine.”
Making birdies in bunches in the middle of his round, including six in seven holes starting at the par-5 sixth, Higgins will count himself a little unlucky at the last, but with a new mindset will hope to continue his recent good play.
Hitting his tee shot right at 18, Higgins’ attempt to extricate himself from the red dirt and trees that border Kalgoorlie’s fairways found wood before a sprinkler stopped his approach getting closer.
“It’s been really solid. Today was really good. Holed a few longish birdie putts, and then just holed a lot of six footers for birdie as well, and a couple of nice par saves in there,” Higgins said.
Arriving in good form, with a recent adidas Pro-Am Series win to his name, the New South Wales North Coast product, who represented both his home state and Queensland as an amateur, knows good golf and his adjusted approach will put thoughts of other future employment to the back of his mind.
“I think for me at the moment, I’m just trying to really just take it as it comes and just trying not to make dumb decisions,” Higgins said.
“I usually try not to just miss it on the wrong side and stuff like that, so I’ve really just been trying to do that. So if I have a bogey or two, I’m not following it up with a lot. I’m trying to just get myself a chance of birdie and make a putt or two and then get myself back in the round.”
Achieving that so far this week, it will make an interesting contrast to Smylie, who is taking a more aggressive approach since joining the Ritchie Smith coaching stable almost 12 months ago.
“Obviously I’ve been out here for, I think this is my third full year playing on this Tour now. So I’ve also used what other guys do as well, how they play and how aggressive they play,” Smylie said.
“I’ve played with winners on this Tour before, and I think the one thing that I’ve noticed is I’m pulling out the more aggressive club and stepping up and hitting the right shot rather than the comfortable shot.”
Planning to continue taking on the course over the final 36 holes, Smylie, as well as Higgins, will have plenty of pursuers from the chasing pack headed by three-time Tour winner Power Horan.
Powered by improved ball striking and a chip-in birdie, the Victorian signed for an eight birdie, one eagle round of 65, that was the equal low round of the day and is one in front of overnight leader Kyle Michel, Lincoln Tighe, Jordan Doull, Jack Buchanan and amateur Abel Eduard.
Power Horan hoping to use what he has learned over the past two years playing the DP World and Asian Tours to his advantage as he chases a fourth win.
“I think you definitely learn a lot off the course with the travel and overseas … and then the golf, you’re obviously seeing some of the best players in the world this year on DP (World Tour), which was great to see and sort of realise what good is,” Power Horan said.
Of the group another shot in arrears, Tighe would like to repeat his Friday start when he birdied his first three holes during a 5-under 67 that could have been better had his wedge game behaved slightly better.
“Just a couple of weak sand wedge shots that I’ve made bogeys with both days, so that’s sort of killing me,” Tighe said.
Noting the difficulty of backing up a low round, it was a grinding day for Michel, whose driver that played a key role in taking the first round lead finding the red dirt more often than he would have liked in a 1-under 71.
“Kind of felt myself on the red dirt a fair bit and yeah, just scrambled around, made it sort of still hold my fair share of putts, but I kind of a lot of par putts today, so still hung in there,” Michel said.
Eight players sit at 6-under, including plenty with experience like Tour winners Brett Rankin and Cameron John, while the cut fell at 2-under, with former WA PGA champion Jarryd Felton making the weekend in remarkable fashion after a hole-in-one at the par-3 fourth hole brought him back inside the mark before finishing at 3-under.
The CKB WA PGA presented by TX Civil & Logistics is live on Fox Sports, available on Foxtel and Kayo.
Kyle Michel made the most of the lower scoring afternoon conditions at the 2024 CKB WA PGA Championship presented by TX Civil & Logistics, where he leads by one after an opening 6-under 66 at Kalgoorlie.
The Victorian making seven birdies on Thursday to move past Andrew Kelly, who led for much of the day. Kelly joined by Michel’s fellow afternoon players Cory Crawford and Charlie Robbins in equal second after 5-under 67s.
