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Three eagles and two crucial par saves at the turn have propelled Deyen Lawson to a six-shot lead at the halfway mark of the Nexus Advisernet WA Open at The Western Australian Golf Club in Perth.
Following on from his eight-under 62 on day one, Lawson arrived for his 12.36pm tee time trailing WA amateur Adam Brady (63) by one.
A 3-iron and holed wedge from 127 metres later, Lawson’s name returned to the top of the leaderboard.
On top of his extraordinary start at the par-4 10th, he would eagle the par-5 sixth and eighth holes to go with four birdies, a bogey and double bogey in a round of seven-under 63 and 36-hole total of 15-under, leaving fellow players gob-smacked in the process.
Lincoln Tighe (67, T5) called Lawson’s 62 on day one “insane”. Michael Sim (64, T2) remarked, “Are you serious?” when told of Lawson’s pair of eagles at the par 5s.
When asked to sum up his playing partner’s play for the past two days, Jack Murdoch (71, T31) could only reply, “Very good. With as many verys as you want to put in front of it.”
Four times a runner-up on the ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia, Lawson knows he has never been in better position to log a maiden tour win.
“Because I’m 15-under and not eight behind,” Lawson said of his prospects of a win.
“I’m just getting a bit older. I’ve been out here a little while now. I’ve been in Europe since 2018 and played with some of the best in the world. It’s not a coincidence why they’re the best in the world, the way they go about it.
“Nothing seems to faze them. They do get frustrated but you watch someone like Cam Smith and (Rory) McIlroy, it just looks like they’re having a bit of a stroll.
“They’re good players but the way they handle it is really impressive.”
Lawson found the green with his 3-wood from 259 metres and 239 metres respectively at six and eight but admitted that it was two putts mid-round that kept his round on track.
He made a six-footer for par on the par-5 18th and a 10-foot par save at the par-3 first after finding the bunker right of the green.
“They’re probably the key moments,” said Lawson, who will return to DP World Tour Qualifying School in early November. “Especially after making a pretty poor double on 16.
“To make those really good pars and go to the second where I hit a really good gap wedge to a foot just really got the round going in the right direction again.
“It could have slipped very easily. Miss a couple of par putts and you’re back to level after a hot start.
“I fought on and hit some really good shots the last six, seven holes.”
Brady and Sim are Lawson’s nearest challengers at nine-under par followed by Victorian Tom Power Horan (66, eight-under) and Tighe and Chris Wood (66) at seven-under.
Runner-up to WA teammate Connor McKinney at the St Andrews Links Trophy earlier this year, Brady is the latest in the glut of golf talent coming out of the west and is excited at the prospect of playing in the heat of a professional event.
“The heart will be racing I’m sure on the first tee but that’s why I play. I’m excited for it,” said Brady, who plays his golf out of The Vines.
“My parents are in Spain so they won’t be here but I’m sure they’ll be cheering me on. Hopefully get some people out from the golf club to come and watch. That’d be great.”
Brady led at St Andrews after 54 holes only to be run down by McKinney on the final day, bringing home valuable lessons of what it takes to win.
“You can’t control winning but I learnt from the position I was in,” Brady added.
“Just trying to control your emotions. I know what that felt like so I’m prepared for it tomorrow.”
A total of 60 players survived the cut-line that fell at even par.
The field will be led out on the weekend by competitors in the WA Open All Abilities Championship, Sawtell Golf Club’s Cameron Pollard the favourite following his win at the WA PGA All Abilities Championship last week.
The All Abilities Championship will start play at 7.56am AWST with the WA Open lead groups to tee off at 9.57am.
Click here for Round 2 scores.
West Australian Jarryd Felton will seek to make his Kalgoorlie dominance official when he takes a one-stroke lead into the final round of the CKB WA PGA Championship presented by TX Civil and Logistics.
One of three players tied for the lead at the start of play on Saturday, Felton holed out for eagle from 66 metres at the par-4 12th and came home with six straight pars for a round of five-under 67 to lead the field at 14-under.
On a day where the course record of eight-under 64 fell to Victorian Cameron John, David Micheluzzi’s seven-under 65 elevated him to 13-under and a date in the final group alongside Felton on Sunday.
