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Three-time champion Cam Smith will tee it up at the 2024 BMW Australian PGA Championship after confirming his place in the field for the November 21-24 event at Royal Queensland Golf Club.
The Queenslander joins defending champion Min Woo Lee and fellow major championship winner Jason Day as feature players for this year’s event which once again is co-sanctioned by the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and DP World Tour.
In a special treat for golf fans, Smith will also play in the Queensland PGA Championship – the fifth event on the 2024/25 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia – at Nudgee Golf Club on October 31-November 3.
Smith’s impressive BMW Australian PGA Championship record features back-to-back victories in 2017-18 before he won again in 2022.
A fourth Joe Kirkwood Cup would see the 2022 Open champion join Robert Allenby and Norman Von Nida as a four-time PGA winner, trailing only Kel Nagle (six wins) and Billy Dunk (five).
The 31-year-old continues to be a huge supporter of Australian golf and the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and his presence at Royal Queensland is sure to again draw massive crowds to his hometown championship.
“Coming home to Queensland is a highlight of my year. It’s always special to be back playing in front of my family, friends and all the golf fans and hopefully being up near the lead,” Smith said.
“This year, I’ll be playing in both the BMW Australian PGA Championship and the Queensland PGA Championship which is going to be something different for me but I’m really looking forward to both weeks back home.
“Of course I’d love to win both but it’s going to be difficult with the fields that will be at the two tournaments.
“I think playing at Nudgee will be good preparation for Royal Queensland and hopefully will have me at my best to attempt to take back the Joe Kirkwood Cup.”
PGA of Australia CEO Gavin Kirkman said securing Smith was a huge boost for both events.
“We all love seeing Cam playing golf back in Australia and I’m sure he’ll be determined to put on a great show in front of his home crowd this year at both Royal Queensland and Nudgee,” Kirkman said.
“Cam really appeals to all ages of golf fans. He’s a big reason why so many youngsters are taking up the game and are in our galleries at Royal Queensland each year.
“Winning the Joe Kirkwood Cup for the fourth time would consolidate his position as one of the greats of Australian golf.”
Minister for Tourism and Sport, Michael Healy said: “What a coup luring the legendary, Cam Smith, back home to headline what will be yet another unforgettable BMW Australian PGA Championship.
“The line-up is already looming as the hottest ticket in town, with Smith setting up a mouth-watering showdown with defending champion and superstar Min Woo Lee at the iconic Royal Queensland Golf Club.
“The economic impacts of this time-honoured event are also significant and great news for our tourism operators with projections that more than $15 million will be injected into the state’s visitor economy.”
Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said Cam Smith’s return to Brisbane would add to the exciting line-up for both the Queensland PGA Championship and BMW Australian PGA Championship.
“Brisbane is Australia’s lifestyle capital and our major events create more to see and do in the suburbs,” Cr Schrinner said.
“We are thrilled Cam Smith will join a suite of world class athletes to tee off at two must-see events for local and visiting golf fans.
“The benefits of these elite tournaments will be felt across the region, delivering millions in economic support for local Brisbane businesses.”
As a young professional, Cam Smith was runner-up in the 2015 Queensland PGA Championship after finishing as leading amateur in the 2011 event.
His 2024 highlights have included two LIV Golf team wins with Ripper GC and a T6 finish at The Masters.
The BMW Australian PGA Championship is supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland, and Brisbane City Council via Brisbane Economic Development Agency.
He began his round a full 88 minutes before the final group set sail yet Aiden Didone roared across the finish line to win the New South Wales Open qualifying series event at Wollongong Golf Club.
The Melbournian matched the course record of 7-under-par 63 set a day earlier by Jayden Cripps, then endured a prolonged wait before winning a sudden-death playoff over Sydney phenom Jeffrey Guan.
On a day when the lead swung wildly around a packed leaderboard, it had appeared as though Guan, fresh off his first US PGA Tour start, would salute after vaulting to the lead with the seventh birdie of his own rollercoaster round on the 16th hole.
But when Guan flew his approach to the final green long, not only did he make an uncharacteristic bogey, he effectively pushed Didone out of his clubhouse chair and to the practice nets.
His warm-up of five rushed shots was too short given the Victorian “duck-hooked” his playoff drive into a nasty stance in a left fairway bunker. He escaped that lie superbly to leave himself 130 metres to the flag for his third, then watched in disbelief as Guan’s charge found a muddy grave.
