Want to recieve exclusive news, videos, tournament highlights, golf important tips and more ?
Want to recieve exclusive news, videos, tournament highlights, golf important tips and more ?
Two late eagles transformed a day of frustration into a three-stroke win for David Bransdon at the $30,000 Pymble GC Centenary Legends Pro-Am at Pymble Golf Club.
On the back of a week at the Australian PGA Senior Championship where his putting failed to match his ball-striking, Bransdon again failed to hole putts early at Pymble on Monday.
Four-under through 14 holes, Bransdon removed the putter from the equation with a brilliant 6-iron into three feet at the par-5 seventh and then holed a gap wedge from 86 metres at the par-4 ninth for a second eagle in three holes.
“Obviously if you have an eagle with a three-footer on a par 5 and then you hole a sand iron for two on a par 4, that certainly helps your score,” said Bransdon.
“Otherwise, it was going to be a frustrating day before that.”
His round of 8-under 64 was three to the better of Adam Henwood (67) as Scott Laycock (68) and Mark Boulton (68) shared third place.
HOW THE WINNING ROUND UNFOLDED
With birdies at each of his opening two holes after starting from the short par-3 11th, Bransdon set an ominous tone.
He added a third at the par-4 16th but made his only bogey of the day at the par-4 17th.
He kept pace with the top of the leaderboard with a fourth birdie at the par-5 first and added another at the par-4 fifth before closing with two eagles in his final four holes.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
“It was pretty good ball-striking,” said Bransdon.
“I’ve done it all last week and then again today and it’s actually good. But if I do hole some putts it’ll be a bit scary. It’ll be dangerous.
“It was a good day. Very good day, actually.
“I played really good last week and didn’t make a hell of a lot with the putter. And then today I made some, but I still left a lot on the table out there.
“But anytime you shoot 8-under is pretty good.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
1 David Bransdon 64
2 Adam Henwood 67
T3 Scott Laycock 68
T3 Mark Boulton 68
T5 Simon Tooman 69
T5 Euan Walters 69
NEXT UP
The PGA Legends Tour’s week in Sydney continues on Tuesday with the $60,000 The Australian Golf Club Legends Pro-Am at The Australian Golf Club before heading north to the Central Coast on Wednesday for the Kooindah Waters Legends Pro-Am.
Queensland Associate champion Jack Wright hopes to use a week in the company of Cameron Smith to push for national honours at this week’s PGA Associate National Championship at Cobram Barooga Golf Club.
Wright is one of six state champions in the field of 130 who will play four rounds on the West Course at Cobram Barooga, William Bayliss (NSW), Daniel Gill (VIC), Joseph Hodgson (SA), Azer-Benjiman Pehlic (WA) and Aaron Mackay (TAS) also hoping to complete the state-national double.
The NSW/ACT PGA champion in 2023, Wright’s recent victory at Windaroo Lakes Golf Club paved the way for the Coolangatta Tweed Heads second-year associate to tee it up at the Queensland PGA Championship at Nudgee Golf Club.
He made the cut there and believes those competitive reps will hold him in good stead at Cobram Barooga.
“I feel like we’ve played a fair few big events lately,” said Wright.
“Played Queensland Associates and then PGA Champs last week coming off a tough course, tough greens.
“I played nine holes here yesterday and it’s a little bit easier, but the greens are rolling really well.”
Cobram Barooga’s Old Course has received high praise from players who have played the Webex Players Series Murray River tournament in recent years.
Course Superintendent Terry Vogel and his team have been determined to make sure that the West Course can lay claim to similar plaudits.
“We have put a lot of work into the West Course,” said Vogel.
“Both courses now paly the same condition-wise. The greens are running at 12 on the Stimpmeter this week so they should provide a good test for the players.”
Wright has begun to adapt his game to the bent greens of Cobram Barooga from the grainy surfaces Queensland is known for, an adjustment he says is easy to make.
“It’s a much easier adjustment than playing on grain,” he added.
