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Brendan Jones has plenty of reasons to rest on his laurels and reflect on a marvellous career. Instead, the Canberra based 48-year-old is teeing it up this week at the Webex Players Series Sydney after a T34 last week in the Vic Open as he prepares for a whole new experience as a member of the Asian Tour.
A winner of more than one billion Yen on the Japan Golf Tour, where he won 15 times, Jones has teed it up in majors, played the World Match Play against Tiger Woods, and yet he says his achievements aren’t something he regularly ponders.
“No I don’t think about it, maybe when my time is up, that’ll be the time to think about it,” Jones said Wednesday.
“But while I’m still out playing, and it’s nice to come out here and see the photo of me 20-odd years ago is still there, that sort of brings back a few memories.”
The photo Jones refers to is of a fresh faced member of Castle Hill holding the adidas Australian Amateur trophy aloft in 1999.
“It’s good to see a lot of people I haven’t seen for a long time. The golf course, the holes are still going in the same directions, there’s a few minor changes,” he said.
The local knowledge of Castle Hill will combine with fond memories of the Webex Players Series Sydney for Jones, who after taking up a job as a landscaper during COVID returned to competitive golf at this event in 2022, only to lose in a play-off to Jarryd Felton.
Jones admitting his time away slightly fuelled his competitive fires, although finding himself mostly content with how life after golf looked.
“I was happy, I wasn’t missing golf at all. The only thing I missed about golf was the big cheques every now and then. Forty hours a week landscaping and seeing the cheque I was getting at the end of each week was not cutting the mustard,” he joked.
Jones’ return to his regular day job did indeed yield one of those larger cheques, with his win at the 2023 New Zealand Open not only delivering prizemoney and another trophy, but also his playing rights on the Asian Tour. An experience he is looking forward to immensely.
“Looking forward to it because I’m going to be going to places that I haven’t been before.
“Playing on the Japanese Tour for 20 years, you get used to playing the same courses, going to the same places, eating the same food, sitting at the same chair in a pub, going to the same restaurant and sitting at the same table.
“Seeing some new things before my game goes away from me. It’s quite exciting to be honest.”
The game leaving Jones might be on his mind, but recent form suggests he might be in for a long wait. And with his experience around his former home course and success starting the year in the past, his younger competitors might see just that this week.
“Generally, for me, when I start a season, I’m fresh, I feel quite good and I’ve forgotten about the rubbish that I was dealing with the year before, it seems like this year’s no different.
“I felt like I played quite well last week down in Victoria, and hopefully building to something and with the added excitement of going to new places and playing new golf courses, who knows what can happen.”
Jarryd Felton married Hannah Green last Friday, but there was no time for a honeymoon let alone any normal home life in Perth for Australian golf’s power couple.
That’s because Felton had a tournament to travel to, which is a familiar feeling for both of them.
Felton is teeing it up in the Webex Players Series Victoria at Rosebud Country Club this week and chasing a prominent Order of Merit position on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia.
As for major winner and LPGA Tour star Green, she’s preparing to begin her 2024 season in Asia in a couple of weeks’ time.
The pair, who have been engaged for more than two years and conducted their relationship mainly from a distance, had 80 guests to their wedding in beautiful Yallingup, 250 kilometres south of Perth.
Su Oh, Green’s fellow LPGA Tour professional for the past few years and a constant travelling companion, was matron of honour.
“Nothing’s changed,” said Felton, out practising at Rosebud today for this week’s $250,000 mixed tournament.
“We were just trying to find the time when we could both do it and try to get everyone to come down. It was really good, lots of highlights.
“There were some happy tears. It was really good, but now it’s back on with the job. I had a couple of days being married, flew on Sunday night and now back to the grind.
“We’ll have a honeymoon eventually. Just need to find some time when we can do it.”
Felton, 28, is a four-time winner on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia but has not been at his best over the past 12 months, since he won the 2022 Players Series event in Sydney.
Having spent a few years on the Challenge Tour in Europe where he saw “the bad side of golf”, he is focusing on the domestic tour with its big rewards in the OOM race – top three getting DP World Tour cards and top 10 having access to tour schools overseas.