Starting on the 10th tee, Michel got straight into his first start of the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia season with back-to-back birdies at the par-4 and par-5 next before he dropped his lone shot of the day at the par-3 13th.
Michel resuming his birdie making at the 16th and 18th to turn in 3-under, before the 28-year-old birdied both front nine par-5s, as well as the par-4 fifth to sit atop the leaderboard.
The former amateur standout offering up a simple reason for his hot start.
“I just drove the ball really well. Just gave myself a lot of looks and seemed to roll in a few putts,” Michel said.
“I didn’t really find myself in much trouble, mainly on the fairway all day. That’s kind of the secret around here. You can give yourself some looks if you can do that.”
Finishing last season with a share of eighth at The National Tournament, Michel has kept his competitive edge sharp with events on the adidas Pro-Am Series and two Asian Development Tour starts.
The Shepparton product sharing 16th in Vietnam last month ahead of a busy stretch leading into Christmas as the season gets underway in earnest.
“Pro-Ams are great to keep your game sharp and everything, but you want to be playing the bigger events and I think everyone gets excited for the five or six month stretch from October through to March,” Michel said.
“Play a lot of golf and you feel like you can gain a bit of momentum if you’re playing well.”
For Kelly his first round was a mix of experience and the continuation of recent form on the Pro-Am circuit and at the World Sand Greens Championship in Binalong, where he shared runner-up honours after Brett Rankin pipped him in a play-off.
“I think it’s the experience. I looked at the book a little bit today, but I know most of the holes, none of the pin placements I’m not really familiar with,” Kelly said.
“I know most of the venues and that helps a lot.”
Unlike Kelly and Crawford, who notched two recent Pro-Am wins on the mid-north coast of New South Wales as he continues his return from a back injury, Robbins arrived in the West with less awareness of where his game might be.
The former contestant on Ninja Warrior spending more time cutting holes than playing them at Moonah Links before teeing it up at the WA PGA, where he tied for fifth last year.
“I think coming to somewhere where you’ve got good memories, really helped I think relax me knowing that I can do it if I just sort of let the golf take care of itself,” Robbins said.
“I haven’t been playing a whole lot of competition golf just the last month cause I’ve been working on ground staff, just dropped it back to a couple of days there so I can play a few more just club comps just to get some 18 hole rounds under my belt.”
Six players sit one back of Kelly, Crawford and Robbins, with Elvis Smylie’s more aggressive mindset helping him to reach the 4-under mark after three eagles in his 68 as he approaches almost a year of working with coach Ritchie Smith.
“I’ve taken on a bit more of an aggressive attitude, especially towards the par-5s,” Smylie said.
“I feel like if I don’t at least be aggressive on those and go for the eagles, then I’m kind of losing shots.”
The first winner of the season, PNG Open champion Will Bruyeres, one of four players a further shot adrift at 3-under, while Ben Eccles opened his title defence with a 1-under 71.
The CKB WA PGA presented by TX Civil & Logistics is live on Fox Sports, available on Foxtel and Kayo.
The Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia has announced its full schedule for the 2024/25 season with 19 tournaments to determine who comes out on top in the chase for Order of Merit glory.
Day one of the first Australian event on the schedule, the CKB WA PGA presented by Civil TX & Logistics, gets underway in Kalgoorlie today, following the season-opening PNG Open which was won by Will Bruyeres in August.
The nine events in 2025 will take the season total across Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea to 19, one more than the 2023/24 Tour, with almost a million dollars in extra prizemoney available to the region’s best professionals.
The major highlight of the second half of the Tour is the NZ Open presented by Sky Sports which will be played at Millbrook Resort on February 27 to March 2, the 12th year the event will be held in its unique Pro-Am format with amateurs paired with professionals in a simultaneous ‘best-ball’ format.
The runaway success of Millbrook’s new 36-hole operation used to host the NZ Open has triggered significant investment into extensions and improvements at its driving range which will open in time to cater for the influx of Tour players.
The NZ PGA Championship, first played in 1909 and with a winners’ list that includes major champions Sir Bob Charles, Peter Thomson, Kel Nagle and Tony Jacklin, will follow on March 6-9 with negotiations in the final stages to lock in a venue on the North Island.
