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The Tailor-made Building Services NT PGA Championship will host a field full of top Australasian talent when it returns to its traditional timeslot in 2021.
Palmerston Golf and Country Club will host the sixth edition of the much-loved ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia championship when it returns to the top end from 19-22 August.
The tournament will be the first of the 2021/22 wraparound season with a field of up to 120 players to battle for the iconic crocodile trophy and $150,000 in prize money over 72 holes.
“We are extremely pleased to be returning to Palmerston in August for the 2021 Tailor-made Building Services NT PGA Championship,” said the PGA of Australia’s Tournaments Director Australasia, Nick Dastey.
“The NT PGA has proven to be a favourite amongst the players for its relaxed and jovial atmosphere and this year it will set the scene for what is expected to be a thrilling season on the Tour.
“Palmerston Golf and Country Club continues to grow and improve and we are thankful for their commitment to hosting this great tournament, together with Ray from Tailor-made Building Services who has played an integral part in helping the event go from strength to strength.”
Palmerston Golf and Country Club general manager Matthew Hewer is excited for players from around the country to experience a number of key course and facility upgrades this August with the course expected to be at its best.
“We are grateful for the continuing support of the Northern Territory Government and the City of Palmerston that allows the most prestigious golf event in the Northern Territory to remain in Palmerston,” said Hewer.
With a tradition of providing spectators with four days of thrilling golf competition at the par 71 course, 2021 will be no exception as the tournament continues to flourish thanks to the support of Government, council and local businesses.
“Tailor-made Building Services is proud to be a local company having the naming rights sponsorship of the NT PGA for the third year running,” said Tailor-made Building Services managing director Ray Somerville.
“The NT PGA is a unique sporting event to the Northern Territory that brings the country’s best sportspersons and administrators to this great City of Palmerston to showcase the best golf Australasia has to offer.
“Tailor-made Building Services prides itself on being able to give something back to the local community to enjoy this golfing spectacle in a “free for spectators” four day event that is open to all who wish to attend.”
It is a history City of Palmerston Mayor Athina Pascoe-Bell says council will be proud to see continue in 2021.
“The City of Palmerston has been a major partner of this prestigious tournament for the past five years and we are delighted to be supporting this year’s tournament,” said Pascoe-Bell.
“The NT PGA Championship is a great few days for the City of Palmerston and I encourage all Palmerston residents to get to this year’s tournament and enjoy some high-quality golf. The NT PGA is great for the local economy and really puts the fantastic Palmerston Golf Course on the sporting map.”
The Tailor-made NT PGA Championship will be played from 19-22 August at Palmerston Golf Course and forms part of the 2021/22 ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia season.
John Senden could be forgiven for letting 50 sneak up on him.
The bathroom mirror at his Dallas home reveals few changes to the young man who completed a traineeship under Ian Triggs at Keppera Country Golf Club in Brisbane almost 30 years ago before taking his game into Asia, Europe and ultimately the US.
Then there was the devastating revelation in 2017 that he and Jackie’s only son Jacob had a brain tumour.
Time stands still when such a distressing diagnosis is revealed and Jacob’s journey towards a healthy future has understandably consumed Senden’s focus the past few years.
Knocking a little white ball into a hole 400 yards off in the distance becomes instantly irrelevant.
But Senden, who turned 50 on April 20, will join the Champions Tour at this week’s Insperity Invitational in Texas knowing that Jacob is in a good place physically and with a renewed focus on his own health and performance on the golf course.
“Even though a few things have happened in my life that have sort of stopped me from playing, I’m glad I’m where I’m at now,” revealed Senden ahead of his Champions Tour debut.
“Back in 2017, it was pretty rough. He was on the edge then. It was challenging because for one, I didn’t even know whether I was going to continue to play the game, with trying to take care of Jacob, in hospitals, getting him healthy again.
“But he’s way better now. If you saw him today, you wouldn’t know he was really, really sick at all.
“He’s got to keep checking in with the doctors, just to boost his testosterone with a few shots here and there, but without going into major detail, he’s looking a lot better and he’s busy. It’s good.”
Happy 50th Sendo, welcome to the Champions Tour. 🎂🎂🎂🎂🎉🎉🎉🍷🍷🍷🍷 pic.twitter.com/49ALeSnKj7
— Rod Pampling (@RodPampling) April 21, 2021
Since Jacob’s diagnosis Senden has played only 65 tournaments over the past four years, making 22 cuts and with a best result of a tie for fifth at the 2018 Australian Open, his best PGA TOUR result in that time a tie for 34th that same year at the John Deere Classic.