“Lucky to be from Queensland and be used to that, but coming down here it’s pretty much where you aim and hit it, it rolls straight there.
“It’s actually a lot easier.”
It took Levi Sclater three playoff holes to claim the 2023 National Championship in his first year of the Membership Pathway Program at Rossdale Golf Club in Melbourne.
Sclater returns seeking to go back-to-back with the strategy that proved to be so effective 12 months ago.
“I reckon I’m going to stick to a similar plan from last year,” said Sclater.
“It really worked and kind of suited the course. So I’ll probably just stick to that.
“I had a practise round yesterday and hit it around pretty nicely, so it should be a good week.”
Starting Tuesday from 7:30am, the PGA Associate National Championship is played over 72 holes and boasts $60,000 in total prize money.
Other players to watch this week include Bryce Pickin (NSW), Damon Stephenson (Qld), Zach Ion (Qld) and Joel Mitchell (Vic) while George van Vuuren (South Africa) and Alister Balcombe (GB&I) have been granted spots in the field as champions of their respective PGA’s.
Brock Gillard has added to his impressive resume at Hidden Valley Golf and Country Club with a one-stroke win at the Hidden Valley Resort Pro-Am.
A product of Hidden Valley, Gillard won his home event three times before turning professional, overcoming a bout of nerves and expectation to shoot 6-under 67 and finish one clear of Toby Walker (68) and Dean Mulley (68).
It is Gillard’s second adidas PGA Pro-Am Series win in the past three weeks and one that he will certainly savour.
“I don’t recall actually being so nervous playing a round of golf,” said Gillard.
“Being my old home club, learning how to play golf here, a lot of expectations, a lot of fond memories here. A lot of members I haven’t seen in a long time.
“There was definitely an added pressure and it was really nice to have a solid round with the putter finally as well and get away with the win.”
HOW THE WINNING ROUND UNFOLDED
Despite his extensive course knowledge, Gillard had to wait before his first birdie putt dropped.
Starting his round from the seventh tee, Gillard opened with five consecutive pars before logging back-to-back birdies at 12 and 13.
He made his only bogey of the day at the par-4 14th but responded with consecutive birdies again at 15 and 16.
Pars followed at both 17 and 18 before Gillard peeled off three birdies in four holes for his round of 6-under 67.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
“You want to perform in front of people that know you,” said Gillard.
“They’ve got these expectations in your mind that you’re really good. And we all know how hard golf is and how hard it is to win.
“It was really nice to overcome all my nerves. I did spend a little bit more time before I hit every shot and every putt. Just wanted to be fully ready and not allow anything else coming into my mind before I hit that shot.
“I really focused hard today.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
1 Brock Gillard 67
T2 Toby Walker 68
T2 Dean Mulley 68
T4 Alex Edge 69
T4 Ben Ford 69
T4 Mark Panopoulos 69
T4 Peter Vassiliadis 69
NEXT UP
The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series has a week off before resuming with the two-day 2024 Tasmanian PGA Championship from Sunday at Devonport Country Club.
A Bernhard Langer bomb on the 72nd hole has denied Richard Green a maiden PGA TOUR Champions title at the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship in Arizona.
One of only 10 players in the 36-player field still a mathematical chance of taking out the season-long Charles Schwab Cup, Green’s hopes looked dashed through two rounds at Phoenix Country Club.
He responded with weekend rounds of 63-65 capped by a 20-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole and a back nine of 5-under 30 to set the clubhouse mark at 17-under par.
Langer and Kiwi Steven Alker stood on the final tee both at 17-under, yet when Langer hit his tee shot left and Alker hit his approach shot long over the back of the green, Green was suddenly sitting pretty.
Richard Green is CLUTCH!
— PGA TOUR Champions (@ChampionsTour) November 10, 2024
A huge birdie on 18 to tie the lead @SchwabCupFinale 🔥
He can win the Schwab Cup if he wins outright. pic.twitter.com/C1BGNF6Tfi
Yet, as he had done 46 times previously on the Champions Tour, Langer poured in his birdie putt from long range to claim victory and relegate Green to a second-place finish for a fifth time this season.