The NZ PGA was last part of the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia in 2023 when Queenslander Louis Dobbelaar was victorious and a non-Order of Merit event this year with Pieter Zwart winning at Hastings.
The 2025 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia schedule will get underway with a new event, Webex Players Series Perth hosted by Minjee and Min Woo Lee, which will be played at Royal Fremantle Golf Club on January 9-12.
It will be the first of three consecutive Webex Players Series events where the players on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and WPGA Tour of Australasia come together in the tournament to play for the one trophy and share in the same prizemoney pool.
Rosebud Country Club will host Webex Players Series Victoria on January 23-26 before Webex Players Series Murray River in honour of Jarrod Lyle is played at Cobram-Barooga Golf Club on January 30-February 2.
The last of five Webex Players Series events for the 2024/25 season will be Webex Players Series Sydney to be played at Castle Hill Country Club for the second consecutive year.
There is a change in date for the Heritage Classic at the Heritage Golf and Country Club which has been switched from January to be the second last tournament of the season from March 20-23.
The season finale will again be The National Tournament at The National Golf Club on the Mornington Peninsula on March 27-30.
“With the Chase is On really heating up at the start of 2025, we’re looking forward to bringing our Tour to golf fans in WA, Victoria, NSW and New Zealand across nine great events,” PGA of Australia General Manager of Tournaments & Global Tour Relationships Nick Dastey said.
“There will be a huge amount at stake as the 2024/25 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia builds towards its conclusion.
“We’re looking forward to seeing who emerges as our Order of Merit champion and the players who lock in the DP World Tour cards available to our top three players by the time the last putt drops at The National.”
All of the 2025 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia events, apart from the NZ PGA, will be broadcast by Fox Sports on Foxtel and Kayo in Australia and Sky Sports in New Zealand.
2024/25 CHALLENGER PGA TOUR OF AUSTRALASIA 2025 DATES
Webex Players Series Perth hosted by Minjee and Min Woo Lee (January 9 – 12)
Webex Players Series Victoria (January 23 – 26)
Webex Players Series Murray River in honour of Jarrod Lyle (January 30 – February 2)
Tournament TBC (February 6 – 9)
Webex Players Series Sydney (February 20 – 23)
NZ Open presented by Sky Sports (February 27 – March 2)
NZ PGA (March 6 – 9)
Heritage Classic (March 20 – 23)
The National Tournament (March 27 – 30)
Photo: Reigning Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit champion Kazuma Kobori
After the journey Jasper Stubbs undertook to make his professional debut at this week’s CKB WA PGA presented by TX Civil & Logistics you’d forgive him for not smiling from ear-to-ear on Wednesday after a practice round in the heat.
However, powered by the “nervous excitement” of playing his first Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia event with money on the line, the former amateur star detailed his trip from the Asia Pacific Amateur Championship in Japan to Kalgoorlie with a laugh.
“Started in Gotemba, which is about two and a half hours southwest of Tokyo,” said Stubbs ahead of his 7:25am tee time alongside Cameron John and Louis Dobbelaar.
“Then the drive to the airport began, 10 hour flight down to Melbourne at 8:30, overnight, landed at 8:30 in the morning in Melbourne.
“Got into Perth at 1:30pm and then I had five and a half hours there before I got to leave to come here to Kal last night and got in at 7:00pm.
“So it’s over a day of travel. But yeah, it’s worth it to be back here again at the WA PGA.”
Asked whether the long journey had taken a toll before he chases status on his home Tour via tournament invites, Stubbs was upbeat and headed for more practice in the West Australian sun after 14 holes to start the day.
“I’m a pretty good plane sleeper, so I slept like a baby on there, so I’m not too physically exhausted, but the body held up and I’ve sort of done everything I can last night and this morning to get it ready for the next few days,” he said.
Playing the WA PGA for a second time after a share of 50th in 2023, the Victorian spoke of the anticipation of entering the next stage of a career after his time as an amateur where he claimed the Asia Pacific Amateur at Royal Melbourne and teed it up at The Masters and The Open.
