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Brady Watt has secured his first Ladbrokes Pro-Am Series victory for 2020 at the Bendigo Bank Dingley Village Keysborough Golf Club Pro-Am which has raised in excess of $25,000 for bushfire relief.
Keysborough Golf Club took the opportunity to band together to raise an incredible sum for bushfire affected communities at the pro-am and its annual gala dinner with players and club members alike giving to the cause.
The Keysborough layout presented in excellent condition and despite a much-needed 40mm of rain overnight, Watt took advantage of the quick greens to continue his 2019 form in the pro-am’s afternoon field.
The West Australian who now calls Melbourne home collected seven birdies and two bogeys on his way to a winning total of 5-under 68.
“I had a great time out there, the course was excellent and my playing partners made the day enjoyable, winning was a bonus,” Watt said.
Completing the event with a round of even-par, former PGA TOUR player Nick O’Hern’s biggest impact on the day came in the form of an auction donation in support of the club’s bushfire appeal.
While Keysborough club members lead the drive at their Wednesday gala, O’Hern donated rounds of golf with himself as an auction item with many PGA Professionals also offering lessons for donations.
“It was amazing to see the club show their support and there was a really great feeling in the room at our gala night,” said Keysborough Golf Club General Manager Darren Eckhardt.
“Our members donated auction items from tournaments like the Presidents Cup, the Carlton Football Club got involved and offered training experiences and trades for a day were auctioned off.”
Keysborough Golf Club themselves went the extra step of donating $4280, a sum that was matched by the pro-am’s major sponsor Bendigo Bank Dingley Village to boost the initial donation pool to $8560.
“Our club members were also particularly generous and I have to thank one attendee who donated $6100 at our Gala night.
“At this stage we’re looking at donating half of the funds to the affected Mallacoota Golf and Country Club and the other half to the Rotary Club of Bairnsdale.”
Wade Lowrie completed the pro-am in second place after firing seven birdies in the morning field. His only blemishes came in the form of a double-bogey and bogey on the 17th and 18th holes for a round of 4-under the card.
Luke Hickman and Andrew Martin later joined Lowrie in second place with rounds of 4-under 69 ahead of Michael Choi and Michael Isherwood in a tie for fifth with rounds of 3-under 70.
He’s taking a longer path than originally intended but Ryan Ruffels’ dream of playing on the PGA TOUR is back on track after an impressive finish at the season-opening Great Exuma Classic on the Korn Ferry Tour.
The first event of the year on the PGA TOUR’s secondary tour featured high winds and high scores over the opening two rounds, former PGA TOUR winner Tommy Gainey shooting 67-69 over the final two rounds to win by four shots.
Following a hard-earned 74 in the first round, Ruffels moved inside the top 10 on the leaderboard with rounds of 69-70 but had to fight back late to end the week tied for 11th at the Greg Norman-designed Sandals Emerald Bay layout.
A birdie at the par-4 opening hole was countered by a bogey at the next, a further dropped shot at the par-4 seventh for the second day in succession sending the 21-year-old to the back nine 1-over on his round.
Further bogeys at 11 and 13 saw Ruffels slide further down the leaderboard but he responded in impressive fashion, picking up shots at the par 5s at 15 and 18 to sign for a 73 and establish a strong platform from which to build for the season ahead.
Sydney’s Jamie Arnold was the only other Australian to make the cut while Kiwi Steven Alker shot 70 in the final round to move up 23 spots and into a tie for 34th.
Korn Ferry Tour
The Bahamas Great Exuma Classic
Sandals Emerald Bay, Great Exuma, Bahamas
T11 Ryan Ruffels 74-69-70-73—286 $US12,378
T34 Steven Alker 71-77-75-70—293 $3,510
T44 Jamie Arnold 77-72-72-74—295 $2,730
MC Brett Drewitt 73-77—150
MC Steven Bowditch 73-78—151
MC Curtis Luck 80-75—155
MC Brett Coletta 74-84—158
It’s been 587 days since Greg Chalmers last played a PGA TOUR event and now another crucial countdown begins.