His tie for second was enough for Green to lift three spots to third in the final Charles Schwab Cup standings, Alker the season champion for the second time in third years.
“It was a little hard getting going early, but once I sort of got the momentum on my side the back nine, it was just a matter of making the right decisions and playing my game as good as I possibly could and trying to execute the shots needed,” said Green, who finished the year with more than $US2 million in prize money.
“We had a couple opportunities that I even felt let slip, but still really nice to finish the way I did.”
As the PGA TOUR Champions season came to a close, Queenslander Scott Hend kept alive his hopes of winning the Legends Tour Order of Merit in Europe.
With two events left in the season, Hend’s third place finish at the Farmfoods European Senior Masters in Spain saw him bridge the gap to Order of Merit leader Adilson Da Silva.
Trailing Englishman Simon Griffiths by two after a bogey-free 7-under 66 in Round 2, Hend had drawn level with four birdies in the space of six holes to close out the front nine.
Dropped shots at 10 and 12 would prove costly, an eagle at the final hole enough to secure outright third three shots back of Griffiths.
The DP World Tour season finale will feature two Australians as Min Woo Lee and Adam Scott both maintained their position inside the top 50 in the Race to Dubai Rankings.
Lee produced four sub-70 rounds to finish tied for 23rd at the Abu Dhabi Championship with Scott closing with a round of 7-under 65 to finish tied for 46th and 16th entering the DP World Tour Championship.
Grace Kim’s tie for 11th was a strong result in defence of her LOTTE Championship title in Hawaii while Danny List leads the Aussie charge at the halfway mark of Final Stage of DP World Tour Qualifying School in Spain.
Photo: Christian Petersen/Getty Images
Results
PGA TOUR
World Wide Technology Championship
El Cardonal at Diamante Cabo San Lucas, Los Cabos, Mexico
1 Austin Eckroat 68-67-66-63—264 $US1.296m
T64 Aaron Baddeley 71-68-71-75—285 $15,408
MC Tim Wilkinson (NZ) 74-75—149
DP World Tour
Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship
Yas Links, Abu Dhabi, UAE
1 Paul Waring 64-61-73-66—264 €1,419,771.15
T23 Min Woo Lee 69-67-68-69—273 €88,109.33
T37 David Micheluzzi 69-68-70-69—276 €52,615.05
T46 Adam Scott 71-67-75-65—278 €38,417.34
Qualifying School – Final Stage
Infinitum Golf (Lakes & Hills Cses), Tarragona, Spain
Through three of six rounds
1 Edoardo Molinari 65-61-72—198
T4 Danny List 72-63-69—204
T22 Brett Coletta 66-74-66—206
T37 Sam Jones (NZ) 69-66-73—208
T44 Haydn Barron 77-61-71—209
T79 Hayden Hopewell 68-74-68—210
T79 Todd Sinnott 74-68-68—210
T111 Tom Power Horan 70-73-69—212
T132 Andrew Kelly 72-70-72—214
T141 Cameron John 71-71-74—216
T150 Matthew Griffin 72-77-69—218
LPGA Tour
LOTTE Championship
Hoakalei Country Club, Ewa Beach, Hawaii
1 A Lim Kim 66-69-67-68—270 $US450,000
T11 Grace Kim 72-68-68-71—279 $52,713
T35 Robyn Choi 70-72-71-72—285 $17,236
T43 Stephanie Kyriacou 70-73-70-73—286 $12,491
MC Hira Naveed 74-72—146
Japan Golf Tour
Mitsui Sumitomo VISA Taiheiyo Masters
Pacific Club (Gotemba Cse), Shizuoka
1 Ryo Ishikawa 66-71-65-67—269 ¥40m
T23 Brad Kennedy 72-69-68-69—278 ¥1.86m
T69 Michael Hendry (NZ) 73-73—146
Korean PGA Tour
KPGA Tour Championship
Cypress Golf & Resort, Korea
1 Daihan Lee 67-67-66-66—266
T49 Sungjin Yeo (NZ) 71-73-70-71—285
PGA TOUR Champions
Charles Schwab Cup Championship
Phoenix Country Club, Phoenix, Arizona
1 Bernhard Langer 69-64-67-66—266 $US528,000
T2 Richard Green 71-68-63-65—267 $276,000
T2 Steven Alker (NZ) 70-68-63-66—267 $276,000
5 Rod Pampling 69-72-65-68—274 $180,000