Guan reared back with a fairway wood from 235m and attempted to carry the water right of the 18th green, only for his ball to nestle into a hole in five-centimetre deep mud.
So nasty was Guan’s lie in the drying hazard area that his feet plunged through the surface when he took his stance.
The resultant swing – with all his might fearing he might not move it, let alone carry the 10m left to the flag – somehow made great contact and sent the ball soaring into the car park behind the clubhouse.
After another failed exit attempt, Didone was ultimately left with a handful of putts for victory, and his two-putt par was more than enough.
As an amateur, Didone, now 27, followed in the steps of legendary Phil Mickelson (1990) and Sydney’s Harrison Endycott (2016) when he put his name on the time-honoured Porter Cup in New York in 2019.
But after turning pro during the Covid years, he’s battled to take that all-important next step.
“It’s been a long time coming,” the affable Didone said after matching his low round as a pro.
“I’ve been grinding out on the tour for 18 months and then just had a good back-end to last year. Went OK in the Vic Open this year and then played pretty well in PNG.
“It has been brewing in the background and I’ve been doing a lot of hard work at home, so it feels amazing to get the monkey off the back.
“And particularly to win with a low one, too, is good for the confidence going forward.
“I’m actually pretty stoked to have a course record under my belt, so it’s a good time to do it.”
The key shot of Didone’s victory probably came on the final hole of his regulation round, calmly knocking in a six-metre birdie putt to reach the 9-under total he ultimately needed to reach the playoff.
“I thought it would be 9 or 10-under, but I knew I had to make that putt, I kind of had that feeling,” he said.
“I’d been pumping putts past all day, I thought I’d hit it a bit softer and it was the perfect putt over the front edge.”
Didone, joined by Aaron Townsend and Wollongong amateur Sam Cascio as new qualifiers to the NSW Open, said he couldn’t wait for the chance to play alongside Cam Smith at Murray Downs in November.
But he is also confident of what else might lie ahead this summer.
“I feel as though I can get my nose in front and hang on when I play well,” said Didone.
“A couple of weeks before that (Porter Cup) win in New York, I sort of had this feeling that I’m doing some good stuff. I’m getting that feeling now before the season which is great.”
Townsend, the 2008 NSW Open champion, remarkably fired seven birdies in his final 10 holes to roar home with a 64 to reach 8-under and a share of third.
He shared that billing with Cascio, the reigning Australian junior champion who carded a superb bogey-free 65 of his own – a magnificent achievement on his home course to set up the chance to play with Smith.
“That would be absolutely amazing,” Cascio said.
“It’s so cool (to think of) and it will be great to play against him on the same course to see how good he is. I can’t wait.”
Photo: Courtesy Golf NSW
Royal Fremantle Golf Club Associate Azer-Benjamin Pehlic has held off a spirited charge from Aaron Dobson to complete a wire-to-wire win at the ADH Club Car WA PGA Associate Championship presented by Acushnet.
When the final round of the 72-hole championship teed off at Wembley Golf Course on Wednesday morning, Pehlic and Dobson were the only two players under par.
The leader since day one, Pehlic began with a four-stroke advantage as he and Dobson separated themselves from the field even further.
At one point early in the back nine Dobson had narrowed the gap to just two strokes yet Pehlic never faltered, going bogey free in a round of 5-under 67 for a total of 13-under par and a four-shot win.
Dobson also shot 67 on the final day to take second at 9-under par, Daniel Hoeve (67) outright third at 3-under.
Confident the aggressive approach that had served him so well would stand up under pressure, Pehlic conceded that he felt the heat early as Dobson made his move.
“To be honest, at the start, he did put quite a lot of pressure on,” said Pehlic.
“At the same time, in the back of my head, I just kept saying to myself, I can do the exact same thing.
“Things don’t really change. I clearly have the ability, looking at the three days prior.
“I just kept it solid, focused on my own game, and it came out really good.”
With four birdies in his opening six holes, Dobson emerged as a genuine threat to the title.
Pehlic extended his advantage to three shots with a birdie at the par-4 seventh, Dobson inching closer again with an eagle at the par-5 11th to Pehlic’s birdie.