Revered as one of the game’s premier ball-strikers for the past 20 years, Senden believes returning to tournament golf on a regular basis will help him to rediscover the consistency that has been a hallmark of his career.
A two-time PGA TOUR winner, Senden dusted off some of the rust in missing the cut at last week’s Veritex Championship on the Korn Ferry Tour in his home state of Texas and insists a clear mind and a deeper schedule across two tours will elevate his game to a level where he can contend for trophies again.
“These last five years, the priorities have been a little bit different. It’s been more difficult to put the time in to stay really highly competitive, as well as the change in the body and your age,” said Senden, the 2006 Australian Open champion.
“When you don’t play and you’re trying to keep up with these young guys, it’s more difficult. That’s where it’s been these last couple of years but I’m lucky that I’m at the age of 50 right now where I’ve gotten through that.
“It’s just the way things have rolled, really. I feel really good about turning 50 because it’s going to give me another chance to play a consistent schedule and stay healthy.
“That gives me a good chance to hopefully get more consistent with my game, because I’ll be playing most weeks come April right through to November.
“Last year, with COVID, I only played about eight events. This year, I’m going to play probably 20-25. “Good to get the rhythm back again and play a bit more.
“That’s something that I’m looking forward to.”
With $US21,630,513 in earnings Senden’s place on the Champions Tour is secure for the immediate future via the Career Moneylist category.
After this week’s Insperity Invitational at The Woodlands Country Club in Texas the Queenslander intends to tee it up in the Regions Tradition next week in Alabama before taking up an invitation to play in the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship at Southern Hills Country Club from May 27.
Good mate Rod Pampling is the only other Aussie currently in the field for the Insperity Invitational with David McKenzie hoping for the opportunity to join them from his current position as first alternate.
The all-Aussie pairing of Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman have set their sights on Olympic gold in Tokyo after surviving a dramatic finish to claim the PGA TOUR’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans in Louisiana.
Starting the final round of foursomes one shot back of the South African team of Charl Schwartzel and Louis Oosthuizen following a second consecutive 63 in the fourball format on Saturday, Smith and Leishman picked up birdies at two and seven to remain one back.
A superb tee shot by Leishman at the par-3 ninth set up birdie to take a share of the lead and after the South Africans dropped a shot at the par-4 10th the Aussies took sole ownership of the top of the leaderboard.
That lead was soon extended to two when Leishman’s centre fairway drive and Smith’s soaring 7-wood to 20 feet set up a two-putt birdie at the par-5 11th but drama lay waiting just around the corner.
Smith was forced to take a drop for an unplayable lie when Leishman’s tee shot at the par-4 13th rolled up behind the tall cypress tree in the left-centre of the fairway, the resulting bogey cutting the advantage to one.
A two-shot swing at the par-4 15th catapulted the South Africans back into the lead but the Aussies hit back at the very next hole in spectacular fashion.
Attempting to drive the green at the 302-yard par-4 16th, Smith’s tee shot took a hard bounce left into the water flanking the left side of the hole to seemingly sink their chances.
Yet after a delicate drop on the steep bank beside the green, Leishman delivered some of the short-game wizardry he is renowned for to chip in for birdie and once again draw level.
“I said to the boys, ‘Why don’t we just chip this in.’ It wasn’t the hardest chip in the world,” Leishman revealed post-round.
“I didn’t think I was actually going to do it but the power of positive thinking is a pretty good thing.
“I won’t say it was a must make but it was certainly very helpful that it went in. I actually forgot to get my ball out of the hole I was so excited.”
The Aussies had the opportunity to seal the win in regulation but Leishman’s birdie putt slid just under the cup before another twist to commence the playoff.
Oosthuizen flared his tee shot wide right into the lake to give the Aussies the upper hand, the pair safely plotting their way down the 18th hole to make par and add a further victory to their PGA TOUR career resumes.
Given confirmation this past week that Adam Scott would not seek selection, Smith and Leishman are now the two leading Aussie contenders on the Official World Golf Rankings and admit that an Olympic gold medal is a tantalising proposition.
“Yes, I’m all in,” Leishman declared three months out from the start of the Olympic golf competition.
“Me too,” Smith added.
“I would love to contend for any medal, to be honest,” Leishman continued.
“Obviously you want to go for gold but something I never ever thought I would do would be to have a chance to win an Olympic medal.