Runner-up in 2019, Felton was victorious at Kalgoorlie Golf Course in 2020 but COVID-19 border restrictions saw the tournament played with a limited field and over 54 holes.
As a result, that win is not considered an official ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia victory, an asterisk Felton is hoping to wipe clean on Sunday.
“I beat a really good field that year as well and played really good,” said Felton, who has three official PGA Tour of Australasia titles to his name.
“It was 54 holes but with COVID that’s how it was. It would be really good to get the official 72-hole win around here.
“I love coming out here and playing. It suits my eye really well and hopefully I can get the official win this year.”
Nipping at his heels is a group of players seeking to win on tour for the first time.
Micheluzzi (65), Jack Murdoch (69), James Marchesani (67) and Matias Sanchez (71) are all within reach, Felton aware of the threat posed by players hungry for success.
“I’m the guy that’s going to be hunted,” Felton acknowledged.
“They’ve got nothing to lose. They’re going to go out and attack pins and hopefully I can do the same. Make some early birdies just to take the pressure off.
“We’ve got 18 holes tomorrow around a really hard course and the conditions are going to add to that as well. It’ll be a tough day but got to keep to the game-plan.”
There is a calm intensity to Micheluzzi as he seeks to start the new season in the best way possible.
A star amateur who turned professional just months before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the world, Micheluzzi leant on his putter on Saturday to play his way into the final group.
Putts for birdie from outside 20 feet at both two and four gave his round early momentum but paled in comparison to the 50-foot bomb he dropped on the par-3 eighth.
Stellar wedge play and a cooperative flatstick put him one clear of Murdoch and three ahead of Brett Rankin (67), Marchesani and Sanchez.
“This is where I wanted to be at the start of the week,” said Micheluzzi, whose best result on tour to date is a runner-up finish as an amateur at the 2018 WA Open.
“I made double bogey on the first hole on Thursday so just proud of myself for not having the head blow off like it usually does.
“I’m excited. I’m going to go and do my thing.
“I haven’t been in a final group in a long time. When I have been I think I’ve done all right but I’m not setting my expectations too high.
“All I want to do is shoot under par tomorrow. All the routine stuff, all the stuff I’ve been working on I’ll try and do tomorrow. If it means a win, it’s a win, if it doesn’t, it doesn’t matter, I’m happy to start out like this at the start of the season.
“It means that things are trending in the right direction.”
On a day in which there were 257 birdies and nine eagles, it took Felton only until the third hole to pick up his first shot of the day.
He followed that up with another at the fourth before backing up his birdie at the par-5 11th with his eagle at 12.
Yet his most spectacular shot may have been an explosion shot from the desert at the back of the 15th green that led to a par save at a crucial time in the round.
“It was not a very good spot but I made up-and-down there which saves one, maybe two (shots),” he added.
“I just needed to get it up so I tried to hit it as hard as I could, catch behind the ball and hope that it doesn’t go 700 metres.
“You practice those shots on Monday and Tuesday and you kind of hope when you hit it out on the course that it’s not going to go too far.
“That’s Kalgoorlie holding on towards the end. Those last six holes are really tough. I had my chances to make birdies there but at the end of the day it’s a stress-free kind of finish to a hard golf course.”
Although John (nine-under 63) made history by supplanting Min Woo Lee (2015), Callan O’Reilly (2016), Chris Thorn (2016) and Michael Long (2018) as the new Kalgoorlie course record holder, he was not the first player to reach nine-under on Saturday.
Starting from the 10th tee, Territorian Jake Hughes made the turn in seven-under 29. Birdies at two and six put the course record within his grasp only for bogeys at seven and nine to suck some of the excitement out of an otherwise wonderful round of seven-under 65.
In the inaugural WA PGA All Abilities Championship pre-tournament favourite Cameron Pollard has established a commanding six-shot lead after Round 1.
Already a winner of All Abilities titles in WA, South Australia and New South Wales, Pollard posted seven-over 79 to lead Scott Smith and Gary Burgess, Pollard’s fellow Sawtell Golf Club product Lachlan Smith just one stroke further back in fourth position.