T15 Greg Chalmers 74-69-69-66—278 $61,500
T17 Mark Hensby 70-69-73-67—279 $55,500
T26 Cameron Percy 70-68-78-68—284 $22,950
33 Stuart Appleby 75-72-71-70—288 $18,750
Legends Tour
Farmfoods European Senior Masters
La Manga Club, Murcia, Spain
1 Simon Griffiths 64-70-68—202
3 Scott Hend 70-66-69—205
T15 Michael Campbell (NZ) 73-70-67—210
T38 Michael Long (NZ) 74-69-75—218
Reigning Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit champion Kazuma Kobori and DP World Tour winner Daniel Hillier are locked in to head the New Zealand challenge at the upcoming Australian golf majors.
The two Kiwis will take on the best of Australian golf, including Jason Day, Cam Smith, Min Woo Lee, Cam Davis, Lucas Herbert and Marc Leishman at the BMW Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland (November 21-24) and ISPS HANDA Australian Open at Kingston Heath and The Victoria (November 28-December 1).
Both tournaments are co-sanctioned by the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and DP World Tour.
Kobori will be making his first appearances as a full-time DP World Tour member, the reward he gained from a sensational Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia season in 2023/24. Three tournament victories, all in Webex Players Series events, helped him to top the Order of Merit in his first year as a professional.
Since then, the 23-year-old has played in two major championships, The Open at Royal Troon and US PGA Championship at Valhalla, as well as events on the DP World Tour, Korn Ferry Tour and Asian Tour.
Kobori said: “I’m really looking forward to getting started as a full-time DP World Tour member at Royal Queensland and then heading to the Sandbelt for the Australian Open.
“Last summer in Australia was huge for me with the three wins and winning the Order of Merit to earn my DP World Tour card. There’s some great memories there.
“I can’t wait to see some of my mates I haven’t seen on Tour for a while and playing well in these two big Aussie events would give me a great start to the 2024/25 season.”
Hillier had a career highlight in 2023 when he won the British Masters and this year finished 94th on the Race to Dubai.
“Australia is close to home so the PGA and Open are always events I’m keen to play,” he said.
“The fact they’re at the start of the DP World Tour season means it’s a fresh beginning, even though they come at the end of the year.”
The 2024 ISPS HANDA Australian Open and BMW Australian PGA Championship will be broadcast on Fox Sports and Kayo, as well as the NINE Network/9NOW.
For BMW Australian PGA Championship tickets, go to ticketek.com.au
The Australian PGA Championship is supported by the Queensland Government, through Tourism and Events Queensland’s Major Events Program and Brisbane City Council, through Brisbane Economic Development Agency.
Andre Stolz has won the Nova Employment Australian PGA Senior Championship for a second time after a final round 64 saw him finish five shots in front of the fast finishing Mat Goggin and defending champion Jason Norris.
Entering the final day with a two shot lead over Norris, and five stroke advantage of a pack including Goggin at 7-under, Stolz did his best to fulfil his stated mission to wife Katrina to “make it boring” on Sunday.
A couple of back nine hiccups overcome to lift the trophy for the second time after Stolz triumphed in 2020.
“I think obviously these last two weeks are our biggest two events of the year. I know I’ve won a lot of events on this Tour, and I’ve won the Order of Merit the last three years and leading again this year, and winning all those events is great, but these are the ones that we all want,” Stolz, who finished at 17-under, said.