“I’m really excited about the chance of being there and contending for that.”
“Any chance I can get to put on the green and gold or a team shirt I’m all in,” said Smith, who was ranked 178th in the world at the time of the 2016 Rio de Janiero Olympics. “I’m a hundred percent.
“I was kind of bummed I didn’t get in the team four years ago. It was really a goal of mine.
“I’ll be thrilled if I’m there and contending on the weekend for a gold medal.”
Given the Aussie pairing combined with Leishman’s long-time caddie Matty Kelly and Kiwi Sam Pinfold on the bag for Smith, the Anzac spirit was front of mind for the four close friends as they prepared for the final round.
A winner on Australia Day last year, Leishman admitted that to win on Anzac Day in the US made it even more memorable while Smith said his father Des had a sense that it would be significant from the other side of the globe.
“I was actually speaking to my old man last night and he said it’s a really good omen for us guys being up the top of the leaderboard on Anzac Day,” Smith said.
“My family went out to a dawn service yesterday morning and paid their respects so maybe we had a bit of good karma out there today because of that.
“Obviously we had three Aussies in our little crew and my caddie, ‘Pinner’, is a New Zealander, so the Anzac spirit definitely held up today.”
As for the glorious mullet that Smith promised his girlfriend Jordan would be sacrificed if he and Leishman were successful this week…
”I have to apologise to my girlfriend; it’s not going away. I feel like it’s part of me now.”
PGA TOUR
Zurich Classic of New Orleans
TPC Louisiana, Avondale, Louisiana
1 Marc Leishman/Cameron Smith 63-72-63-70—268 $US1,069,300 each
33 Cameron Percy/Greg Chalmers 66-70-69-82—287 $15,466 each
MC Matt Jones/JJ Spaun 65-74—139
MC Aaron Baddeley/Roger Sloan 64-76—140
MC Tim Wilkinson/George McNeill 68-75—143
MC Danny Lee/Sangmoon Bae 69-75—144
MC Rhein Gibson/Ben Taylor 69-76—145
Cameron Smith took a haircut from his playing partner Marc Leishman and then ran hot on the golf course as the Australian pair put themselves in contention for the Zurich Classic at TPC Louisiana in New Orleans today.
Sporting a new look with clean shaven sides, Smith made seven birdies and an eagle and the Australians did not make a single bogey in the opening 63, nine under par in the pairs best-ball event which is part of the US PGA Tour.
They are tied-third after the first round, a shot behind Norwegian pair Viktor Hovland and Kris Ventura at 10 under.
The 27-year-old Queenslander Smith had previously won this event, with Jonas Blixt, in 2017, and he relishes playing alongside Victorian Leishman, with whom he paired to a runner-up finish in the World Cup in Melbourne in 2018.
Smith said Leishman had volunteered with the clippers. “Well, I said I needed to get a cut and I was going to go get one yesterday afternoon. ‘Leish’ said, I can do it, I cut my boys’ hair at home. So I put faith in him, and I think he did a pretty good job.”
He also said Leishman had it easy. “I mean, the lines were there. I had a barber do it last year, so all Leish had to do was like a coloring in, just don’t go outside the lines. I had a pretty good template to work with. It wasn’t too tough.”
Leishman was unfussed. “During the quarantine, the start of last year when all the hairdressers were closed, my boys were getting a bit scruffy and I cut their hair,” he said. “I will say I was a bit nervous the first few chunks I took out, but they turned out pretty good, so I was confident I could handle the short sides for Cam.”
The big Victorian was in awe of Smith’s game on the day, after the Queenslander hit it to tap-in range at the first and then bombed a 10-metre eagle at the second. “I had the pars covered on most holes, and he had the birdies covered,” said Leishman.
“I was there on a couple holes when he made bogeys, and likewise, the holes I struggled on he was there. It was great to be playing with someone who’s got a hot putter and putting himself in good positions on pretty much every hole. It made my job pretty easy. Hopefully I can fire up tomorrow and be ready for the foursomes.”
It was a good day for the Australian contingent overall, with Aaron Baddeley in the top 10 with Canadian Roger Sloan after their opening 64, while Matt Jones (with American JJ Spaun) is tied-15th after a 65.
You may not know it – you may never have even heard of it – but the song chosen by Aussie pair Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith for the Zurich Classic starting Friday morning AEST is oh so appropriate.