A final birdie at the par-5 17th restored Pehlic’s three-shot buffer, Dobson’s closing bogey resulting in the four-stroke margin of victory.
In his first year of the Membership Pathway Program, the 25-year-old hopes to use this win as a catalyst for greater playing opportunities in future.
“I’ve worked very, very hard on my game,” said Pehlic.
“I would love to be on a main tour after I finish my PGA training, which will be awesome as well.
“At the end of the day, I love to compete. Competition drives me in the morning. I just want to win everything and anything really.
“Hopefully end up on a nice tour one day and make a good living.”
The trophy is the same but the venue is very different as Minjee Lee eyes off a title defence with a difference at this week’s Kroger Queen City Championship in Ohio.
Twelve months ago, Lee’s playoff victory over Charley Hull at Kenwood Country Club sparked a run of form that saw her climb back to No.4 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Ranking.
Lee had two wins, two runner-up finishes and two further top 10s in the space of seven starts but the memories of the performance that started her run are muted somewhat by a change of venue.
“I was actually talking about it with my physio yesterday; it kind of doesn’t feel like I’m defending,” said Lee, who enters the week ranked No.16 in the world.
“Obviously I won the tournament last year, but because we’re at a new venue it feels like I’m learning everything new and getting to know a new place.
“It’s not the same as when you’ve been to the tournament and you feel the vibes from the course that you kind of remember from the previous year.
“I’m really looking forward to a different challenge this year.”
Who will be crowned the @QueenCityLPGA Champion this year? 👀🏆 pic.twitter.com/wmdPr91w5z
— LPGA (@LPGA) September 17, 2024
After a busy period that included the Paris Olympics, Women’s Scottish Open and AIG Women’s Open, the 28-year-old arrives refreshed and hopeful of another strong finish to the year.
“I had a nice break after our last Europe swing,” said the two-time major champion.
“I feel like after all the wind at the Scottish and AIG I was a little worn out.
“Just needed a couple weeks to refresh and do a little bit of practice and sharpen a few things in my game.”
Lee is not the only Australian with a title on the line this week.
Queenslander Scott Hend returns to WINSTONgolf in Germany as the defending champion of the WINSTONgolf Senior Open on the Legends Tour looking to make it an Aussie trifecta after Richard Green’s triumph in 2022.
It shapes as a potentially career-defining week for young Aussies Karl Vilips and Cassie Porter.
Vilips has qualified for the penultimate event of the Korn Ferry Tour Finals ranked 18th on the Points List, the top 30 after the Korn Ferry Tour Championship to earn promotion to the PGA TOUR in 2025.
Porter is also one good result from a step up in class to the LPGA Tour in 2025.
Currently 10th on the Epson Tour with two events left in the season, Porter will earn status on the LPGA Tour if she can finish inside the top 15 at the completion of the Epson Tour Championship.
Photo: Oisin Keniry/R&A/R&A via Getty Images
Round 1 tee times AEST
LPGA Tour
Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G
TPC River’s Bend, Maineville, Ohio
10:20pm Minjee Lee
10:31pm Grace Kim
10:42pm* Stephanie Kyriacou, Hira Naveed
11:04pm* Robyn Choi
11:15pm* Su Oh
3:09am Gabriela Ruffels
3:20am* Lydia Ko (NZ)
Defending champion: Minjee Lee
Past Aussie winners: Minjee Lee (2023)
Prize money: $US2 million
TV times: Live 3am-6am Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
DP World Tour
BMW PGA Championship
Wentworth Club, Virginia Water, England
5:45pm Ryan Fox (NZ)
6:05pm Adam Scott
10:25pm Jason Scrivener
Defending champion: Ryan Fox
Past Aussie winners: Rodger Davis (1986), Mike Harwood (1990)
Prize money: $US9 million
TV times: Live 5:30pm-9am Thursday on Fox Sports 503; Live 9pm-10:30pm Thursday on Fox Sports 505; Live 10:30pm-3am Thursday on Fox Sports 503; Live 5:30pm-3am Friday; Live 6pm-2:30am Saturday, Sunday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
LIV Golf
Team Championship Dallas
Maridoe Golf Club, Carrollton, Texas
Australasians in the field: Cameron Smith, Lucas Herbert, Marc Leishman, Matt Jones, Danny Lee (NZ)
Defending champions: Crushers GC
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US50 million
TV times: Live 2:15am Saturday, Sunday, Monday on 7 Plus.