Felton has always been regarded as a pure ball-striker; he and coach Ritchie Smith have been working more on the mental side of the game.
A T11 finish in the Heritage Classic was an encouraging start to 2024.
“I’ve got some momentum coming into this week,” he said.
“I love the course. I was T15 last year.
“They’ve added some length out there. Nine’s about 50 further back, 16’s 50 further back. If the wind stays this way it’ll be really hard.
“I’ll be going to the USA around the middle of the year. Hannah’s schedule is full-on with the Olympics being in there, but I’ll try to get to Q School at the end of the year and see how we go.
“I’m working on things and it’s getting better. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel kind of thing. I’ve been struggling for a year or so but I’m getting through to the other side of it, I think. I want to put some good results together and try to get another win.”
Rosebud is in pristine condition for this week’s fourth playing of the mixed event here.
Last week’s Webex Players Series Murray River winner Kazuma Kobori from New Zealand is here along with most of the tour’s best players, along with the best of the WPGA Tour of Australasia who are playing on the same course for the same prize pool, $250,000.
Some of Australia’s top amateurs, including adidas Australian Amateur winner Quinn Croker and women’s runner-up Amelia Harris, are also playing alongside the professionals in an event that is meant to draw the strands of golf together.
As is tradition in the Players Series events, there will also be an All Abilities championship and a Junior Players Series event over the weekend as well as a leg of the Australian Long Drive Championship.
Entry at Rosebud Country Club is free and the tournament is live over the weekend on Fox Sports and Kayo.
PHOTOS: (Above) Jarryd Felton is chasing his best form at Rosebud this week and (below) The happy couple last Friday.
Victorian Andrew Kelly has taken advantage of ideal conditions to shoot 63 in Round 2 and take a one-stroke lead at Webex Players Series Murray River at Cobram Barooga Golf Club.
Kelly leads by one at 12-under from Japan’s Kotono Fukaya (68) while two of the pacesetters on day one, Lincoln Tighe and Michael Hendry have moved up into a share of third early in their second rounds.
Tied for third at the NT PGA Championship in the second event of the season, the 36-year-old had five birdies in his first six holes on Friday morning.
He made the turn in 6-under and moved to 7-under with a birdie at the par-5 first. A dropped shot on two would be his only blemish of the day as he matched the low mark of the week set by Tighe on Thursday.
Andrew Kelly is the clubhouse leader at 12-under at Cobram Barooga GC
— PGA of Australia (@PGAofAustralia) January 19, 2024
#WebexPlayersSeries Murray River pic.twitter.com/ODv4iTh9MS
Fukaya, a 25-year-old who earned her WPGA Tour card at Qualifying School last week, heads the strong Japanese contingent at Cobram Barooga.
She holed out with 9-iron from 130 metres for eagle at the par-4 seventh to build on her opening round of 8-under 63 that saw her share the lead with Tighe after Round 1.
A recent graduate of the University of Michigan, Malaysia’s Ashley Lau played her way into contention on Friday morning, her round of 7-under 64 moving her into a tie for 12th as the afternoon groups get to the midway point of their rounds.
The projected cut is 2-under with 52 players currently inside the number.
The final two rounds of the Webex Players Series Murray River will be broadcast live on Fox Sports and Kayo, the third round coverage to begin at 4pm on Saturday with final round to be broadcast live from 2pm-7pm AEDT.
The weekend also sees the playing of the Webex All Abilities Players Series and Webex Junior Players Series.
Wodonga product Zach Murray will embrace all the comforts of home as he seeks to break a five-year win drought at this week’s Webex Players Series Murray River at Cobram Barooga Golf Club.
Murray has been playing courses along the Murray River since his junior days, the Stuart Appleby Murray River Junior Masters at Cobram Barooga his earliest touchstone to a player at the highest level of the game.
When he triumphed at the 2019 New Zealand Open in his first few months as a professional, Murray’s career appeared headed on a similar trajectory.
Yet the disruption caused by COVID-19 and the anxiety he felt spending so much time away from home saw Murray’s Official World Golf Ranking fall to as low as 1,174 in early 2022.