Play will commence at 9.45am on Sunday with the final group to tee off at midday AEDT.
Click here for Round 3 scores and Round 4 draw.
It was double-delight at Yarra Yarra’s picturesque sixth hole on Monday, as Jayden Cripps and William Flitcroft each made aces to catapult themselves to the top of the leader board after the first round of the PGA Professionals Championship.
Designed to showcase the outstanding playing ability of PGA Professionals, the 36-hole event – run in partnership with Acushnet and Club Car – saw twenty-one players go under par in stunning conditions on Melbourne’s Sandbelt.
A third career hole-in-one for Cripps, his 48-degree wedge landed past the hole and spun back into the cup, the New-South Welshman not sure of the final result until he made his way onto the green.
“I knew I hit it well, but I just kind of saw it disappear,” he said. “To be quite honest I thought it had spun off into the front bunker or the gulley short of the green.”
Energised by the hole-in-one, it kickstarted a run up the leader board for Cripps, who would finish the day with seven birdies and four bogeys to finish with 67.
“The first few holes I was just missing it in the wrong spots, which you really can’t afford to do around here – not with how quick and firm the greens are.
“I worked out pretty quickly that I just needed to keep the ball below the hole, you combine that with hitting fairways then there is certainly a chance to make a good score.”
Having found his groove, Cripps birdied seven of his last nine holes, including holing a nerveless twenty-footer on the last to claim the lead outright.
Due reward for effort, Cripps feels that his performance today is a reflection of the work he has put in recently – and the people with whom he surrounds himself.
“I’ve been spending a lot of time with Kelsey Bennett and Deyen Lawson,” said Cripps. “Working on my wedge game, distance control and just learning from them.
“You spend time around good people and it’s funny what can happen.”
For Flitcroft, there was no doubt that his 54-degree wedge was destined for the cup on the sixth.
“One of the boys actually called it mid-flight,” he laughed. “It’s my first one in thirteen years and first as a professional, so I’m very happy that it came today.”
It was the continuation of momentum for Flitcroft, who made an eagle on the sixteenth and a birdie on the eighteenth, after starting with bogeys on fourteen and fifteen in the afternoon field shotgun start.
“Those two (sixteen and eighteen) kind of got me moving, so it was great to add the hole-in-one there as well to keep it tracking in the right direction.”
Steady thereafter, Flitcroft also capitalised on the par-five ninth hole with another birdie, to finish the day at three-under, in a three-way tie for fourth. An impressive effort for his first time around the course, he is confident he knows what it will take to get the job done tomorrow.
“It’s all about where you leave it out there,” Flitcroft explained. “As soon as you’re above the hole you’re in trouble, but if you leave it in the right spots, then you can definitely post a good score.”
2018 Champion, Scott Laycock showed his class once again in pristine Melbourne conditions, firing an impressive four-under 68 to sit in a tie for second place.
Despite starting with two early bogeys, Laycock enjoyed a remarkable run through the middle of his round, playing a seven-hole stretch in six-under to make his way up the leader board.
“It was a bit of a funny start – it took me a while to get the speed of the greens,” said Laycock, who has prepared for the event by playing with the members at Royal Hobart.
“Then through that middle patch I didn’t miss many opportunities, so that was nice.”
Joining Laycock in second place is Queenslander Brenton Fowler, whose four-under round was highlighted by two eagles at the fifth and the ninth as he made his way around the front nine in just 31.
Fellow Queenslander TJ King also shone in the morning group, firing a three-under 69, to back up his impressive second-placed finish at the Links Hope Island earlier this year.
The final round nicely poised for tomorrow, the double shot-gun start will allow for the leaders to tee it up at 12:40pm, fighting for $50,000 in prizemoney and one of two exemptions into the 2022 Fortinet Australian PGA Championship.
Follow the event scores and updates HERE
A field of more than 160 will tee it up today at the PGA Professionals Championship at Yarra Yarra Golf Club, competing for $50,000 in prizemoney, as well as exemptions into the 2022 Fortinet Australian PGA Championship and 2023 Vic Open.
Open to all Vocational PGA Professionals without a ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia category, the field will compete over 36 holes on the 10th and 11th October, as the tournament brings together some of Australia’s leading club, teaching and management Professionals.
