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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
After a two-week hiatus, the LPGA Tour returns to action in Arkansas this week with some Australians eyeing off a good result to help their quest to make the end-of-season CME Group Tour Championship.
Results in the last few events of the year can mean the difference between climbing inside or outside the top 60 in the Race to the CME Globe point standings, which is the cut-off point for players who want to punch a ticket to the Tour Championship.
Earn a start there and you’re vying for one of the biggest purses of the year that features a $2 million winner’s cheque.
Three Australians are safely well inside the top 60 – Minjee Lee at No.13, Grace Kim (27th) and Hannah Green (30th).
Kim, the LOTTE Championship winner, is also running second behind Hae Ran Ryu in the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year competition with 512 points to the Korean’s 625.
Further down the Race to the CME Globe standings is where two Aussies sit on the edge of qualifying, with Steph Kyriacou currently 59th and Sarah Kemp just outside the top 60 in 68th.
Meanwhile, Karis Davidson (100th) and Sue Oh (117th) are chasing the big week that can turn their year around.
The move into the LPGA Tour’s closing stretch begins with the 17th playing of the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G. Held at Pinnacle Country Club, the stop is one of just three 54-hole events on the schedule this year and features a $2.3 million purse.
After the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship, the Tour will have one more event in the United States at The Ascendant LPGA benefiting Volunteers of America before embarking on a four-tournament swing in Asia.
On the Asian Tour, there are 12 Australians in the field for the Taiwan Masters, including Scott Hend who is returning from a victorious Seniors debut in Europe earlier this month and will have fond memories of a win in this event 10 years ago.
After the disappointment of narrowly failing to defend his Yeangder TPC title on Sunday, Travis Smyth goes again this week feeling “like a win is just around the corner”.
He finished second last week, three strokes behind Thailand’s Poom Saksansin, in the first of two back-to-back Asian Tour events in Chinese-Taipei, with this week’s US$1 million tournament being played at Taiwan Golf and Country Club.
“I mean I’m playing good. I’ve been hitting the ball quite nicely for a while so anything can happen,” said Smyth who has moved into third place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit.
“I think I’ve putted poorly here in the past and my putting has been pretty consistent for a while now.
“So hopefully I can improve from previous years just on that alone, but also just like kind of understand the course more, and know when to attack certain pins and when not to.”
There are no PGA TOUR or DP World Tour tournaments this week with attention focussed on the Ryder Cup in Italy.
LPGA Tour
Walmart NW Arkansas Championship Presented by P&G
Pinnacle Country Club, Rogers, Arkansas
10:37pm* Karis Davidson, Min Lee, Amanda Doherty
10:59pm Lindsey Weaver-Wright, Jenny Shin, Stephanie Kyriacou
11:10pm Alex Pano, Grace Kim, In Gee Chun
11:21pm Maria Fassi, Hannah Green, Hyo Joo Kim
11:32pm Atthaya Thitikul, Lydia Ko (NZ), Danielle Kang
4:32am Sarah Kemp, A Lim Kim, Pajaree Anannarukarn
4:43am Su Oh, Ines Laklalech, Ruixin Liu
5:05am* Kiira Riihijarvi, Magdalena Simmermacher, Sarah Jane Smith
Defending champion: Atthaya Thitiku
Past Aussie winners: Lydia Ko (NZ) (2016).
Epson Tour
Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic
Ol’ Colony Golf Course, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
10:52pm Amelia Garvey (NZ), Savannah Vilaubi, Kaleigh Telfer
10:52pm* Miranda Wang, Hira Naveed, Isabella Fierro
11:25pm Minji Kang, Pinyada Kuvanun, Cassie Porter
11:25pm* Robyn Choi, Clariss Guce, Haylee Harford
Defending champion: Celine Borge
Past Aussie winners: nil.
Asian Tour
Mercuries Taiwan Masters
Taiwan Golf and Country Club, Tamsui, Taiwan
9:15am Jeev Milha Singh, Lee Chieh-po, Kevin Yuan
9:45am Zach Murray, Itthipat Buranatanyarat, Huang Chi
9:20am* Hsieh Chi-hsien, Marcus Fraser, Ben Leong
9:30am* Todd Sinnott, Settee Prakongvech, Hsieh Tung-hung
10:00am* Yonggu Shin, Josh Younger, Lu Chien-soon
10:10am* Douglas Klein, Chikkarangappa S., Liao Huan-jyun
1:30pm Hung Chao-hsin, Jack Thompson, Veer Ahlawat
1:50pm Chapchai Nirat, Andrew Dodt, Kao Lung-jui (a)
1:45pm* Scott Hend, Nitithorn Thippong, Kieran Vincent
2:00pm Terry Pilkadaris, Prom Meesawat, K P Lin
2:15pm* Travis Smyth, Taehee Lee, Berry Henson
2:35pm* Tom Power-Horan, Nicholas Fung, Lin Keng-wei
Defending champion: Chan Shih-chang
Past Aussie winners: Scott Hend (2013)
Japan Golf Tour
Vantelin Tokai Classic
Miyoshi Country Club, Miyoshi, Aichi
9:20am Kota Kaneko, Brad Kennedy, Tomoyasu Sugiyama
10:50am JiHo Yang, Yuki Shino, Brendan Jones
11:00am Anthony Quayle, Kazuki Yamaura, Yuta Kinoshita
11:10am Eric Sugimoto, Ryo Noro, Adam Bland
11:20am Hiroki Tanaka, Dylan Perry, Naoyuki Kaneda
Defending champion: Riki Kawamoto
Past Aussie winners: Graham Marsh (1985 & 1990), Brian Jones (1988)
Lacoste Ladies Open De France
Golf Barriere, Deauville, Normandy
9:46pm* Sarah Schober, Kirsten Rudgeley, Florentyna Parker
Defending champion: Ines Laklalech
Past Aussie winners: Karen Lunn (1997), Lynnette Brooky (NZ) (2002 & 2003), Stacy Keating (2012)
Many of Australia’s leading golfers, including Adam Scott, Cam Smith, Marc Leishman and Gabi Ruffels, will be on full display to the Victorian golfing public this December, with the second edition of the Cathedral Invitational announced today.