Yet nine top-25 finishes on the Asian Tour in 2023 and the familiarity he feels playing Cobram Barooga’s Old Course has Murray buoyant about what lies ahead this week and beyond.
“I just love playing golf so it’s nice to be able to compete somewhat close to home,” said Murray.
“If I’m in contention on Sunday, hopefully a few people from Wodonga can pop up and have a look because I do enjoy playing in front of friends and family.
“You just want to ultimately try and have that success to share it with them. It sucks when you don’t, but at the end of the day you play to try and win and have those cool memories.
“Hopefully that’s something that can happen.”
Live on Fox Sports, available on Kayo and Foxtel
Eschewing the commute to and from Wodonga that he made each day for the inaugural tournament in 2022, Murray is this week staying at a house nearby owned by his partner Amy’s family.
The 26-year-old believes that will only enhance his chances of winning a tournament he hopes will have a long future in the region.
Caddieing for local PGA Professional, Bernie Squire, at the Wodonga Pro-Am as a kid remains a treasured memory and Murray knows the impact exposure to professional golf has on country kids.
“It’s funny how you remember certain things. I can vividly remember it,” Murray said of his introduction to pro golf.
“To see a professional play when you’re 12 or 13 years old, to see how they work around the golf course and the shots they hit, you go home and just want to play. You want to get better.
“That’s a real reason why it’s important to have these events in some of these more rural areas.
“Hopefully an event like this, a few kids come out and it inspires them to keep going on their journey of playing golf.
“To have a tournament and to have sports events in regional towns is really great.”
No one will have greater course knowledge than Course Superintendent Terry Vogel, who accepted an invitation to join his daughter, Steffi, as a participant this week.
A former Victorian State representative, Vogel is indicative of the type of people who make regional events such a success, according to Murray.
“What’s great about this event is that the club embraces it,” Murray said, Cobram Barooga Golf Club hosting the tournament for the third straight year.
“You’ve got someone like Terry Vogel who is a really well-known name in Victorian golf.
“It’s great to see him playing this week because that’s the type of support that you need to elevate the tournament.
“It’s important to come to areas like this to showcase the game. And you can definitely see that the course has benefited from having a tournament here over the last three years.”
Play begins at 7:30am on Thursday with Murray to tee off at 1:15pm alongside promising New South Wales amateur Jye Pickin and WPGA Tour member Amelia Mehmet-Grohn.
The Webex Players Series sees men and women compete on the same course for the one prize purse, Hannah Green creating a world-first with her victory at Cobram Barooga in 2022.
For the final two rounds professionals are joined by 16 juniors who compete in the Webex Junior Players Series. The Webex All Abilities Players Series is also contested on Saturday and Sunday.
Entry is free for spectators all four days and the final two rounds are broadcast live on Fox Sports and Kayo, with coverage starting at 4pm AEDT Saturday and 2pm AEDT Sunday.
Australia’s No.1 male golfer, Jason Day, continued his career resurgence with a top-10 finish as American Chris Kirk claimed the PGA TOUR season-opening The Sentry at Kapalua Resort in Hawaii.
On a day in which Korean Sungjae Im bettered the PGA TOUR record for most birdies in a 72-hole tournament – supplanting Australia’s own Paul Gow’s shared record of 32 set at the 2001 BC Open – Kirk’s closing 65 saw him finish at 29-under par, one clear of Sahith Theegala (63) with Jordan Spieth (65) outright third.
Day threatened to make a Sunday charge up the leaderboard with three straight birdies from the fifth hole to draw within one of the lead but a wayward tee shot at the par-3 eighth led to a costly double-bogey.
Look out for @JDayGolf 👀
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 7, 2024
He moves to one back of the lead with his third straight birdie @TheSentry. pic.twitter.com/njyd0jxbok
The 36-year-old made his 24th birdie of the week at the par-4 12th and then made three further birdies on the trot to play his way into a tie for 10th, the 92nd of his career on the PGA TOUR.
It was a week of mixed scores for the only other Aussie in the field, Cam Davis closing with a bogey-free round of 8-under 65 to climb four spots into a tie for 52nd.