Japan Golf Tour
Panasonic Open Golf Championship
Arima Royal Golf Club, Hyogo
8:45am Michael Hendry (NZ)
12:45pm* Anthony Quayle
1:15pm Brad Kennedy
Defending champion: Tomoharu Otsuki
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: ¥100 million
Ladies European Tour
La Sella Open
La Sella Golf Resort, Spain
5:36pm Whitney Hillier
6:09pm* Momoka Kobori (NZ)
9:26pm* Kelsey Bennett
9:37pm Kirsten Rudgeley
9:48pm* Amy Walsh
Defending champion: Nuria Iturrioz
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: €1,000,000
Korn Ferry Tour
Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship
Ohio State University GC (Scarlet Cse), Columbus, Ohio
10:14pm* Karl Vilips
3:27am Rhein Gibson
Defending champion: Norman Xiong
Past Aussie winners: Curtis Luck (2020)
Prize money: $US1.5 million
TV times: Live 6am-8am Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
PGA TOUR Champions
PURE Insurance Championship
Pebble Beach Golf Links, Monterey Peninsula, California
Australasians in the field: Steven Alker (NZ), Steve Allan, Stuart Appleby, David Bransdon, Richard Green, Rod Pampling, Cameron Percy, John Senden, Michael Wright.
Defending champion: Thongchai Jaidee
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Prize money: $US2.3 million
TV times: Live 8am-11am Saturday, Sunday, Monday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
Epson Tour
Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout
Mystic Creek Golf Club, El Dorado, Arkansas
Australasians in the field: Fiona Xu (NZ), Cassie Porter, Amelia Garvey (NZ)
Defending champion: Natasha Andrea Oon
Past Aussie winners: Hannah Green (2017)
Prize money: $US337,500
Challenge Tour
Italian Challenge Open
Argentario GC, Monte Argentario, Italy
3:30pm* Hayden Hopewell
9:40pm Sam Jones (NZ)
10:10pm Blake Windred
Defending champion: Natasha Andrea Oon
Past Aussie winners: Hannah Green (2017)
Prize money: $US337,500
Legends Tour
WINSTONgolf Senior Open
WINSTONgolf, Vorbeck, Germany
Australasians in the field: Scott Hend, Michael Long (NZ)
Defending champion: Scott Hend
Past Aussie winners: Terry Price (2012), Richard Green (2022), Scott Hend (2023)
National Basketball League CEO David Stevenson will join legendary rugby league figure Billy Slater as keynote speakers at this year’s Golf Summit.
As CEO of the fastest growing sports league in Australia and New Zealand, Stevenson is an expert in driving growth, engaging new audiences and customers, and the crucial role of commercial operations in sport.
Stevenson began his role as NBL CEO in May 2023, and has brought to the league a wealth of leadership experience from various roles including General Manager of Operations at the AFL, CEO of the Western Bulldogs, and Vice President and General Manager of Emerging Markets at Nike.
At the Golf Summit on October 16-17, Stevenson will speak to this experience and the skills and systems he has implemented at the NBL to see record growth in broadcast, attendance, digital and media metrics.
Golf Australia CEO James Sutherland welcomed the announcement of Stevenson joining the Summit as a keynote speaker.
“David Stevenson has a unique perspective on the Australian sports industry, having worked and experienced success in both the AFL and basketball worlds,” said Sutherland.
“Sporting bodies compete for people’s leisure time and we can all learn from each other. I am delighted David will be able to share his keys for success at this year’s Golf Summit.”
The Golf Summit is run by Australian Golf’s peak bodies – the PGA of Australia and Golf Australia – to bring the industry together to engage and influence key decision makers to lead, grow and innovate Australian golf.
Attendees will have the chance to network, share ideas, strategies and best practices to take back to their business to help drive growth and success.
A highlight of the Summit will be the diverse range of panel sessions addressing critical business outcomes within the industry, including championing change for women and girls in golf, along with the impact of technology on golf coaching.
The two-day conference will also feature sessions on promoting diversity and inclusion, talent retention and management, biodiversity and sustainability in golf, and leveraging social media for commercial success.