This week’s The American Express at the Stadium Course at La Quinta in California is the first of seven events Chalmers can play on a medical extension, an extension granted on the basis of a back injury he thought could have ended his playing career.
When Chalmers shot 80-79 at the FedEx St Jude Classic in June 2018 he not only missed the cut, he finished dead last among those to complete 36 holes.
It was the last straw in his efforts to play on despite crippling back pain, pain that would later be diagnosed as arthritis in his spine and every joint in his lumbar spine as well as a torn ligament in Chalmers’ spine that went undiagnosed for more than six months.
Such was his despair the two-time Australian Open and Australian PGA champ enquired with coaches around his home in Dallas about the possibility of moving into a coaching role but arrived home over the summer a reinvigorated 46-year-old, a top-five finish at the Australian Open followed by a tie for 15th at the Australian PGA Championship.
In order to regain full status on the PGA TOUR Chalmers needs to earn 244.707 FedEx Cup points in the seven events available to him – the winner this week receives 500 – and is hopeful that he can play his way into a fuller schedule at least by the end of the year.
“I’ve got seven starts left on a medical and that’s my expectation right now, play my seven,” Chalmers explained.
“Depending on when I finish, though, and how I play, I could get four or five more starts in Reno, for example, or Barbasol or John Deere.
“There are some events that will pop up along the way so I could get 10 to 12 starts, which starting in January, you’re looking at maybe two starts a month, which wouldn’t be too bad for me after having 18 months off.
“Depending on how I go, I’m exempt into the Playoffs to get your card back on the Korn Ferry Tour, so I’ve got those three playoff events placed on previous performance.”
In addition to enhanced physical performance, Chalmers is also seeing the benefits of working with Bradley Hughes, a former Aussie tour player with a burgeoning reputation as an instructor.
Bringing Brendon Todd back from the abyss has elevated Hughes’s status as one of the hottest instructors in world golf and has Chalmers striking the ball as well as he ever has.
“For me, there was always a lot of room for improvement [with my ball-striking] and he came to me in Dallas at my home club,” Chalmers said.
“In two rounds we played together I shot 9-under with no bogeys and I was very pleased and excited.
“I said, ‘Mate, that’s the best I’ve ever hit it.’ Now, he’s a great ball-striker and to him, he said, ‘It looks kind of normal to me.’
“But for me it was really exciting.
“I told him, ‘Look, I don’t have time to rebuild the ark, I have a shorter window here, can you help me with my ball-striking without me taking years to get that done?’ He said, ‘Absolutely. I’ve taken a look at what you’re doing, I think I can help you.’
“It’s pretty simple stuff but very effective. Getting better use out of my feet and my groundwork, and then better position with my hands and path with the club through the ball.
“It’s led to better ball-striking and that’s important for me. If I can strike it even marginally better with my short game, it’s going to see some good results.
“I’m excited about the future.”
Played for almost 20 years as the Bob Hope Classic, Chalmers’ best result in the California desert pro-am came in 2011 when he was tied for 11th, Bruce Devlin (1970) the only Australian victor in the tournament’s history.
The other Aussies in the field this week across the three courses are John Senden, Aaron Baddeley, Cameron Percy, Cameron Davis, Rhein Gibson along with Kiwi pair Danny Lee and Tim Wilkinson.
See below for all the Aussie tee times on the PGA TOUR, European Tour and Asian Tour this week.