Photo: Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Results
PGA TOUR
The Sentry
Kapalua Resort (Plantation Course), Kapalua, Hawaii
1 Chris Kirk 67-65-66-65—263 $US3.6m
T10 Jason Day 65-69-67-67—268 $530,000
T52 Cam Davis 75-68-73-65—281 $54,500
It was a minor miracle any golf was played on day one of the 2023 Sandbelt Invitational at Victoria Golf Club after the deluge of rain that hit the Melbourne Sandbelt in the early hours of Monday morning.
A delay of the tee times by more than three hours and some brilliant work from the staff at Victoria saw play get underway, however, with young Aussie pro Jack Thompson and amateur Jazy Roberts atop the leaderboard at the conclusion of play.
Out in one of the first groups of the day, Roberts showed no signs of nerves playing the mixed event that sees pros and amateurs, men and women competing side-by-side, with former US Open champion Geoff Ogilvy as host.
The Bendigo product made a birdie down the first to get underway almost perfectly, with Roberts eventually signing for a 5-under 67, a score to par Thompson would match in one of the last groups off the 10th tee.
‘“I thought why not,” Roberts said of taking driver at the short par-4 opening hole.
“Obviously there is some bunker trouble down there, but you can still get up and down for birdie anyway.”
Finding the front of the putting surface before two-putting, Roberts added three more birdies in her front nine, with a lone bogey on the back countered by two more shots against par.
“I think I was pretty relaxed. I played the Australian Open a few weeks ago and slowly getting used to it … being around the pros,” she said of what some might consider a surprising lead amongst the likes of Ogilvy, Nicolas Colsaerts, Cameron Davis and more.
“Obviously this is a really exciting concept that I really enjoy playing.”
Thompson was similarly enjoying the concept, and a softer Victoria Golf Club than he is used to facing following the rain.
“A bit of everything really, just took advantage of obviously the course being pretty soft, after the rain,” Thompson said when asked to sum up his day.
“I’ve played here and it’s so firm and some of those pins you can’t get to because they are so tucked. I just took advantage of the soft conditions I guess.”
Take advantage he did, with the South Australian making eagle on the short par-4 15th before closing his opening nine with a birdie at the 18th.
Another birdie was to follow at the 1st as he made his way for the clubhouse suggesting he would continue to pass the likes of Connor McKinney, Matthew Griffin and Daniel Gale on 4-under, and perhaps even pass Roberts.
However, bogeys would come at the 4th and 8th against three more birdies, leaving Thompson content with a 65.
“Nothing really changes. I am still just going to play golf,” he said of his strategy for the coming days when the tournament heads to the Peninsula Kingswood, Yarra Yarra and Royal Melbourne.
“A few times on the Asian Tour this year I was up there, but it would be nice just play the next few rounds with that and learn from that. But I won’t do anything different, I’ll just play it as it is and see where that gets me.”
Where it got him on day one was a tie for the overall lead and men’s professional mark by one over Griffin, Gale and McKinney.
Roberts is the top women’s amateur by three from Ann Jang, while new LPGA member Robyn Choi leads the female pros on 2-under and Max Moring sits atop the men’s amateur on 3-under, one clear of Quinn Croker and Queensland PGA champion Phoenix Campbell.
Scores: https://www.golfgenius.com/pages/10060479266098805240
Min Woo Lee has suddenly become one of the hottest tickets in world golf, but the young Perth superstar is hellbent on adding to his resume at the ISPS HANDA Australian Open this week.
Min Woo Lee has suddenly become one of the hottest tickets in world golf, but the young Perth superstar is hellbent on adding to his resume at the ISPS HANDA Australian Open this week.
Evidence of his maturity and commitment came as early as Sunday night, soon after he had won the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship.
He fulfilled his winners obligations and carted the trophy around for the social media shots, but he was in bed before midnight.
Then he flew to Sydney the next morning with his head clear and began preparation for this week’s national championship at The Australian and The Lakes.
Not only that, but he said he may skip going to see the singer Post Malone on Wednesday night – one of his favourite acts who he saw in Brisbane – and stick to his tournament routine this week.
The 25-year-old said he learned a lesson about over-celebrating after his win in Macau on the Asian Tour earlier this year.