Confirmed speakers for the 2024 Golf Summit
NRL legend and Queensland Maroons Coach, Billy Slater
NBL CEO, David Stevenson
Former PGA Tour caddie, Steve Williams
World-renowned PGA Professional, Will Robins
Paralympian, Elle Steele
Richmond Football Club triple-premiership player, Bachar Houli
PING VP Engineering, Dr Paul Wood
CEO PGA of Australia, Gavin Kirkman
CEO Golf Australia, James Sutherland
CEO WPGA Tour of Australasia, Karen Lunn
Deputy General Manager – 13th Beach Golf Links, Sally McKenna
2023 PGA National Coach of the Year – Game Development, Asha Flynn
General Manager – Pacific Golf Club, Amber Williams
PGA Professional – Golf coach and golf educator, Hugh Marr
Biodiversity and Sustainability expert, Monina Gilbey
Biodiversity and Sustainability expert, Kate Torgersen Lecturer – The University of Melbourne, Emma Power
READ MORE ABOUT THE SESSIONS HERE
The Asia-Pacific region’s premier event welcoming the entire golf industry, tickets for the 2024 Golf Summit are on sale now.
The golf world can come hard and fast at Jayden Cripps, but the Cronulla pro might finally have the tools to tackle it.
Cripps shot a course-record 7-under-par 63 at Wollongong Golf Club on Tuesday to take the lead in the NSW Open qualifying series event on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series schedule.
He’s only a shot clear on a jam-packed leaderboard that features a swag of fancied players, including Jeffrey Guan fresh off a plane from San Francisco after his PGA TOUR debut.
But they’ll all have to run down Cripps when he puts a dazzling new combination of skills to the test as he chases his first professional victory.
“I haven’t had the chance to see my coach John Serhan for a while, so yesterday I went to St Michaels and worked on my putting with him for two hours and today everything just felt so much better,” Cripps said.
“I went to cross-hand putting from conventional and with my eyes over the ball, I suddenly had speed control.
“I’ve been playing really well, but haven’t been able to make a putt, so that was very exciting today.”
Cripps actually began his record round with a bogey on the gettable par-5 first hole.
But with the soothing words of Marcus Fraser, Matt Millar, Steven Jeffress and PGA of Australia staff member Pete Welden in his ears, nothing could rattle Cripps.
“They all tell me to slow down. I’ve got ADHD, so I’m 100 miles an hour all the time,” he added.
“But when I had that bogey to start, I was strangely really calm.
“I made a three on the second, a good three on the third and then drove it on the front of the (par-4) fourth and it just went from there.
“I played with `Frase’ at Coffs (Harbour) recently and he’s been giving me tips, slowing me down and just getting me to breathe.
“He says the more you slow your body down, your swing will slow down too.
“Timing is huge for me – if it’s out I’m generally hitting it off the planet.
“So today I didn’t get nervous all day, which is a big thing for me.”
Cripps’ 63 was his equal best score as a pro and his first course record away from his Cronulla base.
“That’s pretty special to me – especially because I love it around here, too.”
In fact, there’s a strong “local” presence on the leaderboard with Picton’s Justin Warren alongside Concord amateur Blake Phillips at 64.
They’ll be joined in Wednesday’s final group by Coffs Harbour’s Amelia Mehmet-Grohn, the leading woman in the field and the first in at 65.
The second-last group will feature Links Shell Cove amateur Colin Mitchell, Wollongong pro Jordan Zunic, Queenslander Dylan Gardner and rising Sydney star Guan, whose plane from the United States only landed at 7.30am Tuesday morning.
“I just went home, took a shower, threw on these clothes and then drove down about an hour-and-a-half,” he said.
“The body feels surprisingly good. I’m pretty happy to have 65, especially in the afternoon around here.”
Aside from Zunic, who won two Wollongong Opens here as a young amateur and has gone on to win three times on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, it’s testament to the youth in the field that Warren is among the most experienced of the chasing pack.
“I’m 29 in a couple of weeks, so I’ve been out here a few years now and it’s kind of scary to say, but with that comes a lot of experience,” said Warren, who’s loving sleeping in his own bed and commuting to Wollongong.
“I’ve had some good ones and some really bad ones, but in any event, no matter what it is, the goal’s to win and from the last couple of groups tomorrow, I’m in a position to do that.
“I have been in this position quite a few times – I won’t say I know what to expect and obviously there’s going to be a few little nerves out there trying to get a win, but being able to manage those is critical and managing your game to give yourself the best shot.”