“It’s a little bit sort of like a nervous excitement. It’s a big step,” the 22-year-old said when asked of potential butterflies.
“I have played a lot of professional events, but not with a card on the line or potentially money on the line yet. So it’s sort of going to be different in that respect. But yeah, I’ve played a lot of these events before and I feel pretty at home out here with a lot of these guys.”
Another player who feels right at home, especially this week, is defending champion Ben Eccles, who Stubbs might do well to chat with about the transition from amateur to professional.
Claiming the NSW Open as an amateur back in 2015, Eccles waited eight years before he won again with an emotional victory last year.
“A little bit of a different scenario. He obviously had a lot more success than I did,” the ever modest Eccles said when asked if he had advice for his fellow Victorian.
“I think looking back when I first turned, I sort of thought it was going to be pretty easy and I thought things were always going to be sort of on the up when I turned pro, and that’s definitely not the case.
“So my advice would just be, just take it in as it comes and just keep trying to get better each year and make smart decisions as well.”
Eccles’ words similar in sentiment to the approach to this week that Stubbs has laid out with his team.
“Not really too much of a goal setter of I have to finish in the top 10 to feel like I’ve had a good week,” Stubbs said.
“I’m more just little targets based, little things that I’m doing with my coach and my team back home that we set, little wins that aren’t necessarily a win of the golf tournament that I can feel like I’ve accomplished something here this week.
“On the golf course, just you’ve got to just play as best I can and I know my good golf is really good, so a win isn’t out of the question for me, I don’t think.”
The CKB WA PGA presented by TX Civil & Logistics is live on Fox Sports, available on Foxtel and Kayo.
The Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia gets back into action this week, with the CKB WA PGA presented by Civil TX & Logistics returning to Kalgoorlie Golf Course and the ‘Gold Capital of Australia’.
The second event of the season after Will Bruyeres claimed the PNG Open, the WA PGA kick-starts a two-week swing in Western Australia and a run of nine events in 10 weeks as players seek not just titles, but the rewards on offer via the Order of Merit that will again offer pathways overseas, including to the DP World Tour.
Bruyeres has made the trip to the oasis-like fairways and greens set amongst the red dirt of the region, and will be joined by the likes of past champions Ben Eccles, Dimi Papadatos, Jarryd Felton and Brett Rumford.
Meanwhile, players have returned from overseas, with Haydn Barron back home in WA after his rookie season on the DP World Tour, Cameron John fresh off his challenge for the Alfred Dunhill Links in Scotland and Jasper Stubbs, Ryan Ang and Connor Fewkes all teeing it up following the Asia-Pacific Amateur in Japan.
DEFENDING CHAMPION: Ben Eccles (Victoria)
PRIZEMONEY: $250,000
LIVE SCORES: www.pga.org.au
TV COVERAGE: The CKB WA PGA presented by TX Civil & Logistics is live on Fox Sports, available on Foxtel and Kayo.
*All times AEDT.
Round 3: Saturday 4pm-7pm (Fox Sports 503/Kayo)
Final Round: Sunday 2pm-7pm (Fox Sports 503/Kayo)
THE COURSE
Designed by Graham Marsh on the site of an old garbage dump, Kalgoorlie Golf Course came into existence in 2010 after the concept had been in planning for almost a decade. Kalgoorlie-born Marsh went on to create a uniquely Australian layout.
The natural red dirt, native trees and brush present on the site before the course remain a strong feature, and potential hazard, surrounding the undulating fairways and elevated greens that present a range of short game options and treachery if the wrong choice is made.
Measuring more than 6,700 metres from the back tees, the par-72’s red dirt bunkers standout visually and as part of the challenge, while the closing three-hole stretches to both nines provide plenty of excitement.
On the front nine, a dogleg left par-4 of 365 metres at the seventh is followed by a long uphill par-3 before the testing par-4 ninth, where Eccles holed a bunker shot on the final day in 2023 to ignite his charge.