Leishman and Smith – World Cup partners, great mates and Presidents Cup teammates – are one of two all-Aussie pairings at the Zurich Classic in New Orleans, a PGA TOUR event where two-man teams play rounds of fourball and foursomes on alternate days.
Veterans Cameron Percy and Greg Chalmers have teamed up together, Honda Classic champion Matt Jones will play alongside American JJ Spaun, Aaron Baddeley is partnering Canadian Roger Sloan, Rhein Gibson has paired with England’s Ben Taylor while Kiwis Danny Lee and Tim Wilkinson will be partnered by Sangmoon Bae and George McNeill respectively.
Given their history – and Smith’s victory in the 2017 event alongside Swede Jonas Blixt – the most prominent Aussie pairing are considered one of the tournament favourites but Leishman’s song selection and Smith’s inspiration may turn even more heads.
“It’s actually funny,” Smith explained, whose back-to-back Masters top-10s are the only thing currently overshadowing his flowing mullet hairstyle.
“Leish found this song or looked up a song and he’s already entered it; I didn’t even get a choice.
“It’s called ‘The Mullet Song’. We’re going to be rocking that going to the first tee. And maybe a few other surprises.”
Think a mix between Kid Rock and Billy Ray Cyrus and you’re close to Jay Powell’s homage to the resurgent follicle fashion statement that has been viewed more than 100,000 times on YouTube since its release in August last year.
It doesn’t quite have the upbeat tempo that Percy has selected for he and Chalmers, ‘Right Here, Right Now’ by Fatboy Slim – “Get us focused,” Percy explained – but Leishman hopes his choice will set a fun tone that he and Smith can carry all the way through to late Sunday.
“It’s pretty funny and very true, particularly in Cam’s case,” Leishman added.
“The walk-up music is something different; I think it’s fun. You got to try and make it fun and embrace it and I think we’ll do that. Try and enjoy ourselves, get the day started off on the right foot and go from there.”
Although Ernie Els chose not to pair Smith and Leishman together at the 2019 Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne, Smith believes that their bond – and that of their respective caddies Sam Pinfold and Matty Kelly – is a definitive advantage when it comes to foursomes.
“I think the banter makes us a good team,” said Smith.
“If one of us hits a bit of a crappy shot or doesn’t get off to a good start or something like that, we’re always in each other’s ear just playing around and maybe saying some stuff that gets us fired up and ready to go.”
Strategically speaking, an investigation of the numbers convinced Leishman that he would be best served teeing off on the odd-numbered holes in foursomes and Smith on the even-numbered holes.
And if the Aussies are successful at the end of 72 holes, The Mullet Song may earn a reprise in a presentation ceremony with a difference.
“I told the missus that I would cut it if I won, but I don’t know, everyone loves it,” said Smith, currently Australia’s highest-ranked male player at No.25 in the world.
“I’ve got a lot of attention, I guess, a lot of support out on the golf course with it, so I don’t know, might hang around for longer than I anticipated.
“I think it’s a good thing, just something different. Everyone has a laugh. I know ‘Leish’ has a laugh at it and he picks on me sometimes about it, but no, it’s good. I love it.”
Minjee Lee’s two-year wait to defend her Hugel-Air Premia LA Open title is already underway with Lee posting an opening round of 1-under 70 at Wilshire Country Club.
Su Oh is positioned to push for her best LPGA Tour finish courtesy of an opening round of 5-under 66, two better than the next best Aussie through 18 holes, West Australian Hannah Green who is tied for 17th.
Round 1 tee times AEST
PGA TOUR
Zurich Classic
TPC Louisiana, Avondale, Louisiana
10.13pm* Danny Lee/Sangmoon Bae, DJ Trahan/Ricky Barnes
11.44pm Tim Wilkinson/George McNeill, Sepp Straka/Josh Teater
3.05am Cameron Percy/Greg Chalmers, Rob Oppenheim/Grayson Murray
3.44am Marc Leishman/Cameron Smith, Collin Morikawa/Matthew Wolff
4.23am Matt Jones/JJ Spaun, Max Homa/Talor Gooch
4.36am* Aaron Baddeley/Roger Sloan, Rasmus Hojgaard/Vaughn Taylor
5.02am* Rhein Gibson/Ben Taylor, Rafael Campos/Mark Anderson
Defending champions: Ryan Palmer/Jon Rahm (2019)
Past Aussie winners: Cameron Smith (with Jonas Blixt, 2017)
Top Aussie prediction: Cameron Smith/Marc Leishman
TV schedule: Live 5.30am-8.30am Friday, Saturday; Live 3am-8am Sunday, Monday on Fox Sports 503.