Warren kickstarted his round with a sensational eagle on the first hole when he rifled a 4-iron uphill from 213 metres to three metres behind the hole and rolled in the putt.
Phillips celebrated his 22nd birthday with a bogey-free 6-under round.
“I’ve played a couple of pro events now and know how it goes and I don’t feel too different from the pros,” said Phillips, who played alongside Warren and Zunic in the day’s hottest group.
“We fed off each other and it was pretty good golf.”
There are plenty of chances for another story in Wednesday’s final round, though, with 24 players at 3-under or better.
A hole-in-one provided the catalyst for Azer-Benjamin Pehlic to build a four-stroke lead going into the final round of the ADH Club Car WA PGA Associate Championship presented by Acushnet at Wembley Golf Course.
Leading by two after Round 1, the Royal Fremantle Golf Club Associate’s advantage was trimmed to one in Tuesday morning’s second round as Aaron Dobson (74) and Daniel Hoeve (69) joined Pehlic as the only players under par.
Following a quick turnaround, Dobson and Arno Madel both started the afternoon’s third round strongly to continue to apply leaderboard pressure.
But two birdies and an ace at the par-3 16th would deliver Pehlic a tournament-low 6-under 66 and 8-under total for a four-shot buffer with one round to play.
It was the fifth hole-in-one of Pehlic’s golf life and undoubtedly the most timely.
“I pretty much had the same club I had in my hand in the morning,” Pehlic explained post-round.
“Pretty much just said to Daniel, ‘I’m going to hit a nice little cut with a knockdown 9-iron and pretty much straight at it.
“It landed but I didn’t see anything.
“I was going to mark the ball that was next to the flag and I realised it was Jeff’s. Then I looked to my right and saw it was in the hole.”
Given he opened the door with a 3-over 75 in the morning round, Pehlic was proud to bounce back in such impressive fashion in the afternoon.
“I was just super aggressive today, as I normally am,” he added.
“This morning was a little bit rough. I usually tend to get quite angry at myself, which makes me play good. I just know I can be better than what I shot in the morning.
“To come back with the 66 was really good.
“I’ll stay aggressive. It’s been working so far so I don’t see why I can’t finish the job.”
At 4-under par, Dobson is the only player within eight shots of Pehlic with 18 holes to play.
A swing adjustment between rounds resulted in a five-shot improvement, an improvement that could have been even greater had the putter cooperated a little more.
With ground to make up, Dobson knows that he’ll need make more putts from outside six feet to challenge Pehlic for the title.
“I hit it quite well tee-to-green in the second ground and really could have had anything,” he said.
“To be honest, I just didn’t hole any putts at all. I think my longest putt was a six-footer.
“I’ll attack where I know I can attack on the holes that I know I’m comfortable on and then just use my 3-iron that I’ve been hitting quite well off the tee on the holes with doglegs.
“Try and take some more opportunities on the greens would be nice, too.”
The final round begins at 6:44am AWST with the lead group to tee off at 8:04am.
In-form Royal Fremantle Associate Azer Pehlic will take a two-stroke lead into day two of the ADH Club Car WA PGA Associate Championship presented by Acushnet at Wembley Golf Course in Perth.
A winner of PGA Open Matches at Melville Glades and Marylands in the past month, Pehlic opened with a superb 5-under 67 on Monday to sit two shots clear of fellow West Australians Aaron Dobson (Marangaroo Golf Course) and Arno Madel (Seaview GC) who both signed for rounds of 3-under 69.
With $10,000 in prize money on offer, top Associates from Victoria and New South Wales have made the trip to WA but it was the locals, led by Pehlic, who came to the fore on day one.
Out in the first group of the day, Pehlic dropped a shot at the par-5 first but responded in brilliant fashion, making three straight birdies to set the pace up front.
“I made a quick bounce-back birdie on two so that was really, really good,” said Pehlic.
“Hit it to about 20 feet and then drained the putt and pretty much did the same for the next two holes.”
There was another bogey at the long par-4 fifth but a birdie at nine and eagle at the par-5 11th once again made Pehlic the man to catch.
His third and final bogey of the round came at the par-4 12th but his strategy to place a premium on positioning off the tee paid dividends with further birdies at 15 and 17.