“Again, work to do this week,” he said today. “My win in Macau I kind of learnt from. I went pretty hard after that win and had Zozo (Championship) the week after, so I thought I didn’t get the best preparation for that week, so I’m learning from those experiences.
“I just had a, I’ll say medium, not quiet, not massive, just right in the middle. Good enough to celebrate but not enough for a hangover, so right in between, and again, ready for this week.”
Lee already has a connection with the public that goes beyond the ordinary; Sunday’s events at Royal Queensland, and especially his chip-in midway through the round and full fist-pumping celebration, only added to his growing fame.
So did his donning of a chef’s hat at the 17th, the party hole at Royal Queensland, channeling his Instagram line of ‘let’s Cook’.
The hat act wasn’t planned.
But he’ll run with it anyway, as you do when you have 364,000 Insta followers.
“I still have to ask my caddie where he got the chef hat on 17 because … I told him before the hole ‘chuck me some balls, I’m going to throw them out after the hole’s done’. And then he gives me the chef’s hat, and I’m like, ‘I’m not wearing this’, and he’s like, ‘go on, wear it’.
“So I ended up wearing it. But it was a shock to me, I didn’t know that it was happening. So, I’ve still got to ask him when he got it.”
Lee has a bit of history at The Australian, which will host the final two rounds this week. Back as far as 2016 he played alongside Jordan Spieth here when Spieth won.
“I was 17 years old, so it was unreal,” he said. “I played with him on the Saturday, obviously when school was done and all the kids got out and the fairways were filled with so many people.
“I didn’t end up playing that good, but it was definitely an experience I can look back on and kind of got caught up in all of it, and as a 17-year-old, you don’t have that big of a crowd, so I really loved that moment and now that I get to play with Jordan, it’s pretty cool, week in, week out.
“I know The Australian golf course is tough, which is probably better for me. I like pretty tough courses, or if it’s easy, it’s nice and easy and I’m playing good golf. So, both of them can help. I’m hitting the ball really well now.”
Lee is now No. 38 in the world and has his sights set on the Olympics in Paris next year. Currently he sits behind Cameron Smith and Jason Day among Australian men in the slot for Games, but he can address that quickly with a win this week.
Of course, he’ll be only one of the two members of his family playing, with Minjee Lee teeing it up as well and chasing her first Australian Open win.
“I get a little pissed off when she wins the week after, because I got the light on me for a little bit and then four days later or like a week later, she’s holding a trophy,” he said.
“We’re happy for each other. We want to only do well and inspire kids and keep playing good golf, so it’s not that bad of a sibling rivalry, but a little petty, from me usually.”
West Australian Min Woo Lee has enhanced his standing as one of world golf’s most electrifying young players with a three-stroke win at the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship.
Lee bounced back from an early bogey to close out his win with a 3-under par round of 68 and 20-under par total at Royal Queensland Golf Club, Japan’s Rikuya Hoshino (68) showing admirable composure in the final group to snare second at 17-under.
Victorian Marc Leishman, whose 7-under 64 was the best of the last day, birdied his final two holes to claim outright third with Lee’s good friend and fellow West Australian, Curtis Luck, playing the back nine in 4-under for a round of 69 and fourth spot.
“I’ve always thought I could win, but it took a while to get over the hump,” Lee said on the 18th green.
“But two wins in the last month or so, I’m really proud of my team and myself.
“I made it interesting early on and through the middle, but ended up hanging on, so I’m really proud.”
Projected to elevate Lee to a career-high of No.38 on the Official World Golf Ranking, the win is Lee’s second on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and third on the DP World Tour
A leader by one after 36 holes and three through 54, Lee’s pitch-in for eagle at the par-5 ninth restored a buffer that had all but disappeared after just one hole on Sunday at Royal Queensland Golf Club.
A second shot at one that speared towards the enormous gallery behind the green led to an opening bogey, world No.138 Hoshino turning a three-shot deficit into just one with birdie.
He joined Lee at 16-under with a follow-up birdie on two before Lee flirted with a hole-in-one on his way to a birdie at the par-3 fourth.
The 25-year-old played another brilliant approach to set up birdie at the par-4 sixth but it was his miraculous chip-in just prior to making the turn that sent shockwaves throughout RQ.