“It’s like people talk about majors for the young guys and all that sort of stuff, but these are our biggest two events. So absolutely these are the two to win. And being the senior PGA champion is pretty special.”
Stolz continued the same formula of impressive chipping and putting that had been a feature all week at Richmond Golf Club during a front nine of 31 as Norris did his best to ruin the boring plan.
Birdieing four of six holes from the third, Stolz looked to be getting in the ideal preparation for PGA TOUR Champions qualifying school next month before back-to-back bogeys at the 12th and 13th.
Hooking both tee shots at the two par-4s, Stolz could feel the pressure of the reigning champ gaining momentum as Norris emerged as the most likely challenger with birdie at the 14th after turning in 1-under-par.
Stolz finding his putting touch again at the right time when the Queenslander followed Norris in for a birdie of his own at the par-3, before he pulled away with eagle at the par-5 15th following a “drop kick” second shot to within 15 feet.
“I like this golf course,” was Stolz simple assessment of a course he helped adjust the layout of ahead of this year’s event.
“I know it’s super demanding and you’ve got to drive the ball great, and if you do, you can make a ton of birdies.
“I’ve been telling everybody I talk to about it, just got to drive it well and you’re going to have plenty of opportunities to make some birdies.”
Noting how difficult it is “to match eagles”, Norris birdied the par-5 15th before a three putt at the short par-4 16th against Stolz’s par ensured the 2020 winner a more comfortable closing stretch. Goggin’s eagle-birdie-birdie run starting at the 15th a little too late for the Tasmanian to mount a challenge.
Stolz dropped another shot at the par-3 17th after arguably his worst chip of the week, but he finished things in style with a clinical birdie at the 54th hole.
The victory and pay cheque a helpful cash injection as Stolz prepares to head stateside to try and join the large contingent of Australians on world’s premier over-50s Tour.
“It’s just really good timing,” Stolz said.
“Obviously this time of the year is pretty much peak season for us. It’s a big expense to blow for a week, but we, we’ll go and roll the dice.”
Joining Stolz in Phoenix in the hope of securing playing rights will be Goggin, who will no doubt leave his tournament debut with plenty of positives after sharing runner-up honours with Norris.
Last week’s NSW Senior Open winner David McKenzie continuing his good form with a solo fourth on 11-under, with Peter Lonard a shot further back as the PGA Legends Tour prepares for a lucrative run of event in Sydney this week before Stolz potentially tees it up at the BMW Australian PGA Championship thanks to his win this week.
“I hadn’t really even looked at the schedule. I basically just had been in the zone all this week,” he said of potentially heading to Royal Queensland.
Playing together for the first two rounds of the Nova Employment Australian PGA Senior Championship, 36-hole leader Andre Stolz and Jason Norris look the likely main players in Sunday shootout at Richmond.
Defending his maiden PGA Legends Tour title, Norris sits at 10-under after a 6-under 63 put him two shots adrift of leader Stolz on 12-under, with a well-credentialled pack in a tie for third on 7-under.
Mat Goggin set to join Stolz and Norris in the final group after a Saturday 64 took him into the five-way tie at 7-under with Peter Lonard, overnight leader David Fearns, last week’s NSW Senior Open winner David McKenzie and 12-time winner in 2024 Chris Taylor.
Early in the day, it looked as if Stolz might run away as he seeks to win the title for a second time after triumphing in 2020 and prepares to head to the PGA TOUR Champions qualifying school next month.
Birdieing the first, Stolz made two more on the trot from the third, before another shot against par at the sixth as he prepared to make the turn.
Norris also 4-under for the day before the pair dropped shots at the tricky par-3 ninth as the win began to swirl and the greens firmed up in the afternoon sun of Sydney’s north west.
“Funny day,” was Stolz’s overall assessment.