“Just put the ball in play was my main mindset,” said Pehlic. “Make sure I’ve given myself an opportunity to hit a good approach shot.
“Most of the time it did work and then if I did hit it in the bush, just make sure I take my medicine if it’s in a rough spot.
“Controlling the bads over trying to really capitalise on the goods was really good about my game so happy with that.”
With players to complete 36 holes on Tuesday, Pehlic is adamant that his strategy of controlled aggression won’t change.
“Don’t take my foot off the pedal,” is Pehlic’s plan.
“I’m a pretty aggressive player, so just try and attack every pin like I normally do and try to go as low as I can.”
Round 2 begins at 6:20am AWST on Tuesday followed by a quick turnaround for Round 3 commencing at 11:32am local time.
Fledgling Victorian professional Sid Nadimpalli has received a Sport Australia Hall of Fame scholarship for 2025.
As he prepares for his first full season on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, 20-year-old Nadimpalli, who plays out of Spring Valley Golf Club in Melbourne, was announced as part of the broader naming of 16 scholarships today.
He will receive a grant of $2500 toward sporting expenses under the Hall of Fame’s scholarship and mentoring program, invitations to SAHOF events, educational seminars and additional sessions with SAHOF members as guest speakers.
Nadimpalli, runner-up in this year’s Master of the Amateurs, tied-fourth in the adidas Australian Amateur and winner of the 2022 Tasmanian Amateur, made his debut as a professional at the PNG Open in Port Moresby in August, where he missed the cut.
He applied for the scholarship after receiving a tip from Tour staff that it could be available.
“It’s a privilege to be part of this,” he said.
“I’m hoping that it helps me going forward. It’s not just the grant, it’s the one-on-one mentoring that I’ll get. I’m looking to grow my game and grow as a person as well.”
Nadimpalli took up golf as a four-year-old growing up in Melbourne, and completed a fine amateur career by taking a spot on the Victorian team which won at the Golf Australia Interstate Matches in Queensland in May.
PHOTO: Sid Nadimpalli is playing on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia this season.
There was playoff pleasure and pain as Kelsey Bennett broke through on the LET Access Series but Richard Green was denied yet again on the PGA TOUR Champions.
Forced to endure the worst of the conditions that resulted in the Hauts de France Pas de Calais Golf Open being reduced to a 36-hole tournament, Bennett drained a 35-foot birdie putt at the first extra hole to record her first international professional win.
The champion at The Athena in February, Bennett has now moved up to ninth in the LET Access Series Order of Merit with the top six to earn promotion to the Ladies European Tour in 2025.
“This win means a lot,” said Bennett.
“I missed the cut at the Rose Ladies Open last week and I was wanting the week off.
“I spoke to my team and they pushed me to come and play this week because a win can give you so many points on the leaderboard.
“So now I’ve done it, it feels really good.”
Green is still chasing that winning feeling in the US after yet another heartbreaker at the Sanford International in South Dakota.
Fellow Aussie Michael Wright led the field into the final round yet it would once again be Green who was fighting it out late on the final day.
Tied for the lead with Steve Stricker shortly after the turn, Green dropped shots at both 13 and 14 to fall two shots back.
Stricker’s bogey on 18 gave Green a glimmer of hope, the Victorian piloting home his birdie putt from outside 20 feet to force extra holes.
He narrowly missed what would have been a winning birdie putt at the first extra hole and lipped out for birdie at the third, Stricker taking the title for a third straight year with birdie at the fourth playoff hole.
A three-time winner on the Legends Tour in Europe, it is Green’s fourth runner-up finish this season which includes three top-three finishes in major championships. He remains fourth on the Schwab Cup standings with total prize money this year of $US1.66 million.
Lucas Herbert’s tie for sixth was the pick of the Aussies at LIV Golf’s final individual tournament of the year in Chicago while Cassie Porter dropped to 10th in the Race For The Card despite finishing tied ninth at the Epson Tour’s Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic.