MIN WOO LEE IS HIM! 🦅#AusPGA pic.twitter.com/VM9FLEfs4k
— PGA of Australia (@PGAofAustralia) November 26, 2023
“That was probably the best atmosphere shot I’ve ever hit,” Lee added.
“I’ve had a few chip ins, but at that point it was getting close and I was in a pretty average position after the tee shot. So to chip that in, it was amazing.
“I want to see it straight away. I would like to see it. It was one of the best shots I’ve probably hit.”
He emerged from the tunnel at the par-3 17th with a four-shot advantage and, despite disappointing the fans by missing the green left, made the putt from four feet for par for a reception befitting the sweet-swinging rock star he is quickly becoming.
A second shot into the back bunker on the 72nd hole kept the tension high until the very end, a closing bogey doing little to dull the celebrations of a maiden Joe Kirkwood Cup victory.
Although it didn’t come on the heaving party hole, Joaquin Niemann delivered one of the highlights of the final round with a hole-in-one at the par-3 fourth, holing his 8-iron from 164 metres.
🚨 AN ACE FOR @joaconiemann 🚨#AusPGA | #visitbrisbane pic.twitter.com/CJ5yKkBOrq
— PGA of Australia (@PGAofAustralia) November 26, 2023
More to come
It took low scores, heartache and a 10-man playoff to determine the final 24 players who will battle it out in the medal match-play on Sunday at the Gippsland Super 6.
Many players knew before they teed it up on Saturday that they required something special to avoid the second cut, and that is precisely what rookie professional Jack Buchanan produced.
In just his second event since turning pro following the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (AAC), the young South Australian fired a near-perfect 63 to not only get himself into the top 24, but into the all-important top-eight.
Buchanan now has an extra advantage, with the top eight, headed by top qualifier Jarryd Felton (WA), getting to sit out the first round of medal match-play tomorrow.
“I knew I needed at least three or four (under) today to make top 24, and then had seven. Just no bogeys, hit it perfectly,” he said.
Buchanan has had a whirlwind few weeks, winning a silver medal as part of the Australian team at the Eisenhower Cup in Dubai before returning home for the AAC a few days later at Royal Melbourne in his last events as an amateur, before turning professional and making his debut at last week’s Queensland PGA Championship.
“It’s been a busy three weeks. But just finding some form now so hopefully can continue that,” he said.
With 10 players for tied 17th at 6-under after 54 holes, a playoff was required to determine who would claim the final eight Sunday spots.
The tough par-3 18th was the decider, with a bustling marquee of spectators behind the green.
Four players made par or better on the first playing to secure their place on Sunday, while six players had to return to the tee.
In the second playing, four players again made par, and agonisingly, two players – Matt Griffin (Vic) and Tyler Hodge (NZ) – bogeyed to miss out by the barest of margins.
The best escape came from veteran Michael Wright whose tee shot the second time around bounced 20 metres off a sprinkler head into a very testing position for an up-and-down. A delicate chip and a fine par-putt kept his chances alive.
Overnight leader Cam John, and Western Australia’s Jarryd Felton tied for the top spot at 13-under after 54-holes, with Felton locking away the No.1 seed for Sunday’s medal match-play on a countback of their Saturday scores.
It was a bogey-free 65 which saw Felton take top spot. Past winner of the New Zealand PGA Championship, the WA PGA Championship, and TPS Sydney, Felton knows how to get it done on a Sunday.
Meanwhile, John, chasing his first Tour win, shot a stress-free 68 to maintain his position inside the top eight.
“It was tricky early, it was quite windy… I felt like it was a typical Melbourne day. It changed probably four or five times,” said John.
“It’s something that I’ve thought about a lot. I’d like to have a 36-hole lead, a 54-hole lead. It just gives me confidence going forward for the rest of the season.
“I feel like I’ve played the holes pretty well that we’ll be playing on (tomorrow), but you never know what you’re gonna get.”
The six-hole medal match-play matches will start with the bottom 16 qualifiers before the top eight join in for round two.
All the action will be broadcast live again on Fox, Kayo and Kayo Freebies with the action kicking off at 2pm.