Round 1 tee times (AEDT)
Asian Tour
SMBC Singapore Open
Sentosa Golf Club, Singapore
10.40am Marcus Fraser, Hiroyuki Fujita, Amir Nazrin
10.40am* Andrew Dodt, Yosuke Asaji, Phachara Khongwatmai
10.50am Terry Pilkadaris, Danny Chia, Daijiro Izumida
11am Michael Hendry, Jack Harrison, Ryuji Masaoka
11.10am Jake Higginbottom, Joshua Shou, Chan Shih-chang
11.20am David Bransdon, Jyoti Randhawa, Yosuke Tsukada
11.40am Won Joon Lee, Danthai Boonma, Nicklaus Chiam (a)
12pm David Gleeson, Hung Chien-yao, Jeongwoo Ham
12.20pm* Aaron Pike, Taewoo Kim #1468, Marc Ong
12.30pm Josh Younger, Inhoi Hur, Malcolm Kokocinski
3.20pm Daniel Nisbet, Taehee Lee, Poom Saksansin
3.30pm* Travis Smyth, Aman Raj, Naoki Sekito
4.10pm* Adam Bland, Todd Baek, Janne Kaske
4.30pm* Matthew Griffin, Thitiphun Chuayprakong, Tatsuya Kodai
4.50pm* David Micheluzzi, Eric Sugimoto, Koki Shiomi
5.20pm Dylan Perry, Tomoyasu Sugiyama, Wee Jin Low (a)
European Tour
Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship
Abu Dhabi Golf Club, Abu Dhabi
2.50pm Jason Scrivener, Andy Sullivan, Scott Jamieson
3pm Scott Hend, Chris Wood, Richard McEvoy
3.20pm Zach Murray, Zander Lombard, Ashley Chesters
3.30pm* Lucas Herbert, Guido Migliozzi, Julien Guerrier
7.25pm* Wade Ormsby, Marcus Kinhult, Steven Brown
8.15pm Ryan Fox, Alvaro Quiros, Thomas Aiken
PGA TOUR
The American Express
Stadium Course, La Quinta, California
Stadium Course
4.10am* Greg Chalmers, Troy Merritt
4.30am Cameron Percy, Ricky Barnes
5.10am Aaron Baddeley, James Hahn
La Quinta Country Club
4.30am Tim Wilkinson, David Hearn
5.30am* Rhein Gibson, Wes Roach
Nicklaus Tournament Course
4.40am John Senden, Peter Malnati
4.50am Danny Lee, Robert Streb
5.30am* Cameron Davis, Doug Ghim
* Starting from 10th tee
A back injury gave him cause to reevaluate, a baby daughter the motivation to prioritise quality practice over quantity.
The results were instant and ongoing and saw Queensland’s Andrew Dodt rise more than 300 places in the Official World Golf Rankings in the space of four months late last year.
Dodt is one of 15 Aussies teeing it up in the Asian Tour’s SMBC Singapore Open at Sentosa Golf Club on Thursday, Adam Scott’s third triumph in 2010 the last time an Aussie has been victorious at the spectacular Serapong Golf Course that was ranked 79th in the world in Golf Digest’s most recent list of the best courses on the planet.
Now based in Newcastle, Dodt was tied for 34th at Sentosa 12 months ago but enters 2020 with a much clearer idea of what he needs to do to be successful.
Forced to miss three months with a back injury early last year, Dodt returned at the Sarawak Championship in August and shot 24-under on his way to a third Asian Tour title.
He backed that up the following week with a tie for 10th at the Tailor-made Building Services NT PGA Championship and was top five at both the Vic PGA, AV Jennings NSW Open and was eighth in the Australian PGA Championship.
Due to celebrate his 34th birthday on Australia Day, Dodt says he is practising smarter, the lure of daddy-daughter time with 14-month-old Azalea the inspiration to make the most out of his time at the golf course.
“It makes my practice more quality at home because I don’t have as much time as I used to,” Dodt explains, Pacific Dunes and Waratah Golf Club his regular practice venues.
“I’m used to being at the golf course all day. Now it’s half to three-quarters of the day and more quality time so I can spend more time at home.
“I’m just practising more under pressure, which I never used to do. Just playing games against myself, specific drills.
“I just used to stand on the range all day and hit ball after ball with no meaning but now I’ve got a set where if I’ve got two weeks to prepare for a tournament, yes there’s some technical stuff if I need to work on anything but then I slowly move into reps and then match practice.
“I get to the tournament and I’m just ready to go.”
After an eight-week break between tournaments, Dodt’s back injury forced him to withdraw from the Trophee Hassan II tournament in Morocco in April, his victory in Sarawak in his first start back a shock even to himself.
“Winning was a surprise but playing well wasn’t a surprise because I had been playing well at home,” said Dodt.
“That’s always the challenge, playing well at home and then taking it to a tournament but I shot 24-under in my first event in three months.