European Tour
Gran Canaria Lopesan Open
Meloneras Golf, Gran Canaria, Spain
12.30am* Jake McLeod, Eduardo De la Riva, Matthew Jordan
12.40am* Austin Bautista, Ross Fisher, Scott Jamieson
5.40am* Maverick Antcliff, Berry Henson, Cormac Sharvin
Defending champion: Inaugural event
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Top Aussie prediction: Maverick Antcliff
TV schedule: Live 11pm-4am Thursday, Friday; Live 11pm-3am Saturday; Live 10pm-2.30am Sunday on Fox Sports 503.
LPGA Tour
Hugel-Air Premia LA Open
Wilshire Country Club, Los Angeles, California
Through Round 1
T4 Su Oh 66
T17 Hannah Green 68
T31 Sarah Kemp 69
T43 Gabriela Ruffels 70
T43 Minjee Lee 70
T57 Sarah Jane Smith 71
T105 Katherine Kirk 74
T134 Lydia Ko 78
Defending champion: Minjee Lee (2019)
Past Aussie winners: Minjee Lee (2019)
Top Aussie prediction: Hannah Green
TV schedule: Live 8.30am-11am Friday, Saturday; Live 8am-11am Sunday on Fox Sports 511.
Korn Ferry Tour
Veritex Bank Championship
Texas Rangers Golf Club, Arlington, Texas
11.15pm* Brett Drewitt, Evan Harmeling, David Kocher
11.55pm* Harrison Endycott, Kevin Roy, Chandler Blanchet
3.35am Jamie Arnold, Andres Gonzales, Tyson Alexander
4.15am John Senden, Whee Kim, TJ Vogel
4.35am* Nick Voke, John VanDerLaan, Brent Grant
4.55am Ryan Ruffels, Max Greyserman, Shane Smith
Defending champion: Inaugural event
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Top Aussie prediction: Harrison Endycott
Challenge Tour
Limpopo Championship
Euphoria GC, Modimolle, South Africa
11.20pm* Deyen Lawson, Toto Thimba Jnr, Keith Horne
Defending champion: JC Ritchie
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Symetra Tour
Copper Rock Championship
Copper Rock Golf Course, Hurricane, Utah
2.15am Julienne Soo, Ingrid Gutierrez Nunez, Alivia Reynolds
5.11am Stephanie Na, Julie Aime, Madison Pressel
6.39am Robyn Choi, Dottie Ardina, Amanda Doherty
Defending champion: Inaugural event
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Top Aussie prediction: Robyn Choi
A 16-month exile ends for seven Aussies this week as they make their return to the Japan Golf Tour needing to make up lost ground on the moneylist of a wraparound 2020/2021 season that ends in December.
Not since Brad Kennedy lost in a playoff to Ryo Ishikawa at the 2019 Golf Nippon Series JT Cup has an Australian appeared in an event on Japanese soil, the COVID-19 pandemic decimating the majority of the 2020 schedule.
Four events that Australian players did not have government approval to play in were conducted at the end of 2020 and late visa approvals meant that they spent last week’s Token Homemate Cup watching from their hotel rooms in quarantine.
Coached by Australian PGA Professional Gareth Jones, last week’s winner Takumi Kanaya sits atop the moneylist with earnings already of ￥55,895,000, Matthew Griffin the only Aussie to have banked any cash courtesy of his tie for 41st at the co-sanctioned SMBC Singapore Open last January.
It puts them at a disadvantage but with 24 events still scheduled for the remainder of 2021 there is time in which to make their way up the moneylist and maintain their status for 2022.
Since his narrow loss to Ishikawa more than a year ago Kennedy has extended the golden period of the later years of his career.
The 46-year-old Queenslander added a second New Zealand Open title last March, made his maiden appearances in PGA TOUR and World Golf Championships events, won the inaugural tournament of The Players Series and claimed the ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit crown.
Although two weeks spent cooped up in a hotel room is perhaps not ideal preparation, Kennedy can tap into some positive memories from his victory in the Kansai Open Golf Championship in 2013, albeit it at a different golf course.
Now boasting ¥428,486,406 ($A5,131,886 approx.) in career prize money in Japan, Kennedy has finished inside the top five in the event four times since his victory eight years ago but will be getting his first look at Arima Royal Golf Club, the Royal Course hosting for the first time since 1985.