Designed to showcase the outstanding playing ability of PGA Professionals, the event – run in partnership with Acushnet and Club Car – is set to be hotly contested, with the top two in the field gaining a place in the Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland Golf Club.
Tournament Director, Broc Greenhalgh, is thrilled to be welcoming such a strong field for an exciting couple of days of golf on Melbourne’s famed Sandbelt.
“It’s wonderful to be in Victoria and to see the best of our PGA Professionals on show,” Greenhalgh said.
“PGA Professionals are the heartbeat of Australian golf, so it’s wonderful that they will have the chance to go out and test themselves on such an iconic golf course.
“There is plenty to play for, so we are looking forward to a great exhibition of golf.”
Reigning champion and Head Professional at Pacific Dunes Golf Club, Jamie Hook, is keen to repeat the dose, after his two-shot victory at Links Hope Island set up a strong string of performances this year.
“It would be nice to defend the title,” he said. “To gain another exemption into the Australian PGA would be awesome.”
Hook performed well at the Australian PGA in January, his two-under score enough to tie for 31st place.
“I get such great support from the members at Pacific Dunes, whenever and wherever I play,” explained Hook. “I’m keen to get out there and do them all proud.”
Along with Hook, TJ King (Mount Coolum Golf Club) and Matthew Guyatt (Nudgee Golf Club) have just returned from representing Australia at the Four Nations Cup.
Australia performed strongly at the inaugural competition, earning a second-place finish in South Africa in September. No doubt any potential for international honours will serve as added motivation down the stretch on Tuesday.
Similarly, in the female section of the field, Bree Arthur, Jessica Dengate, Katy Jarochowicz, Grace Lennon and Katelyn Must will all be fighting for more than the title, as an exemption into the 2023 Vic Open is also on the line.
“There is plenty to play for next week,” Greenhalgh said. “For both the men and the women in the field, strong performances will certainly give them the chance to keep playing on the big stage.
“This is one of the wonderful attributes of our Vocational PGA Professionals; that their skills are do diverse both on and off the golf course, so the PGA Professionals Championship gives them another opportunity to showcase that.”
It shapes as a big week for past champions too, as Scott Laycock (Royal Hobart Golf Club), who won in 2018 and was runner-up in 2019, chases a return to the top of the podium. Additionally, 2016 winner Chris Duke (Nudgee Golf Club) will be looking to cap off his recent move to Queensland with a strong showing at Yarra Yarra.
“There are so many great stories coming into the week,” Greenhalgh explained. “And there is bound to be another one come Tuesday evening.”
The Championship kicks off this morning with a double shotgun start (7.30am and 12.30pm).
To follow the Championship click HERE
Heading into his tenth appearance for the International Team at the Presidents Cup, Adam Scott is ready to put his teammates on his back and say ‘come with me’ at Quail Hollow Club in North Carolina this week.
The International Team have infamously only defeated the Americans once – at Royal Melbourne in 1998 – and the 2013 Masters champion has a burning desire to finally taste glory against the red, white and blue.
“I think the best thing I can do this week is lead by winning points,” Scott said.
“I remember when I played with Ernie (Els) as a rookie, he had it so under control on the course. He knew what he was doing out there. He had the experience, and he was one of the best players in the world.
“I feel like I’d like to be that guy this week for anybody I play with.”
Scott made his debut in South Africa in 2003 where the Cup was shared – after three tied playoff holes between Tiger Woods and Ernie Els it was agreed by the captains and players that the contest would end in a tie – and added valuable points playing alongside Els.
They secured one-up wins over both Justin Leonard and Jim Fuyrk, and Phil Mickelson and Chris DiMarco, and the 42-year-old is eager to see his current teammates achieve their dreams like he did at a similar age.
“I think I’m leaning into the younger guys because of their enthusiasm and everything,” Scott said.
“I think it’s good for an old dog like me to see that. I remember when I pegged it up in South Africa, I was a bit of a deer in the headlights. Just went out and played golf and I didn’t know any better, and I kind of got carried a little bit by Ernie, and some exciting stuff happened at the end.