Golf fans can once again enjoy one of Australia’s most prestigious and exclusive golfing experiences, with the tournament to be held at the Cathedral Lodge & Golf Club in Thornton from December 5-6.
Several leading and emerging Australian golfing names have already committed to participate in the 2023 Cathedral Invitational. Alongside Adam Scott, Cam Smith, Marc Leishman and Gabi Ruffels will be inaugural 2022 Cathedral Invitational champion Nick Flanagan and Webex Players Series Murray River winner Sarah Jane Smith.
The Cathedral Invitational will be played as a 36-hole event over two days, competing over scaled tees with one overall winner walking away with the $100,000 first prize.
The tournament offers an inclusive fan opportunity, with an inside the ropes experience not usually available with the calibre of players participating in the event.
It is the only opportunity to witness the skill of Australia’s best golfers in Victoria for the remainder of the year, with the Australian Open, and the Australian PGA Championship held in Sydney and Brisbane.
Additionally, it will provide a rare opportunity for the general public to attend the Cathedral Lodge & Golf Club and enjoy its prestigious surroundings.
Adam Scott said:
“I’m really looking forward to coming back to Victoria for the 2023 Cathedral Invitational. It was such a great experience last year and a fun environment to play in. Cathedral Lodge is a remarkable venue, and I can’t wait to compete there again.”
Marc Leishman said:
“I can’t wait to come back to play in the 2023 Cathedral Invitational after a great experience last year. It is always exciting to get back to Victoria, and a great opportunity for golf fans to soak up the atmosphere of a magnificent course and see the game up close.”
Gabi Ruffels said:
“I’m excited to return to Victoria and be a part of the 2023 Cathedral Invitational, The event is a unique opportunity for fans to get up close with the best male and female golfers in Australia. Last year was a real thrill for me to play alongside Adam Scott, and I look forward to doing it all again and competing against some of Australia’s best players.”
David Evans (Cathedral Lodge & Golf Club Founder) said:
“We believe the Cathedral Invitational is a unique opportunity to showcase some of Australia’s greatest golfing talent in an up close and relaxed environment. Having someone of Cam’s ability commit to play demonstrates the growth of this tournament, alongside the return of Adam, Marc and Gabi. We look forward to hosting this unique tournament, welcoming fans to the Cathedral Lodge and Golf Club, and providing a golfing experience not to be forgotten, in addition to raising money for the Adam Scott Foundation supporting education for disadvantaged youth in regional Victoria.”
Tickets for the 2023 edition of the Cathedral Invitational are available from Ticketek.
Further information on the tournament is available at www.cathedralinvitational.com.au.
A seven-week mental refresh delivered instant results as Australian Lucas Herbert shot 63 to lead the Fortinet Championship by two in California.
Unsighted since missing the cut at The Open Championship in July, the 27-year-old Victorian holed more than 144 feet of putts in a nine-under par round highlighted by a run of six straight birdies from the 12th to the 17th hole on the back nine of the North Course at Silverado Resort.
Herbert has a two-stroke lead from Korea’s Seong-hyeon Kim as he seeks to make amends for a lacklustre PGA TOUR season with a strong showing in the Fall Series and the benefits that brings.
In an open and honest post-round interview, Herbert admitted that issues off the golf course had not only impacted his performance on the golf course but had begun to put a strain on the relationships of those closest to him.
“I think I’d become probably a bitter and spiteful person,” Herbert conceded.
“Not over the top, but I didn’t like the version of myself when I look back on and see at The Open Championship.
“I think I was wound up pretty tight and kind of lashed out at people around me too quickly, too easily.
“The break was a good chance for me to be able to get away and reset, just get away from this life.
“You’re under the pump so much, so much pressure on you externally and internally to play well.
“To be able to get away from that, you’re sort of able to kind of find yourself a little bit again.
“I felt like if I could just come out here and be a better person to the people around me, my relationships, you know, family, friends, that only benefits.
“That was maybe all I cared about coming here this week.