Griffin enjoyed a consistent start to the year in Australia without ever really contending, logging four top-25 finishes in six starts with his best result a tie for eighth at the ISUZU Queensland Open in February.
Anthony Quayle is another returning to Japan this week with strong showings under his belt this year, finishing tied for fifth in the defence of his 2020 Queensland Open title and tied for seventh at the Victorian PGA Championship at Moonah Links.
Victorian Todd Sinnott will hope to hit the ground running having played only five events with world rankings points attached since the end of 2018 while Adam Bland, David Bransdon, Dylan Perry and Kiwi Michael Hendry will seek a strong start in what shapes as a busy season ahead.
Round 1 tee times AEST
Japan Golf Tour
Kansai Open Golf Championship
Arima Royal Golf Club (Royal Cse), Hyogo
8.30am Brad Kennedy, Nakazawa Daiki (a), Rikuya Hoshino
8.40am* Adam Bland, Shuhei Shimoke (a), Yuta Kinoshita
9.30am* Anthony Quayle, Min-Gyu Cho, Akio Sadakata
9.40am Dylan Perry, Yusuke Sakamoto, Yuwa Kosaihira
9.50am Todd Sinnott, Yuta Yoshikuwa, Masatsugu Fujishima
12.50pm Matthew Griffin, Daichi Sato, Tomohiro Ishikaza
1.40pm David Bransdon, Ryo Ochiai (a), Hiroshi Iwata
1.50pm Michael Hendry, Masayuki Yamashita (a), Chan Kim
Defending champion: Tomoharu Otsuki (2019)
Past Aussie winners: Brad Kennedy (2013)
Top Aussie prediction: Brad Kennedy
Former New South Wales Amateur champion Austin Bautista has taken another step towards a permanent place on the European Tour and risen more than 1,000 places in the Official World Golf Rankings courtesy of a top-10 finish at the Austrian Golf Open.
Fresh from proposing to his partner Chiara just two weeks ago and with two wins on US soil already to his name in 2021, Bautista was issued an invitation to tee it up at Diamond Country Club and took full advantage.
Bouncing back from an opening round of 74 to shoot 67 in Round 2 to make the cut, Bautista birdied the 15th and 16th holes in a final round of 3-under 69 to finish tied for seventh in just his second start on Europe’s main tour.
As a result, the Bonnie Doon Golf Club member has played his way into the field for this week’s Gran Canaria Lopesan Open in Spain and risen to a career high of 841st in the world rankings, a rise of 1,066 spots on the week prior.
It was a positive return to Europe for Gold Coast-based Deyen Lawson who matched Bautista’s round of 69 in the final round to finish tied for 33rd with Queenslander Maverick Antcliff the third and final Aussie to make the cut, ending the week tied for 53rd.
The best round of his flourishing PGA TOUR career had Cameron Smith well placed after Round 1 of the RBC Heritage tournament at Harbour Town Golf Links but the 2020 Masters runner-up had to settle for a tie for ninth in South Carolina.
Smith’s 9-under 62 on day one placed him at the top of the leaderboard through 18 holes but heading into the final round on Sunday he was sitting just inside the top 30.
Top-10 at The Masters a week earlier, Smith rediscovered some of that Round 1 form to post the second-best round of the final day – a bogey-free 5-under 66 – to rise 18 places and squeeze inside the top 10.
It was another very solid week also for Cameron Davis whose tie for 25th saw him rise five places in the FedEx Cup points race to be 63rd.
A second round of 65 propelled Aaron Baddeley to a tie for fifth at the Korn Ferry Tour’s MGM Championship in Las Vegas while Hannah Green’s tie for 12th was the best of the Aussies as Kiwi Lydia Ko claimed the LPGA Tour’s Lotte Championship in Hawaii.