Photos: Federico Capretti/LETAS (Bennett); Alex Goodlett/Getty Images (Green)
Results
PGA TOUR
Procore Championship
Silverado Resort (North Cse), Napa, California
T32 Min Woo Lee 68-69-73-71—281
T50 Aaron Baddeley 68-73-72-72—285
MC Jeffrey Guan 69-75—144
MC Tim Wilkinson (NZ) 76-74—150
DP World Tour
Amgen Irish Open
Royal County Down GC, Co Down, Northern Ireland
1 Rasmus Hojgaard 71-68-71-65—275 €920,329.68
T52 Jason Scrivener 74-69-77-70—290 €19,272.79
66 Sam Jones (NZ) 71-73-79-72—295 €12,451.52
MC Ryan Fox (NZ) 73-72—145
MC Daniel Hillier (NZ) 75-70—145
MC David Micheluzzi 79-72—151
LIV Golf
LIV Golf Chicago
Bolingbrook Golf Club, Bolingbrook, Illinois
1 Jon Rahm 69-64-66—199 $US4 million
T6 Lucas Herbert 68-69-68—205 $534,500
T23 Matt Jones 71-72-67—210 $190,715
T30 Danny Lee (NZ) 73-68-70—211 $162,500
T34 Marc Leishman 74-70-68—212 $144,000
52 Cameron Smith 73-73-74—220 $50,000
Japan Golf Tour
ANA Open Golf Tournament
Sapporo Golf Club (Watatsu Cse), Hokkaido
1 Akira Iwasaki 66-67-69-66—268 ¥30m
T23 Brad Kennedy 69-71-70-68—278 ¥1.33m
MC Anthony Quayle 75-68—143
MC Brendan Jones 72-72—144
Korean PGA Tour
Golf Zone Doray Open
Golf Zone County Seonsan
1 Ham Jeong-woo 65-65-67-66—263
T14 Sungjin Yeo (NZ) 64-70-65-69—268
T40 Kevin Chun (NZ) 67-68-71-67—273
MC Wonjoon Lee 71-68—139
MC Junseok Lee 68-72—140
MC Changgi Lee 74-71—145
Korn Ferry Tour
Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation
Vanderbilt Legends Club (North Cse), Franklin, Tennessee
1 Paul Peterson 64-63-67-66—260 $US270,000
T55 Rhein Gibson 70-66-70-69—275 $6,270
MC Brett Drewitt 69-69—138
MC Karl Vilips 74-68—142
Epson Tour
Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic
Ol’ Colony Golf Complex, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
1 Ingrid Lindblad 67-66-67—200 $US35,625
T9 Cassie Porter 71-66-70—207 $5,070
T37 Fiona Xu (NZ) 74-69-69—212 $1,589
T63 Maddison Hinson-Tolchard 73-70-75—218 $798
Challenge Tour
Open de Portugal at Royal Óbidos
Royal Óbidos Spa & Golf Resort, Vau Óbidos, Portugal
1 Matt Oshrine 70-65-69-69—273 €43,200
T25 Hayden Hopewell 68-70-69-73—280 €2,295
LET Access Series
Hauts de France Pas de Calais Golf Open
Golf Saint Omer, Lumbres, France
Event reduced to 36 holes due to rain
1 Kelsey Bennett 67-73—140 €6,400
Won at the first hole of sudden-death playoff
T45 Wenyung Keh (NZ) 73-77—150
PGA TOUR Champions
Sanford International
Minnehaha Country Club, Sioux Falls, South Dakota
1 Steve Stricker 67-68-67—202 $US315,000
Won on fourth hole of sudden-death playoff
2 Richard Green 68-65-69—202 $184,800
T5 Steven Alker (NZ) 70-67-67—204 $92,400
T5 Michael Wright 67-65-72—204 $92,400
T13 Stuart Appleby 70-67-70—207 $40,950
T15 John Senden 73-68-67—208 $33,642
T15 Greg Chalmers 70-68-70—208 $33,642
T15 Steve Allan 67-70-71—208 $33,642
T37 Rod Pampling 69-71-73—213 $11,130
T42 Mathew Goggin 70-71-73—214 $8,610
T68 Jason Norris 78-71-71—220 $1,848
76 David Bransdon 75-78-72—225 $1,218
WD Mark Hensby 71
Legends Tour
European Legends Cup
Golf Almerimar, Andalucia, Spain
1 Adilson Da Silva 71-68-68—207
Won at the first hole of sudden-death playoff
T8 Scott Hend 69-73-69—211
T11 Michael Campbell (NZ) 71-73-68—212
T28 Michael Long (NZ) 76-73-67—216