“It really made me think that what I’m doing at home to prepare for tournaments is right.
“Even since then, when I’ve had three weeks, a month off, that first tournament back I’ve really been in the mix.
“The back injury was a good thing because I had the time to pull everything apart and look at everything again. See if I was doing everything the way I wanted to do things and came out in August and hit the ground running.
“That just tells me that what I’m doing at home is spot on.”
Veterans Marcus Fraser and David Gleeson have accepted invitations to play in Singapore this week as has rookie professional David Micheluzzi.
Terry Pilkadaris and Travis Smyth are both backing up following their strong performances at last week’s Hong Kong Open with Aaron Pike, Daniel Nisbet, Jake Higginbottom and Josh Younger also in the field.
Co-sanctioned with the Japan Golf Tour, the Singapore Open also provides an opportunity for a host of Aussies to begin their 2020 campaigns with Adam Bland, Matthew Griffin, Won Joon Lee, Dylan Perry, David Bransdon and Kiwi Michael Hendry all taking up the option to play this week.
Australian golf is pitching in to help the victims of the country’s bushfire crisis.
The central point for donations has been set up by the Australian Golf Industry Council (AGIC), the collaboration of all the industry bodies. It includes not only a GoFundMe page, but a designated bank account for donations for donors who prefer that method.
The 2020 Australian Golf Bushfire Appeal Fund kicked off earlier this month.
The industry has pledged to hand over 50 per cent of the total raised to the Disaster Relief Recovery Fund run by the Australian Red Cross.
The remaining funds raised will be distributed to other bushfire-related charities (including wildlife funds) and to any golf clubs impacted by the disaster.
The PGA TOUR and European Tour contributed $USD 100,000 while the annual Premiers Cup – brought forward to assist bushfire-affected communities – raised more than $550,000.
As a mark of respect for our fire and emergency workers, they and their families will be admitted to the upcoming tournaments – the ISPS Handa Vic Open at 13th Beach and the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open at Royal Adelaide – free of charge.
“Our industry is heartbroken at the devastation that has been caused by these fires,’’ said Gavin Kirkman, chair of the AGIC.
“It’s something that we need to act on and it’s something that needed a coordinated approach; a galvanisation of the golf industry.
“We’ve had contact from a number of clubs and other stakeholders looking to see what they can do to help, and we’ve had a number of high profile players who’ve already dug into their pockets to make donations. We are aiming to pull that together.’’
In addition, clubs and golf facilities throughout Australia are asked to dedicate their club competitions for one week from now until the end of February 2020 to a special fundraising appeal for bushfire relief via any of the following options:
All funds raised can be lodged either via the GoFundMe page or the Australian Golf Bushfire Relief Fund Bank Account.
NAB Account Name: 2020 Australian Golf Bushfire Relief Fund;
BSB: 083004
Account Number: 934028357
The golf industry recognises that a number of clubs and stakeholders have already decided to undertake their own fundraising efforts and are encouraged to continue with these appreciated efforts.
The industry applauds the efforts of people within our sport who are working to assist the victims of the bushfires. Please email details to [email protected] and your initiatives will be acknowledged at the designated appeal web page.
It was the asterisk that followed him everywhere but Cameron Smith can now happily leave it behind.
Smith broke through for his maiden solo PGA TOUR title at the Sony Open on Monday afternoon in a dramatic finale that saw him hang tough despite trailing by two with two holes to play.
On a rain-soaked and blustery Waialae Country Club layout, Smith trimmed the three-shot deficit that he began the day with to just one courtesy of a birdie at the opening hole but American Brendan Steele kept him at arm’s length.
Lengthy birdie putts led to tap-in pars, a birdie at 12 was cancelled out with a bogey at 15 yet still Smith stayed in contention.
Steele’s two-shot buffer was reduced to one after a bogey at the 71st hole and when the California native pulled his approach into the par-5 18th left of the grandstands a Smith win in regulation all of a sudden became a possibility.
Instead it was a clutch putt for birdie from nine feet by Smith and two-putt par from Steele that saw the pair finish level at 11-under par and sent the tournament into extra-time where even more drama would unfold.