“It was just like I had dreamed of doing as a kid, getting on this team and winning a point. That’s kind of how I feel these guys should be this week.”
Much has been made of the notable absences from the International Team, and Scott was even asked at his press conference on Tuesday how a drought-breaking victory would compare to historic sporting upsets like Australia II winning the 1983 America’s Cup.
He was not buying into that narrative however. Instead, Scott claimed that the Internationals – which includes fellow Australian Cameron Davis – are “coming here better prepared than ever” and no one should be sleeping on them.
“This group of guys on our team are elite level golfers, and actually this format should be easier for us to get a win over 18 holes,” Scott said.
“It’s not 72 holes against a better team. There’s less holes for us to get on top of these top players. It’s a little bit of a sprint.
“The biggest thing that (captain) Trevor (Immelman) and anybody in our team can do is help our guys get to the first tee ready to tee off and hit a couple good shots and get up early and go from there. It is a sprint and they are elite golfers.
“They’re not slouchers. I was really impressed playing here with them casually a few weeks ago.
“The talent level is there, and something like this, if one of them finds that belief out there, hits the shot at the right time or holes a putt at a right time, it really could kick start them this week, and also, you could see big things from them in the future, too.
“I reference Scottie Scheffler for that who had a great Ryder Cup last year, and look what he went on to last year, and I think it may be a connection to these events for that individual performance later.”
Scott himself won THE PLAYERS Championship only five months after his Presidents Cup debut, and calling on positive memories in pressure situations is going to be vital this week.
“Looking back at Melbourne, although that was one that stung for sure, I thought so much changed, the direction of this team changed there, and I think that’s carried over,” he said.
“Trevor has embraced that a lot and done an incredible job. I think we’re going to see that continue no matter what the result.
“I still remain incredibly optimistic that we have a shot this week.”
Wins in all three of his singles matches by Mount Coolum’s TJ King has put Team Australia in a strong position after day one of the Four Nations Cup in South Africa.
A coming together of PGAs from Australia, South Africa, Canada and New Zealand, the inaugural Four Nations Cup is taking place at Kyalami Country Club north of Johannesburg, the home team taking a 2.5-point lead into day two.
South Africa accrued 10 points across the first two rounds, Australia tied for second with Canada on 7.5 points and New Zealand on 3 points.
The veteran pairing of Matthew Guyatt and Murray Lott made the perfect start with a 2 up win over Canada’s Pierre-Alexandr Bedard and Branson Ferrier as King and Jamie Hook went down 2&1 to Kevin Stinson and Gordon Burns.
The afternoon matches were four-way singles matches and it was King who came to the fore.
He accounted for Kiwi Brad Shilton 5&4, defeated Bedard 4&3 and edged South African Duane Keun 2&1 to secure three crucial points for his team.
It was a productive session too from Jamie Hook.
Hook defeated Canada’s Branson Ferrier 2 up, got the better of New Zealander Jared Pender 2&1 and halved his match with South African Dane Vosloo to add 2.5 points to the tally.
Lott got the better of New Zealand’s Dongwoo Kang 3&2 in his only singles win on day one while Guyatt went down in each of his three matches.
Rounds three and four on Saturday are betterball matches with Hook and King to play the New Zealand team of Pender and Zwart and Lott and Guyatt facing off against Shilton and Kang in Round 3.
Click here for scores and standings.
Tom Power Horan will take a two-shot lead into the final round of the First Stage of DP World Tour Qualifying School courtesy of a four-under 67 in Thursday’s third round at Rosebud Country Club.
The top five and ties at the completion of Friday’s fourth and final round will earn direct entry into Second Stage in Spain in November, Power Horan taking a significant step to snare one of those spots sitting two strokes clear.
The 2019 Gippsland Super 6 champion is at 11-under through three rounds, two ahead of 36-hole leader James Marchesani (71) as Kyle Michel (66) used two eagles in the space of seven holes to move into outright third at seven-under.
Queensland’s Aaron Wilkin (67) is solo fourth at six-under followed by Jack Munro (65) and Kiwi Kit Bittle (71) at five-under.
The recent Queensland Foursomes champion with Michael Sim, Munro’s fightback has been nothing short of remarkable given his start to the tournament.