“It’s really nice to shoot 63, but I’m going to do my best to go out there with the same attitude tomorrow and that is the main focus of the week.”
It may have been a case of good things happening to good people on Thursday.
Committed to play both the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship and ISPS HANDA Australian Open this summer, Herbert made four of five up-and-downs including two-from-two sand saves, the No.1 putter on tour last year picking up close to five strokes on the field on the greens.
Yet despite his score, Herbert was headed straight to the practice range to chip away at seven weeks of rust.
“I’m going to go do a bunch of practice now because I don’t think I really played that well today; I think I got really lucky,” said Herbert, who didn’t touch a club until a week ago.
“It felt like every time I missed the fairway or missed a shot, it seemed to finish in a decent position where I could kind of recover.
“Obviously made a stack of putts out there which helped but I still feel super rusty after today.
“It’s funny to say that after shooting 63, but I still feel a long way away from where I’d like to be.”
Cam Davis was six strokes back of Herbert in a tie for 15th late in his round as Sydney’s Harrison Endycott bounced back after an early bogey to shoot 2-under 70 in Round 1.
Making his 500th start on the PGA TOUR, Aaron Baddeley turned in 1-under but dropped shots on the back nine to be 1-over and tied for 105th with two holes to play.
In the second event of the Korn Ferry Tour Finals, Brett Drewitt has made a strong start at the Simmons Bank Open in Tennessee.
Sitting 30th in the race for one of the 30 PGA TOUR cards on offer at the end of the four-even finals series, Drewitt played his final eight holes in 5-under to shoot 68 and a tie for seventh.
It is a timely return to form for Drewitt who began the season with four top-five finishes in his first six starts but has made the cut just once in his past 16 events.
Curtis Luck is just one back of Drewitt in a tie for 16th but Rhein Gibson is projected to fall from 27th to 31st in the points list after a 3-over 75 on day one.
Jason Scrivener’s 4-under 68 was the best of the Aussies in Round 1 of the DP World Tour’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth while Kristalle Blum is tied for 10th and four strokes off the lead at the LET Access Series Hauts De France Pas De Calais Golf Open.
Photo: Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images
Australian Anthony Quayle will start the final round of the Shinhan Donghae Open one back instead of one in front following a costly double-bogey on the final hole on Saturday.
Seeking his first Japan Golf Tour title in a tournament co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour and Korean PGA Tour, Quayle moved into the outright lead with a birdie at the par-4 11th.
He would maintain that advantage all the way up until the par-5 18th hole where – after finding the front bunker with his third shot – three-putted for a double-bogey to sit one back of Canada’s Richard T. Lee (67) and South Korean Guntaek Koh (66) and in a share of third place with overnight leader Wooyoung Cho (71) and Ok Tae Hoon (67).
The 2021 Queensland PGA champion, Quayle got off to a strong start at Sky72 Golf and Resort with birdies at his opening two holes. He was tied for the lead with Cho after nine holes when he reached the turn in 31.
Having played the 18th hole in 3-over the first three rounds, the 29-year-old knows he needs to make amends to complete the biggest win of his career to date.
“I didn’t put a foot wrong until the last,” Quayle said.
“Me and the last hole haven’t got on too well so far. Hopefully if it comes down to it, it will be a bit more friendly (on Sunday).
“Everything feels really good. I feel like I have played quite solid. I have holed a couple I probably shouldn’t have, and I have missed a couple I feel like I should have made.
“I feel like the score is reflective of how I played. I have a chance on a Sunday, which is nice.”
A runner-up on four previous occasions on the Japan Golf Tour – including earlier this year at the Sega Sammy Cup – Quayle hopes to put those experiences to good use to get over the line on Sunday.
“A couple of those close finishes have been mistakes on my part, and a couple of them have been other people better on the day,” he added.
“But I feel I have learned a lot and how to get the best out of those situations.
“Some of those lessons will come in handy tomorrow.”
Fellow Aussies Zach Murray and Travis Smyth are also well positioned for a prominent finish.
Murray had five birdies in six holes to close out his front nine in a round of 4-under 68 while Smyth had an eagle and five birdies in his 5-under 67, the pair tied for 12th at 10-under and five strokes off the lead.
While Quayle is the hunter in Korea, Minjee Lee is now the hunted at the Kroger Queen City Championship on the LPGA Tour.
Seeking her first win since the US Women’s Open in June last year, Lee began her third round at Kenwood Country Club in Cincinnati with three straight birdies and never took a backward step.
The 27-year-old added four more birdies on the back nine in a bogey-free 7-under 65 to take a two-stroke lead at 15-under from England’s Charley Hull (68) and Peiyun Chien (73) of Chinese Taipei.
Minjee’s brother, Min Woo Lee, is in a share of 10th going into the final round of the Horizon Irish Open on the DP World Tour, four back of German Hurly Long.
Kiwi Ryan Fox matched Rory McIlroy, Billy Horschel and Nick Machem for round of the day in Round 3, his bogey-free 66 elevating Fox to a tie for fourth and three shots off Long’s 13-under total through 54 holes.
Photo: Courtesy JGTO Images