“Trying to predict again, the wind was sort of up and down a little bit again today, so of course it blew hard on the tough holes.”
Norris managed to get his dropped shot back immediately at the next, but it was more trouble for Stolz when his tee shot clipped a branch that sent the ball left and into the penalty area at the par-4 10th.
Nearly saving par with a great chip, Stolz got moving in the right direction again at the par-3 11th when holing out from the greenside bunker.
The Queenslander birdieing the next before chipping in again for bridie at the next par-3, the 14th, as Norris, who described his swing of late as “an octopus in a phone booth”, tried to keep pace with his fellow winner at Richmond.
Matching birdies came at the par-5 15th for Norris and Stolz, with the latter benefitting from caddie, and head professional at Richmond, Nick Barnham’s local knowledge.
Preparing to hit a hybrid for his second, Stolz was talked into less club to find a gap right of the green that led to an up-and-down birdie as they headed for the new home three-hole stretch that Stolz played a role in laying out this year.
It was three straight pars for both to close, as they watched the third member of the group Adam Henwood, a close friend of Norris since junior golf, come to life and ensure he landed inside the cut line that fell at 5-over. PGA TOUR winner John Senden making the cut on the number and first off on Sunday alongside evergreen Peter Senior.
Stolz noting his improvement on the slower than expected putting surfaces as part of his run to a two shot lead with 18-holes to play.
“My speed was definitely better,” he said.
“I had a good talking to myself and I sort of did some extra putting, I thought the practise green today matched more the course, whereas yesterday morning maybe hadn’t quite got to roll it or anything yet.
“My speed felt definitely better today.”
Also trying to gauge the ball’s reaction on approach shots as the greens firmed up during the second round, Stolz knows that despite his lead, Norris and the group at 7-under, and even David Bransdon and Mike Harwood on 6-under, can make up ground early at Richmond.
Norris hoping to recreate his final round charge of 2023 on Sunday as he seeks to become the tournament’s first back-to-back winner since Orville Moody in 1986 and 1987.
“I’ll try and play aggressive, whereas I felt like I lost the aggressiveness today, I was a bit nervy with some shots,” Norris said.
“Last year I was so good in the last round where I just played aggressive the whole way, so I didn’t care about anyone else and that’ll be the goal again tomorrow.”
Stolz also only focused on tomorrow only, but still considering how victory might alter his lead up plans to his American sojourn with a new category for the winner earning them a spot at the BMW Australian PGA Championship in two weeks.
“Just see how it fits in with everything,” he said of the potential start.
“I played at RQ (Royal Queensland) there a few times. If we could play off the normal members tees, I’d be quite happy to go.”
Rounds two and three of the Nova Employment Australia PGA Senior Championship will be broadcast LIVE on Fox Sports and Kayo.
Another professional claiming the first win of his career featured in a three-way tie for top spot at The Middle of Everywhere Yarram Pro-Am today.
A day after Ed Donoghue broke through for his maiden success on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series at Traralgon, this time it was Zinyo Garcia (NSW) earning his first title, shooting a 4-under-par to sit alongside Matt Millar (ACT) and Alex Edge (NSW).
The trio was two shots clear of their nearest rivals.
While it was victory No.1 for Garcia, Millar’s pro-am win count now sits in excess of 50 in the past 10 years alone.
Edge’s victory added to his Tasmanian Open title in April.
HOW THE WINNER’S SCORE UNFOLDED
Garcia came into the event a bit under-prepared after making a late commitment to the final leg of the Gippsland swing.
However made a fast track with three birdies in his first four holes. He ended up with a tally of eight birdies for the day, including two to close out his round to claim a share of top spot.
Miller’s round featured five birdies, including going back-to-back twice at the third and fourth and eighth and ninth as he posted a front nine of 33. The back nine had just the one birdie at the par-4 13th.
Meanwhile Edge was 1-over through his first five holes before picking up shots on the fifth, eighth, ninth, 10th and 12th.