PGA TOUR
RBC Heritage
Harbour Town Golf Links, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
T9 Cameron Smith 62-71-74-66—273 $US186,375
T25 Cameron Davis 69-69-70-68—276 $52,274
MC Danny Lee 68-73—141
European Tour
Austrian Golf Open
Diamond CC, Atzenbrugg, Austria
T7 Austin Bautista 74-67-71-69—281 €20,940
T33 Deyen Lawson 77-70-71-69—287 €6,725
T53 Maverick Antcliff 72-74-71-73—290 €4,042
MC Jake McLeod 81-81—162
LPGA Tour
Lotte Championship
Kapolei Golf Club, Kapolei, Oahu, Hawaii
1 Lydia Ko 67-63-65-65—260 $US300,000
T12 Hannah Green 70-67-66-68—271 $31,197
T27 Su Oh 73-68-66-67—274 $16,152
MC Minjee Lee 71-71—142
MC Gabriela Ruffels 70-72—142
MC Katherine Kirk 69-74—143
MC Sarah Jane Smith 75-70—145
Korn Ferry Tour
MGM Resorts Championship
Paiute Golf Resort (Sun Mountain Course), Las Vegas, Nevada
T5 Aaron Baddeley 71-65-73-70—279 $US20,100
T35 Harrison Endycott 75-66-70-73—284 $3,450
T52 Brett Coletta 69-72-72-75—288 $2,538
T69 Rhein Gibson 72-67-79-76—294 $2,334
MC Jamie Arnold 72-71—143
MC Steven Alker 72-71—143
MC Brett Drewitt 72-71—143
MC Ryan Ruffels 75-70—145
MC Curtis Luck 76-72—148
MC Robert Allenby 80-73—153
MC Nick Voke 82-72—154
Symetra Tour
Casino Del Sol Golf Classic
Sewailo Golf Club, Tucson, Arizona
T60 Robyn Choi 71-73-76-75—295 $690
T62 Hira Naveed 76-69-71-80—296 $670
MC Stephanie Na 74-74—148
MC Soo Jin Lee 76-75—151
MC Julienne Soo 79-73—152
Champions Tour
Chubb Classic
Tiburon Golf Club, Naples, Florida
T32 Rod Pampling 76-70-69—215 $US10,560
T32 David McKenzie 69-69-77—215 $10,560
T44 Stephen Leaney 70-75-72—217 $5,600
Will Heffernan has taken out top spot in the Final Stage of ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia Qualifying School with a score of 5-under 283 on the Open Course at Moonah Links.
After strong winds blasted the seaside course from rounds one to three, Heffernan made the most of benign conditions on Friday to post a final round of 2-under 70 and take a one-stroke victory over David Micheluzzi, Aaron Wilkin and John Lyras in second place.
Heffernan now holds Category 9 Tournament Exemption on the PGA Tour of Australasia for the 2021/22 season that will see him receive automatic entry into all events on the Tour including the Australian PGA Championship and Australian Open.
“It feels really good. I played solid all week. I holed some nice putts and just stayed patient out there. It was pretty windy the whole week so I just hung in there,” Heffernan said.
“I knew I had to be steady all day. I made an early birdie then I went pretty quiet for a while, just playing it safe and then made one on the back-nine so I was pretty happy.”
In 2020 Heffernan spearheaded the charge for the Australians at Asian Tour Qualifying School, finishing second to earn an exemption for the 2020 season that was later cancelled due to COVID-19.
Looking to the year ahead the Victorian has the welcome challenge of building a schedule filled with both local and overseas tournaments when the PGA Tour of Australasia resumes in August.
“I actually went over to the UK and Italy and played on the Alps Tour,” said Heffernan of his year in 2020.
“I will just try and play as many tournaments as I can; try and balance my schedule between this (Australasia) and Asia and hopefully they match up and I can play a few of the bigger ones.”
The Tour’s marquee tournaments including the Australian PGA Championship, Australian Open, Vic Open and New Zealand Open are among the events Heffernan will eagerly anticipate.
“I’m really excited for them. They’ve always been a dream since I first started in golf so I’m very, very excited,” he said.
Queensland’s Aaron Wilkin (70), Victorian David Micheluzzi (70) and New South Welshman John Lyras (71) completed Qualifying School in a tie for second place at 4-under 284 to lead the players finishing from 2nd to 30th position including ties to earn a Category 13 exemption for the 2021/22 season.
Players with a Category 13 exemption will receive exemption into most events for the 2021/22 season with those who finished higher boasting a greater likelihood of being exempt into all Tour events.
Amongst the list of the top-30 players and ties rising star Jed Morgan (-2) lead the charge for the amateurs, finishing tied for fifth ahead of Lawrence Curtis (+3), Edward Donoghue (+3), Jackson Bugdalski (+7) and Lawry Flynn (+8) who finished birdie, birdie to sneak in on the number.
European Tour winner Sam Brazel, who finished in a tie for fifth place alongside Morgan, will return to the Tour alongside regulars Jason Norris (-1), Damien Jordan (+2), Peter Cooke (+4), Peter Wilson (+4), Matt Jager (+5), James Marchesani (+7) and Aaron Pike (+7) who regained status for the season ahead.