In frigid conditions on Tuesday Munro made double bogey at his first two holes and was six-over through seven holes, playing the past 47 holes in 11-under to be right in the hunt for a ticket to Second Stage.
Power Horan began his tournament with a bogey but has made just three since, his lone bogey on Thursday coming at the 194-metre par-3 seventh that was playing as the fifth-hardest hole on the course.
He bounced back with a birdie at the par-5 ninth and then peeled off three straight from the 14th lead to move past Marchesani and into the lead.
“I’m playing well,” Power Horan said. “I’m driving it well, hitting lots of greens and holing a few putts when I need to.
“Hopefully it’s the same again tomorrow.”
Michel was one-under on his round when he hit 4-iron into 15 feet to set up an eagle at the par-5 ninth and then moved to five-under with an eagle at the par-5 15th, hitting 6-iron into 25 feet and holing the putt.
Following a 54-hole cut the top 18 players will now contest the final round, first group to tee off at 8am with Power Horan, Marchesani and Michel off at 9am.
Click here for Round 3 scores.
West Australian Minjee Lee has earned a third top-four major finish this year on a dramatic final day at the AIG Women’s Open at Muirfield in Scotland.
Tied for sixth but nine strokes off the lead, Lee and fellow Australian Stephanie Kyriacou vowed to go all out in their pursuit of South African Ashleigh Buhai.
Kyriacou was the one with momentum early on her way to a round of even par 71 and tie for seventh but it was Lee who would come closest in the championship’s closing stages.
Five strokes clear at the start of play, what began as an expected procession for Buhai (75) ended in a playoff with Korean In Gee Chun (70) after the pair finished 72 holes tied at 10-under.
A sand save at the first playoff hole kept Chun in the contest and then it took a bogey putt from six feet to send the championship to a third extra hole.
Both players saw birdie attempts sit agonisingly on the edge of the cup at the third playoff hole before the best bunker shot of her life handed Buhai the title she was destined to win at the fourth extra hole.
Lee would finish three shots back in a tie for fourth at seven-under yet having started the day nine back very nearly reeled Buhai in.
Two-under through 16 holes, Lee two-putted for birdie at the par-5 17th to reach eight-under for the championship, oblivious to the drama playing out three groups behind her.
Buhai was one-over through 14 holes before one poor shot turned the tournament on its head.
The 33-year-old’s tee shot on 15 found the bunker on the left of the fairway, her only option to play sideways toward Muirfield’s gnarly rough.
Intending to hit it only a couple of yards onto the short grass or first cut at worst, Buhai’s sandy escape came out hot and nestled into the long grass.
She progressed her next shot only a matter of 30 yards and after finding the front edge of the green with her fourth three-putted for a triple-bogey seven.
It brought Lee back to within two with one hole to play, a perfect drive down the right side of the fairway giving the US Women’s Open champio the green light to go at the flag on the 72nd hole.
Unfortunately for the West Australian her approach shot leaked left and found the greenside pot bunker. She was unable to save her par and joined Lena Maguire (66) as the joint clubhouse leader at seven-under.
It completes one of the greatest major seasons ever compiled by an Australian, her US Women’s Open triumph, runner-up at the KPMG Women’s PGA and tie for fourth at Muirfield adding weight to her claim as the best player in the women’s game.
“I feel like I played pretty good considering how windy it was all week,” Lee reflected.
“I feel like I’ve had some really great finishes at the majors. I won the US Open, I did really well at KPMG and I’m going to finish pretty well here too.”
Earlier in the round it was Kyriacou with the South African in her sights.
The 21-year-old made birdie at three of her opening six holes to climb to eight-under and a tie for third.
Her championship hopes took a gut-punch when she made double bogey at the par-3 seventh, getting back to seven-under with a birdie at the par-4 11th.
Promising all-out attack, Kyriacou’s patient approach was an impressive show of maturity on such a stage.
The thin margins on which links golf is played led to double bogeys at 12 and 15 but she displayed great character to birdie her final two holes and earn her first top-10 finish in a major.
“Today was a bit yucky,” was Kyriacou’s honest post-round assessment.