WHAT THE WINNERS SAID
Garcia said: “It feels pretty good because it’s been a bit tough of late. The game feels like it’s there but the scores haven’t been really showing it. The course is on a great bit of land, the land is really good and it’s a club that’s volunteer run. It’s absolutely amazing really. If anyone is down this way, I’d recommend playing it.”
Edge said: “I kept it in play all day and that gave me some chances. It was nice to come back and play here again. There’s a bit of emphasis on where you need to hit your next shot from and I enjoy that type of golf rather than trying to bludgeon it everywhere.”
Millar said: “It’s exciting to get a win again. It’s been a bit up and down the last few weeks or so. It’s always a pleasure to come back to Yarram. They do a wonderful job here. A lot of golf courses could take note of what they do here as a group of volunteers. It’s just amazing.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
68: Matthew Millar (ACT); Zinyo Garcia (NSW); Alex Edge (NSW)
70: Jack Chrystie (Vic); Toby Walker (Vic)
71: Rick Kulacz (WA)
72: Dean Mulley (NSW); Darren Bowman (Vic); Samuel Slater (Qld); Anthony Choat (Vic); Alexander Simpson (NSW); Tom Ryan (Vic)
NEXT UP
The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series welcomes a new event at Hidden Valley Golf and Country Club, north of Melbourne, on Sunday.
Victorian Ed Donoghue claimed his maiden professional title after successfully negotiating a Friday of difficult conditions at the Traralgon Latrobe City WIN Network Pro-Am Classic.
Rounds of 66-69 for a 9-under-par total at Traralgon Golf Club gave Donoghue a one-shot margin over first-round leader Andre Lautee (63-73) and Peninsula-Kingswood amateur Matthew Dahlsen (67-69).
The breakthrough victory on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series is a nice confidence boost for the 27-year-old heading into the NSW Open on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, starting at Murray Downs on Thursday.
Donoghue is currently sitting in 49th place on the Order of Merit after two top-30 finishes in his opening four events.
HOW THE WINNER’S SCORE UNFOLDED
Donoghue’s bogey-free 6-under round on day one featured a 5-under-par 32 on the front nine at Traralgon.
After starting a very windy day two at the second hole, he had five straight pars before a birdie arrived at the par-5 seventh.
His first bogey of the event came at the par-4 12th, but the fourth year pro seized the lead with consecutive birdies on 16, 17 and 18, his round of 3-under-par 69 matching the best score on Friday.
Meanwhile, Lautee was brought undone by four bogeys in the middle of his round.
WHAT THE WINNER SAID
“I’ve had a lot of seconds so I didn’t want to come second again,” Donoghue said.
“It’s nice to finally win and getting that monkey off the back definitely helps. It will give me some confidence I think.”
LEADERBOARD RUNDOWN
-9: Ed Donoghue (Vic) 66-69
-8: Andre Lautee (Vic) 63-73; Matthew Dahlsen (Vic) (a) 67-69
-7: Harry Goakes (Vic) 66-71; Matthew Stenson (Vic) 66-71; Caleb Bovalina (Vic) 66-71
-4: Kyle Michel (Vic) 69-71
-3: Samuel Slater (Qld) 72-69; Nathan Page (NSW) 68-73; Alexander Simpson (NSW) 69-72
NEXT UP
The Gippsland swing ends with The Middle of Everywhere Yarram Pro-Am on Saturday.
Moore Park Golf Collective, comprising Golf Australia, PGA of Australia, Golf NSW and Moore Park Golf Club, today announced an ambitious initiative to transform Moore Park South into a vibrant, world-class recreational and golf facility.
The alternative proposal, submitted to the NSW Government during its consultation process in April 2024, supports a growing Sydney and allows for the retention of the much-loved and always busy 18-hole golf course by maximising un-used and under-utilised open space for active and passive recreation and active transport.