A Tour rookie in the 2020/21 season, Matias Sanchez narrowly secured his Category 13 status by making an eagle on 18 to finish tied for 30th at 8-over.
In addition to results from the Final Stage of Qualifying School at Moonah Links, a special New Zealand Qualifying School was held in conjunction with last week’s Muriwai Open where Luke Brown and Luke Toomey were successful in gaining Category 13 tour cards for 2021/22.
Players from positions 31 to 50 are entitled to become Full Tournament Members for the 2021/22 season but will not be allocated an exemption category.
View the Final Stage Qualifying School results at pga.org.au.
A few days after another top-10 finish in the Masters, Australia’s top-ranked male player Cameron Smith has soared to the first-round lead in the RBC Heritage.
Smith, 27, rammed home nine birdies in his opening 62, the lowest round of his PGA Tour career.
At nine under par, he leads the tournament at Harbour Town links in South Carolina by a shot.
“I don’t know, everything just came together,” Smith said afterward. “It was a great day on the green. I was hitting my irons really good. I had lots of good looks, and I just took advantage of them.”
Smith carded 31 on both nines and holed out from a bunker at the 17th. Then at 18, he produced what he called “icing on the cake”, a pure iron shot to just more than a metre for his ninth birdie. “I feel like after last week, I feel like chipping around here is almost like a breeze,” he said. “I was so scared almost last week on every chip shot, and I feel like I can be really aggressive around here.”
Smith said he was in a good place in recent times. “I don’t know, I just feel really comfortable. Mentally I feel very free out there. I feel like I can hit the shot that I need to hit and going ahead and trying to execute it. I just feel like every shot I’m hitting, I’m putting 100 percent into it, and on a day like today, it’s really rewarding.”
The world No. 26 recently took over from Adam Scott as the No. 1 Australian player on the men’s tour. Rested up after Augusta, he went home to Jacksonville for a couple of days and found some time to indulge his passion for fishing.
He certainly came back to the course with some fire in the belly.
Sydneysider John Lyras’s love affair with Moonah Links will reach new heights on Friday if he can maintain his position at the top of the leaderboard and claim the major prize on offer at the Final Stage of the PGA Tour of Australasia Qualifying School.
One of only three players to break 70 on Thursday as Peter Thomson’s imposing Open Course and the Mornington Peninsula’s wicked winds once again kept scoring in check, Lyras sits atop the leaderboard at 3-under par alongside Victorian Will Heffernan (71) heading into Friday’s final round.
David Micheluzzi (73) and Aaron Wilkin (70) are in a share of third just one shot further back with 2020 Australian Amateur champion Jed Morgan (73) and 2016 Hong Kong Open winner Sam Brazel (74) the only other players under par through 54 holes.
It was 12 months ago that Lyras, a member at St Michael’s Golf Club in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, birdied the 72nd hole to avoid a playoff for a PGA Tour of Australasia card and he held at least a share of the lead through the first three rounds of the Moonah Links PGA Classic in February, also played on the Open Course.
Although he succumbed to a blistering Bryden Macpherson final round that day to ultimately finish tied for fourth, the rewards on offer on Friday are just as significant, the winner receiving Category 9 exemption that would earn them automatic entry into each of the proposed 16 events for the 2021/22 PGA Tour of Australasia season.
The win would be just as significant for Heffernan, whose rookie year as a professional was decimated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Heffernan had secured his immediate future by earning an Asian Tour card at Q School last January but the ongoing impact of the pandemic and travel restrictions has prevented Heffernan from taking his game overseas for the time being.
Despite registering top-10 finishes at both the ISPS HANDA Vic Open and Tailor-Made Building Services NT PGA Championship in 2020 Morgan has retained his amateur status to date, his transition into the professional ranks all the more smoother if he can secure playing rights on his home tour.
The incentive to finish first on Friday is significant but there is plenty to play for down the leaderboard also.
Players who finish from second to 30th will receive Category 13 status for the 2021/2022 season with those who finish higher boasting a greater likelihood of being exempt into all Tour events.
The PGA Tour of Australasia conducted a special New Zealand Qualifying School, which was held in conjunction with last week’s Muriwai Open.
Ten players competed for two category 13 tour cards, which was won by former Order of Merit champion Ryan Fox.
Luke Brown and Luke Toomey were successful in gaining these spots and ensuring they have regained their playing status for 2021/22.