“I hit maybe three bad shots that cost me more than three shots but still lots of positives to take.
“I played really well the whole week, really solid. It’s tough to get angry over a couple of shots; I can’t really let that define my whole week.
“It might sound a bit arrogant but I think I’m going to win majors. It’s just a matter of time I feel.”
Little more than 12 months after reeling in a seven-stroke deficit in the final round of the Amundi Evian Championship, Lee also made a positive impact on Buhai’s nine-stroke head-start.
Birdies at three and five were separated by a dropped shot at four, a shot she got back with a birdie at eight to turn in two-under to reduce the margin to seven.
The 26-year-old narrowly missed a fourth birdie at the par-4 12th and then made a clutch sand save from the pot bunker right of the par-3 13th green to keep her slim hopes alive.
An inward nine of five-over 40 saw Hannah Green post a closing 75 to finish tied for 35th, fellow West Australian Whitney Hillier (75) tied for 48th as she made the cut at the Women’s Open for the first time in four attempts.
AIG Women’s Open
Muirfield, Gullane, Scotland
Winner Ashleigh Buhai 70-65-64-75—274
T4 Minjee Lee 68-70-70-69—277
T7 Steph Kyriacou 70-68-70-71—279
T7 Lydia Ko (NZ) 71-70-70-68—279
T35 Hannah Green 71-66-74-75—286
T48 Whitney Hillier 72-69-73-75—289
MC Su Oh 77-75—152
Adam Scott is hopeful a change in his driver set-up will lead to a drought-breaking win after surging into contention at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit.
Winless since his Genesis Open victory in February 2020, Scott’s past two starts have garnered top-15 finishes at both the US Open and The Open Championship.
It was following his tie for 14th at Bellerive Country Club that Scott made an adjustment to the lie angle of his TaylorMade Stealth driver that he has had in the bag since THE PLAYERS Championship in March.
Knowing that hitting more up on the ball is the accepted method for more distance, Scott opted for an angle of attack that is more down on the ball as a way of improving his accuracy.
The firm and fast fairways of St Andrews did little to inhibit the distance he hit the ball and finding the short grass at Detroit Golf Club has delivered rounds of 69-66 to be in a share of seventh through 36 holes.
Scott went bogey-free in his round of six-under 66 on Friday and made birdie at all of the par 5s to be six shots back of Canada’s Taylor Pendrith.
“Yesterday was for sure the best I’ve driven it for a couple of years maybe and that felt good, and I drove it well again today,” Scott said.
“When I started practicing a week or so after the US Open I made a conscious effort to change that because although my play is OK, generally I think if a couple of errant drives a day was costing me the chance of shooting rounds like today or even the good rounds I played at The Open at St Andrews.
“Just bringing the ball a little more under control. I don’t feel like I’ve sacrificed any distance – even though we all think you’ve got to launch it high to hit it far – but it’s helpful when you play St Andrews to do that because it runs.
“I didn’t feel like I was sacrificing too much, but I’ve certainly hit more fairways and feel like I’m going to.”
Scott has spoken openly about the difficulty he has faced producing his best golf during COVID.
Balancing family life with the travel restrictions has pulled him in two different directions yet as he approaches a year since losing in a playoff at the Wyndham Championship, the 42-year-old feels a win is not far away.
“The last couple years has been a bit of a blur to me,” Scott admitted.
“I don’t know if it feels long or just a wash, but it was a year ago next week that I was in that playoff at Wyndham and had the putt to win. I’d love to get back in that position over this weekend.
“Generally everything has settled down for me and my game and everything is moving a good direction.
“If it’s not this week, it would be a good goal to try and win an event by the end of this season.”
A bogey-double bogey start saw defending champion Cam Davis (73) fall back into a tie for 59th at three-under as Jason Day had two birdies and 16 pars in his second round of two-under 70. Day is in a tie for 35th through two rounds at five-under.
With Kiwi Lydia Ko leading the way Hannah Green and Minjee Lee are the best of the Aussies at the halfway mark of the Trust Golf Women’s Scottish Open at Dundonald Links.
The 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA champion had a run of three straight birdies from the sixth hole in her round of five-under 67, putting her in a tie for 25th alongside Lee at five-under, nine shots from the top of the leaderboard.