To close out the back nine, the par-4 16th features one of the native trees in the fairway as an added hazard, while the par-3 17th will again offer up a car for the first player to record a hole-in-one over the weekend. The final hole is a journey of more than 528 metres that includes a dramatically three-tiered green.
HEADLINERS
Ben Eccles – 2023 WA PGA champion
Will Bruyeres – 2024 PNG Open winner
Dimi Papadatos – Four-time Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia winner
Cameron John – 2023 winner of The National Tournament
Jak Carter – Sixth on the 2023 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit
Jake McLeod – Former Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winner
Jasper Stubbs – 2023 Asia Pacific Amateur Championship winner
Brett Rumford – Six-time DP World Tour winner
Haydn Barron – DP World Tour player
Tom Power Horan – Three-time Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia winner
Former World Deaf Golf champion Jack McLeod hopes to break down barriers for deaf people within golf when he joins the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia as an exempt player this week.
A graduate of the Qualifying School staged at Moonah Links in April, McLeod joins defending champion Ben Eccles, DP World Tour rookie Haydn Barron, former winners Brett Rumford and Jarryd Felton and 2023/2024 tournament winners Cameron John and Kerry Mountcastle at the CKB WA PGA Championship at Kalgoorlie Golf Course starting Thursday.
It is a remarkable moment for the 28-year-old who was born profoundly deaf and received his first Cochlear implant when just 11 months old.
McLeod received a second implant for his left ear at the age of 11 and since then has lived a life largely unencumbered by his inability to hear without assistance.
A talented soccer player growing up on Sydney’s northern beaches, McLeod chose to pursue golf as a career, first trying his hand at greenkeeping before undertaking the PGA of Australia’s Membership Pathway Program.
He became a full Vocational Member of the PGA in 2023 and had been working as the Assistant Professional at Mona Vale Golf Club before dedicating himself to playing full-time this year.
It was only at the insistence of Mona Vale Head Professional, Gerard Kelly, that McLeod entered Q School. He finished tied 17th at First Stage and then tied 29th at Final Stage to earn status for the 2024/2025 season.
“The last thing I want is to be five years down the track going, I wish I gave it a go, but that week was so stressful,” McLeod said of his Q School experience.
“I thought I was gone after 12 holes in the last round (of Final Stage).
“One of the boys came up and asked if I’d made par on the last and I said, ‘Yeah, that’s me done’.
“He goes, ‘No, you’re in. You’re on the same score as me. You’re in’.
“It didn’t sink in until a couple of days later that I was like, Wow. I’ve got a Tour card. I’m a Tour player.”
To his playing partners this summer, McLeod will present as just another competitor.
With his implants connected to the external units that sit behind his ears, McLeod has 95 per cent hearing in his right ear and 42 per cent hearing in his left.
Background noise is an issue when he works in the Mona Vale pro shop and when he takes them off – in the shower, swimming at the beach and to sleep – he is completely deaf.
Somewhat ironically, the only time McLeod has played golf without his implants was when he played the World Deaf Golf Championship for the first time in 2012… and won by 13 strokes.
“A week before we went my coach said, ‘We’re going to spend every afternoon after school on the golf course without them on’,” McLeod recalled of his first experience playing golf in complete silence.
“It was so different. So different. You lose your balance a little bit, but I think it’s more so relying on feel to know if you’ve hit a good shot.
“And obviously it’s peaceful. You can have a car drive past you and not hear a thing.”
McLeod has played two PGA Tour of Australasia events in the past 18 months through the Associate program prior to attaining his full PGA qualifications and made the cut at the 2021 Queensland Open.
Since obtaining his Tour card, he has played extensively on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series, registering top-five finishes at Teven Valley and Ocean Shores and was runner-up at Ballina in August.
It has instilled a sense of confidence that he can enter his rookie season knowing his best golf is more than good enough to compete with the elite of Australian golf.
“At Q School I was going down there to have a crack, whereas after the last couple of results I’ve had, I’m starting to feel more confident that I can play with these guys,” said McLeod.