The proposal, a testament to the Collective’s commitment to diversity, equality, inclusion and a vision for an innovative and sustainable future, will see several public spaces added to the area, including:
● An adventure playground
● A nature play space
● A dog park
● BBQ and picnic facilities, a fitness trail and terracing located in the best position with spectacular city views
● A football oval
● A skate park and seating
● Half courts and a futsal court
● A BMX pump track and riding zone
● An athletics precinct
● 3 kms of well-connected walking, running and cycling paths
● New environmental spaces for Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub regeneration
● A multi-level 500-space car park cleverly built into the landscape
● A reduced par-68 18-hole public golf course allowing local, state and national competitions to continue
● Mini golf course, a practice putting green and a practice chipping area
● A shortened high-tech driving range with more bays
The bold, city-shaping vision for world-class recreational and golf facilities for a growing Sydney is achieved by transforming undeveloped parkland, enhancing golf, and connecting people to destinations.
Jared Kendler, Leader of Save Moore Park Golf said: “We have been working to ensure the alternative proposal aligns with the Premier’s vision to establish Moore Park South as a vibrant recreational destination for all.”
“By enhancing existing infrastructure and revitalising un-used and under-utilised areas, the initiative aims to create a park that caters to diverse recreational interests in a financially sustainable way that solves the many challenges in the broader precinct.”
“This exciting master plan delivers a minimum of 15 hectares of quality and connected recreational space for play, exploration, relaxing, walking and sports activities for people of all ages and as such is a win/win/win for the Government, the people of Sydney and the visitor economy,” said Mr Kendler.
Damien de Bohun, General Manager of Clubs and Facilities Golf Australia, Stuart Fraser, CEO Golf NSW, and Jared Kendler, Leader of Save Moore Park Course, unveiled the proposal designed to accelerate the Premier’s vision for upgraded infrastructure and more recreational space while preserving the iconic and highly utilised Moore Park Golf Course.
Damien de Bohun, General Manager of Clubs and Facilities, Golf Australia said the proposal prioritises the preservation and enhancement of Moore Park Golf Course, positioning Moore Park South as a park for everyone and the home of public golf in NSW.
“Not only does the proposal incorporate innovative features such as protected recreational areas and well-connected walking, running and cycling tracks, it also offers a 500-space carpark to accommodate the growing influx of visitors and overflow parking for major events in the area,” Mr de Bohun said.
“With golf one of the most popular organised sports in Australia in 2024, this plan addresses the significant demand for golf facilities and ensures that Australia’s busiest 18-hole public golf course remains available and accessible to people from all walks of life, contributing to improved physical and mental health and wellbeing,” he said.
Creating significant employment opportunities in management, events, retail and hospitality, Moore Park Golf Course is also home to a thriving golf academy, where PGA of Australia professionals conduct more than 77 lessons per day, including group classes for children and new Mums and Bubs sessions.
Stuart Fraser, CEO of Golf NSW, said Moore Park Golf Club has been a key community asset for over 100 years.
“Golf NSW believes the alternate proposal provides a win-win solution for the NSW Government and a growing Sydney by offering a multitude of recreational activities, whilst continuing to service the massive demand for publicly accessible golf via an 18-hole course,” Mr Fraser said.
“The proposed recreational hub will truly be the heartbeat of the precinct, and golf industry stakeholders welcome the opportunity to maximise the recreational benefits of the site for the community,” he said.
The Collective is also working to build climate resilience and biodiversity by creating revegetation areas throughout the course for the critically endangered Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub (ESBS). Undertaken with IndigiGrow, a social enterprise from First Hand Solutions Aboriginal Corporation, sustaining people, land and culture through the propagation and growing of native plants, the initiative will promote environmental sustainability and continue conservation efforts.
The Collective encourages residents of Zetland, Waterloo, Redfern, Surry Hills, Kensington, greater Sydney and beyond to support the initiative by signing the Save Moore Park Golf Course petition at www.savemooreparkgolfcourse.com.auto establish Moore Park South as a premier sports and recreation precinct, enriching the lives of Sydneysiders for generations to come.