Having drawn the honour Smith blocked his tee shot into the trees right of the 10th fairway but was able to apply pressure on Steele by hitting a superb recovery shot to around 10 feet.
In response, Steele went long with his second shot and was unable to get up-and-down to save par, Smith knocking his first putt to a foot from the hole before tapping in for his first individual title on the PGA TOUR.
“That’s been one that I’ve wanted to tick off for a long time,” said Smith, who won the 2017 Zurich Classic with Swede Jonas Blixt, a two-man teams event.
“I’ve been out here four or five years now and to finally say that I have won an event by myself is quite good.”
On a number of occasions Smith leant on his renowned short game to remain in the hunt and said it was just a matter of scrambling to stay in touch until an opportunity presented itself.
“You just had to hang in there,” explained Smith, a two-time Australian PGA champion.
“No one was playing good golf today it seemed like.
“The conditions got a lot easier at the end but just hung in there and what do you know.”
In a week where the golf world has extended its arms to help in fundraising efforts with the bushfire disaster gripping the continent, Smith hoped that his win and that of countryman Wade Ormsby in Hong Kong could brighten the spirits of those doing it tough.
“It’s been an Aussies week,” said Smith.
“Wade won this morning over in Asia and me winning here, I just hope that brings a little bit of joy to some people who are going through some tough times.”
The pain of falling short at the Australian PGA Championship three weeks ago has driven South Australian Wade Ormsby to a commanding win at the Asian Tour’s season-opening Hong Kong Open at the Hong Kong Golf Club.
Champion in 2017, Ormsby joins legendary figures Peter Thomson, Greg Norman and Frank Phillips as the only Aussies to win the Hong Kong Open on multiple occasions and he did so by leading from the front from day one.
A blistering start to the tournament where Ormsby birdied four of his opening seven holes gave him a share of the lead, a lead he would extend to as many as five shots over the following 65 holes before claiming a four-stroke victory.
A nervous start and a chasing pack that included Open champion Shane Lowry, US Presidents Cup representative Tony Finau and reigning Asian Tour No.1 Jazz Janewattananond applied some early pressure to Ormsby but a crucial up-and-down at the eighth hole and birdies at 11 and 17 ensured the walk down 18 would be one to savour.
Playing in the final group with good friend Adam Scott and Nick Flanagan, Ormsby bogeyed his final two holes to finish tied for third at the Australian PGA on the Gold Coast in December and admitted that making amends was important to start his 2020 campaign.
“Going through what I went through three weeks ago, that kind of hit me pretty hard,” Ormsby told Asian Tour Media of his PGA disappointment.
“I didn’t even want to know the game for three or four days.
“But to come back and do what I’ve done this week, like I said, proud of myself and proud of my team.
“I’ve been working my guts out the last 14 to 15 months trying to take my game to the next level. And like I just said, Australian PGA three weeks ago, losing that one really hurt me so I put a few changes in place.
“I worked out over the break and to come back here and get the win so soon, can’t put it into words really.”
A three-putt bogey on the 72nd hole gave Ormsby a nervous wait before breaking through for his maiden European Tour title in Hong Kong little more than two years ago with a one-stroke win.
However, a superb iron shot to four feet at the 17th hole on Sunday restored Ormsby’s four-shot buffer and left only the treacherous tee shot at 18 to navigate on his way to the title and a well-earned beer presented greenside by good friend Marcus Fraser.
“It’s still nerve-racking coming down the stretch,” Ormsby explained.
“That 18th hole, it can do anything to you. But I got the tee-shot in play and hit a weak iron shot into it… Four on the card and won by four, so I’m very happy.
“You’ve always got to play the Hong Kong Golf Club the same way. The wind obviously changes but you still try and fly it to the same spot.
“The game plan was the same. When you get in front there’s no point in changing that, no point trying to play defensive. The guys had to come and catch me basically.
“I have three wins on the main tours in my career and this is my first wire-to-wire. I’m very proud of my play this week.
“I was hoping to win this season but to do it in week two of the year in my first event is special and it will be one I’ll remember forever.”