The top-24:
Rising Queensland amateur star Quinnton Croker has upstaged the pros to take a one-stroke lead into Round 2 of the CKB WA PGA Championship in Kalgoorlie.
Veteran Brett Rumford and former reality TV star Charlie Robbins set the mark early at Kalgoorlie Golf Course with rounds of 5-under 67 but they were ultimately superseded by Croker, who birdied his final hole for a round of 6-under 66.
New South Welshman Aaron Townsend had three birdies in his final four holes to join Rumford and Robbins at 5-under, 16 players finishing day one within three strokes of the lead.
A member of the Australian team that will contest the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in less than two weeks, Croker has taken up Affiliate Future Tour Membership of the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia.
As he gets closer to joining the professional ranks, Future Tour membership opens the door to obtaining a card for next season before having to forgo his amateur status.
With top-10 finishes at both the NT PGA Championship and last week’s WA Open, the 21-year-old is learning quickly what it takes to succeed on the pro tour.
“I’m usually a more aggressive player off the tee but Joondalup last week showed that you don’t have to be that aggressive to still be able to score,” said Croker, who is coached by Chris Gibson at Royal Queensland Golf Club.
“We have put some work into my putting and he said that I just have to wait for it to start working.
“It was a bit slow the first two rounds last week and then come out the third round and had a pretty solid day on the greens.
“That showed that you don’t have to stump it next to the pin to make birdie every single time.”
After taking home the Terry Gale Cup as leading amateur last week at Joondalup Resort, Croker began his first round from the 10th tee at Kalgoorlie and collected three birdies in his opening four holes.
His only bogey of the day came at the difficult par-3 17th but the 21-year-old responded with another hot stretch from the second, picking up three birdies in four holes before taking sole possession of the lead with a final birdie at the par-4 ninth.
A six-time winner on the DP World Tour, Rumford is now a qualified PGA Professional who coaches out of the Wembley Golf Complex in Perth while Robbins is trying to transition from ‘Ninja Warrior’ to professional golfer.
Victorious at Kalgoorlie in 2015 and runner-up in 2020, Rumford’s lone bogey for the day came at his eighth hole, the par-3 17th.
With a wealth of knowledge at his disposal, Rumford said the key to his good start was very simple.
“I just played really well,” was Rumford’s summation.
“I gave myself a lot of good opportunities today, shot 5 (under) but you always want more, of course.
“You’ve got to be appreciative that it’s a tough day and I understand that 5-under is a very good score in these tricky conditions.”
Like Rumford, Robbins had a single bogey in his round, the dropped shot coming at the par-4 16th.
He responded with a birdie at the par-5 18th to earn a share of second in just his third event on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia since turning professional.
Winner of ‘Ninja Warrior’ on Channel Nine in 2019, Robbins made the cut at last week’s WA Open and hopes a strong week in Kalgoorlie will help people to see him in a different light.
“I’ve obviously got a lot of people who know me as the ‘ninja’,” Robbins said post-round.
“Even when I’m working in the pro shop at Moonah Links, people will come in and be like, ‘It’s the ninja boy!’
“It would be nice for them to instead be saying, ‘That’s the guy that’s really good at golf.’”
Now 42 years of age, Townsend has reignited his passion for tournament golf after almost three years away.
Tied for 18th last week, Townsend spent winter playing the secondary tour in Japan and is excited about the way his game is trending.
“It feels like it’s getting closer, to be honest,” said Townsend, the 2015 Victorian PGA champion.
“I was really happy with how I played today, I hit a heap of good shots and this golf course probably suits me a little better than last week.
“I like how I’m swinging it and really happy with how it looks like it’s going.”
New South Welshman Nathan Barbieri was the pick of the four players who returned after playing the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship at St Andrews last week.
Barbieri, who left Scotland a day earlier than Haydn Barron, Lincoln Tighe and Justin Warren, shot 68 in Round 1 to be one of six players in a tie for fifth, two strokes off the lead.
Warren had three birdies in his final four holes to shoot 69, Barron posted even-par 72 while Tighe, whose clubs only arrived in Kalgoorlie on Thursday morning, shot 76.
Photo: Monica Marchesani/PGA of Australia