It was a frustrating day on the greens for Lee, the US Women’s Open champion requiring 33 putts in hitting 15 of 18 greens in regulation in her round of even-par 72.
Seeking to solidify her position within the top five of the Epson Tour order of merit, Grace Kim is off to a strong start at the Firekeepers Casino Hotel Championship in Michigan.
Kim had five birdies and two bogeys in her opening round of three-under 69, good enough for a tie for seventh and just two shots back of Chinese pair Xiaowen Yin and Ruoning Yin.
Soo Jin Lee, Gabriela Ruffels and Sarah Jane Smith all posted rounds of one-under 71 on day one with Robyn Choi a shot further back at even par.
One of golf’s great rivalries is headed for another Sunday showdown as Karrie Webb moved out to a two-stroke lead at the Senior LPGA Championship in Kansas.
The seven-time major champion went bogey-free in the second round of her maiden Senior LPGA Championship, playing the back nine at Salina Country Club in four-under for a round of six-under 66 and nine-under total with one round to play.
Her nearest challenger is fellow Hall of Famer Annika Sorenstam who shot 68 on a Saturday in which the name at the top of the leaderboard changed on a number of occasions.
Between them the pair have 17 major championships and 113 LPGA Tour titles, going head-to-head regularly at the turn of the century.
With both now teeing it up on the senior circuit and in select LPGA Tour events, a new chapter in their rivalry is set to be written.
“When we play against each other, even if we’re going out for a social hit, we’d probably bring the best out of each other,” said Webb, the pair to be joined in the final group by Round 1 leader Lisa DePaulo.
“I think that’s what’s happened the past couple of days.”
Sorenstam had seven birdies – including a run of four on the trot from the 11th hole – to move from a tie for fourth to solo second.
While she’s excited to compete with Webb once again, Sorenstam doesn’t count anyone out and knows she’ll have to bring her best on Sunday.
“I have a lot of respect for Karrie,” said Sorenstam.
“As you know, we’ve been playing quite a few rounds together. Not just these two, but we go way back when we were competing at our heyday.
“She’s one of the better ones out here, so I look forward to going head-to-head with her.
“There are some players right behind, so it’s going to be a tight race tomorrow.”
Webb missed opportunities for birdies at the early par 5s at one and three but gathered momentum as she approached the turn.
Following a birdie at five she picked up another shot at the par-4 ninth and then birdied the par5 11th.
Birdies at the par 3s at 13 and 15 moved her into the lead, pushing her advantage out to two shots with a birdie at the final hole.
“It was very challenging today,” said Webb.
“I managed my game really well. I actually didn’t play the par 5s great – I only made two birdies on those – but bogey-free on a day like today is a pretty good effort, so I’m happy with that.
“There’s plenty of birdies out there. I’m going to keep playing aggressively and give myself as many chances as I can.”
As Webb moved into championship contention at the Senior LPGA it was a very different story at The Amundi Evian Championship in France.
Eleven shots back at the start of the third round, defending champion Minjee Lee’s hopes of going back-to-back were effectively ended with a triple bogey at her opening hole.
The 26-year-old recovered to post a two-over 73 but is now tied for 58th with one round to play.
Two closing birdies saw Hannah Green shoot two-under 69 to be the best-placed Australian through three rounds, her score of four-under putting the West Australian in a tie for 37th and 13 shots back of Canadian front-runner Brooke Henderson.
Sarah Kemp dropped back to a tie for 44th with a third round of three-over 74 with Steph Kyriacou a shot further back in a tie for 51st after a one-under 70 on Saturday.
Stuart Appleby has moved into a tie for fifth at the Senior Open at Gleneagles thanks in large part to his hot start in the third round.
Defeated in a playoff at the 2002 Open Championship, Appleby birdied three of his first four holes in a round of three-under 67.
At six-under he is three strokes back of England’s Paul Broadhurst and 2011 Open champion Darren Clarke, Kiwi Steven Alker and American Jerry Kelly tied for third at eight-under.
Peter O’Malley (70) and John Senden (72) were the only other Aussies to make the cut and will start the final day in a tie for 37th at even par.