The winner’s cheque for $US180,000 propels Ormsby to the top of the Asian Tour Order of Merit and with winning momentum heading into the European Tour’s desert swing.
In a strong showing for the Australian contingent, David Gleeson continued his resurgence with a tie for seventh alongside Terry Pilkadaris with Travis Smyth starting his Asian Tour season on a positive note with a tie for 13th.
Next stop on the Asian Tour schedule is the SMBC Singapore Open to be held at the Sentosa Golf Club from Thursday where Australia’s Japan Golf Tour regulars can take advantage of the co-sanctioned opportunity.
Asian Tour
Hong Kong Open
Hong Kong Golf Club, Hong Kong
1 Wade Ormsby 65-66-66-66—263 $US180,000
T7 David Gleeson 66-71-67-68—272 $21,200
T7 Terry Pilkadaris 68-69-64-71—272 $21,200
T13 Travis Smyth 66-68-69-70—273 $14,175
T28 Andrew Martin 72-68-65-71—276 $8,950
T41 Marcus Fraser 69-69-69-72—279 $5,758
T47 Scott Hend 70-71-70-69—280 $4,700
T47 Jason Norris 70-68-71-71—280 $4,700
T65 Sam Brazel 71-70-74-71—286 $2,900
MC Josh Younger 72-71—143
MC Daniel Fox 75-68—143
MC Jake Higginbottom 73-72—145
MC Daniel Nisbet 76-69—145
MC Gareth Paddison 75-71—146
MC Denzel Ieremia 78-68—146
MC Aaron Pike 73-73—146
MC Andrew Dodt 76-71—147
MC Adam Blyth 71-77—148
Professional golfers Zac Murray and Matt Griffin are digging deep to assist the firefighters and people affected by the devastating bushfires engulfing eastern Victoria and south-east New South Wales.
The two stars will donate 25 per cent of their prizemoney earnings from the Blitz Golf Pro Series to the Australian Red Cross Appeal set up to help the thousands of Australians who have been directly impacted by the catastrophic fires.
Dozens have died or are unaccounted for, as hundreds of properties have been lost in one of the most widespread fires in the country’s history.
Athletes from a number of sports have united to pledge thousands of dollars to support the donation drive, which was triggered by tennis ace Nick Kyrgios.
Murray, a winner at last year’s Blitz event in Glenelg and the two-day overall winner, said he was inspired by Kyrgios’ impassioned plea for sports stars to assist their compatriots impacted by the bushfires.
“Being an Australian, we’ve got to try and look after each other as much as we can,” Murray said.
“My family is all safe and sound, but if they weren’t, this would mean the world to me. I feel as though it’s not much out of my pocket but it has the capacity to have a really strong impact on those affected.
“Hopefully we can encourage others to get behind this great cause. Even if one more person got on board, it would really help.
“I don’t think I really understood how significant these bushfires were. I did a little bit of research and found the veracity of the fires and its scale confounding. Over the last couple of days the smoke has been unlike anything I’ve seen before.”
By committing a percentage of his potential earnings, Griffin says he’s determined to give his all to ensure the bushfire appeal is well supported.
“Seeing the generosity of other athletes from different sports made me feel compelled to do my bit to assist those doing it tough,” Griffin said.
“Living in the city, it can be hard to help, so the best way we can contribute is tucking into our wallets.
“In the end donating a percentage has spurred me on to give my absolute all so we can make the strongest contribution to the appeal.”
The Blitz Golf event organisers will donate $5 for every birdie and $50 for every eagle a Professional golfer scores during the series.
To support the Australian Red Cross, visit https://bit.ly/2ZTF0PZ
The Blitz Golf Pro Series returns for the second year running with three events to take place in three states:
Sunday 5 January – Curlewis Golf Club, Vic
Friday 10 January – Links Hope Island, Qld
Sunday 12 January – Glenelg Golf Club, SA
This year the overall prizepool has increased to $150,000, as men and women will for the first time compete against each other for the same purse.
Adam Scott has won the 2019 Australian PGA Championship over New Zealand’s Michael Hendry at RACV Royal Pines Resort.