“The mentality sort of changed a little bit. Now it’s gone from hoping to make cuts to now wanting to win.
“That’s a different mentality I’ve got to have.”
His primary goal this season will be to retain his card, but McLeod knows that he represents something more.
“Just being an example of what we can achieve is a big thing,” he added.
“Losing one of your senses is pretty hard. And I think hearing is probably one of the bad ones that you can lose because you’ve got to communicate.
“Being an example would be a good title to have. We’re all ambassadors in our own right. We’re all trying to promote golf together; we just don’t quite get the recognition that we deserve.”
That might be about to change.
Jasper Stubbs and Quinn Croker will make an immediate switch to concentrating on their professional golf careers after finishing the Asia Pacific Amateur Championship in Japan today.
And the leading Australian at Taiheiyo Club Gotemba, Phoenix Campbell, won’t be far behind once he completes his Japanese double.
One of the men Stubbs beat in last year’s playoff at Royal Melbourne, China’s Wenyi Ding, gained redemption by claiming the 2025 Asia-Pacific Amateur title with a 12-under-par total, proving why he was the highest-ranked player in the world amateur rankings coming into this week.
Four consecutive rounds of 67 gave the 19-year-old, who is heading for the DP World Tour, a one-stroke margin over countryman Ziqin Zhou.
Stubbs will be the first of this year’s Australian AAC contingent to play as a professional. He faces 16 hours of flight time to reach Western Australia and the resumption of the 2024/25 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia after finishing his title defence in a share of 32nd place at 5-over-par.
Meanwhile, Croker will tackle the first stage of Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying School in Florida in the United States from October 15-18 before taking up the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia membership he earned by winning the Future Tour category last season.
The reigning Australian Amateur and Queensland Amateur champion closed with his best round of the week in Japan, a 2-under 68, to be 1-over overall and tied for 19th.
Campbell ended up in a share of 13th at 2-under after closing with a 68.
The only Australian with a chance of securing the title heading into the final day, Campbell’s victory chances disappeared when he dropped three shots late in the third round which concluded Sunday morning.
Campbell has just one tournament left to play as an amateur, the Japan Open at Tokyo Golf Club this week, before he too switches over to the professional ranks. Campbell will take up the two-year exemption available to him courtesy of his win at the Queensland PGA Championship last year.
The Victorian’s debut as a pro will come at the 100th WA Open, starting on October 17 at Mandurah Golf and Country Club.
“To finish as the top Aussie is a nice achievement,” Campbell said.
“There’s a bit there to work on for next week but, overall, I’m pretty pleased with the week.”
Stubbs’ first event as a professional is now just four days away in much different surroundings than he’s encountered in a very wet Japan this week – the CKB WA PGA Championship in Kalgoorlie.
“I never really felt like I could get anything going,” the Victorian said of his title defence.
“As soon as I’d make a couple of birdies, I’d give them straight back, and that’s how the whole week sort of went.
“It’s been a cool week trying to defend. Unfortunately, not the week I was hoping for, but still a special week.”
Just off the pace from day one, Croker was keen to finish his second AAC on a high and he achieved that with a closing 68 that lifted him inside the top 20.
“You definitely don’t want to leave Japan and not finish under-par in at least one round,” the Queenslander said.
“It was good to finish off the way I did. It could have been anything out there. There were a lot of putts that could have gone in and I could have finished off really special but it wasn’t to be.
“Obviously I wanted (the week) to be slightly better but I’ll take that for the first time in Japan.”
His first Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia event as a professional will be Webex Players Series South Australia in Willunga.
The 2025 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship will be played in Dubai from October 23-26.
Australian scores
-2: Phoenix Campbell (Vic) 71-66-73-68
+1: Quinn Croker (Qld) 70-70-73-68
+1: Tony Chen (Vic) 71-69-71-70
+5: Jasper Stubbs (Vic) 72-71-71-70
+5: Connor Fewkes (WA) 74-71-71-69
+6: Billy Dowling (Qld) 72-69-74-71
+14: Lukas Michel (Vic) 71-76-73-74