Adam Scott has won the 2019 Australian PGA Championship over New Zealand’s Michael Hendry at RACV Royal Pines Resort.
The Queenslander took victory with rounds of 70, 67, 69 and 69 for a tournament total of 13-under the card.
This becomes Scott’s first tournament victory in three years and his second Australian PGA Championship title after claiming the Joe Kirkwood Cup in 2013.
An eagle at his best hole of the tournament – the 15th – took Scott to a two-shot lead that all but secured the victory.
More to come.
It’s the position he has craved throughout 2019 and now Adam Scott can end a winless streak stretching back more than three years by holding off a chasing pack at the Australian PGA Championship on the Gold Coast on Sunday.
Two late birdies at 16 and 18 propelled Scott from out of the throng of players clamoring for position to assume sole ownership of the lead at 10-under going into the final round, long-time friend Wade Ormsby (9-under) and Nick Flanagan (8-under) to share the final group spotlight.
Flanagan only just made the cut thanks to a birdie late in his second but equalled the course record with a scintillating round of 9-under 63, he and Alejandro Canizares making light work of benign conditions early on Saturday that became gradually more difficult as the day progressed.
Midway through the third round five players enjoyed a share of the lead but the likes of Nick Cullen, Anthony Quayle and China’s Yuan Yechun dropped back just as Scott was making his move.
The 39-year-old has recorded 21 top-10 finishes since his last victory at the WGC-Cadillac Championship in March 2016 and expects to have to fight until the 72nd hole if he is to claim the Joe Kirkwood Cup for a second time.
“It’s incredibly bunched, and if it’s windy tomorrow it’s going to be hard for anyone to really separate themselves unless they just play an incredible round of golf, go out there and roll in a lot of putts,” said Scott, 17 players sitting within five shots of the leader.
“For me, my strategy’s going to be the same.
“Unless I hole a lot of long putts, I don’t see myself just running away with this thing. I’m in for a fight.
“It would be nice to cap off this year with a win here at home because I know what the confidence of that can do going into next year and just kind of make things a little more comfortable running into the Masters time.”
Ormsby is yet to claim one of Australia’s major events having finished runner-up at Royal Pines five years ago and third at the Australian PGA at Coolum in 2006.
For the second time this week Ormsby navigated his way around the Graham Marsh layout without dropping a shot on his way to a 2-under 70 and expects that another mistake-free round will give him the opportunity to avenge his loss to Scott at the South Australian Junior at Royal Adelaide more than 25 years ago.
“It’s hard to kind of get out in front and go, but I guess any course, if you hit enough good shots and hole enough putts, you can get going,” said Ormsby.
“You need to putt well in order to do that, but you’ve still got to play the golf course on its merits.
“There’s going to be some tricky flags tomorrow and there’ll be some gettable ones, so I’ll just keep plodding my way around and play the same type of golf I’ve been playing and see where that leaves me.
“I want to play in the last group, especially when it’s so bunched. It’s nice to be right at the end there where you feel like you’ve got not control, but you know what you have to do.”
Kiwi Michael Hendry shot a 2-under par round of 70 which was most notable for a rib injury that caused significant discomfort over the closing five holes.
On three separate occasions Hendry’s left hand came free of the club due to the pain and he admitted that even sitting two shots back of Scott the injury may prevent him from teeing it up at all on Sunday.
“I’ve had a little bit of physio during the course of the week, but it hasn’t really been an issue until today,” Hendry said.
“I’ll go and see the physios now and hopefully they can figure out a plan of attack to make sure it’s OK for tomorrow.
“It’s a little bit painful at the top of the swing and I’ve just got to man up and hit the shot and hopefully it won’t hurt too much, but it’s pretty tricky.
“I am a little (concerned I won’t be fit to play) but I’m pretty confident in the guys’ ability.
“If I can just get myself out there and warm up to the point where I can swing the club, even if I hit a few one-handed shots, so be it.”
Hendry will play alongside Yuan and West Australian Min Woo Lee in the second-to-last group with two-time defending champion Cameron Smith five shots back of Scott at 5-under.
