The Murray River swing of the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series continued in Cohuna with one of the tightest leaderboards in recent memory.

James Gordon’s 3-under 69 was the best of the morning wave but the best scores would come later in the afternoon, despite a change in the weather on the back nine.

PNG Open champion Lachlan Barker burst out of the blocks to be 5-under through eight holes but ultimately had to hold on for a round of 4-under 68 and tie Ryan Peake, Anthony Choat and Ryan Lynch for top honours.

Gordon was one of seven players to finish just one shot back at 3-under, Barker thankful for the early birdies and a final one at his penultimate hole to secure a share of victory.

“A very hot start, that’s how I’d describe it,” Barker said of his round.

“Early on the putter was very warm. I was 5-under through eight holes and the conditions were really good to start.

“After that the afternoon groups had to put on their wet weather gear and battle it out on the back nine.

“I dropped a couple of shots but really hung on and made one late birdie to end up shooting 4-under 68.”

While the putter took the plaudits for the early run of birdies, Barker said that his shot selection from the tee was integral in providing the opportunities for the putter to run hot.

“You had to have a good strategy so I used anywhere from 4-iron right through to driver. Made the right club choices on a lot of occasions and gave myself looks at birdies and was able to convert.

“I attribute my score to the putter and the tee shots.”

Like Barker, Peake and Choat both had six birdies and two bogeys in their rounds of 4-under while Lynch dropped just the one shot to also end the day on top.

Last year’s Cohuna Pro-Am was also disrupted due to rain, Barker praising the presentation of the course on his second visit to Cohuna.

“The course was in the best condition that I’ve seen it and from all reports, from the people who have been coming here for years and years, this is the best it’s been,” said Barker.

“That back nine was a struggle. The weather really packed it in so it was a tale of two nines today.”

The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series moves further along the Murray River for the 66th Border Open Pro-Am at cluBarham Golf and Sports Club starting Saturday.

Final scores and prizemoney

Staged with the support of the Edward River Council, the Deniliquin Golf Club staff and members laid out the welcome mat for their first event on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series.

It was an especially warm welcome for Lawson whose good friend Noel Swainger is a member at Deniliquin and coach Darrell Brown made the trip up from Geelong.

On top of spending some time practising in the morning, Brown caddied for Lawson in the afternoon as he stormed home to post 8-under 64 and a one-stroke win from rookie Toby Walker.

Lawson led going into the final round of the BRG Open Golf Championship Da Nang on the Asian Development Tour but was run down by fellow Australian Aaron Wilkin.

He was quick to shrug that disappointment off and tap into the good form he has displayed for much of the year.

“I feel like most of the year I’ve been trending and then to come here – one of my good mates is a member here – so I was pretty relaxed.

“I did some work with my coach this morning and he was on the bag so felt quite good.”

Lawson praised the presentation of the golf course on Wednesday, matching up his speed perfectly late to separate himself from the field.

Ruben Lal’s 4-under 68 was the best of the morning players, Lawson making birdie at three of his final four holes to move clear of Walker (65) and Matt Millar (66).

“The greens were rolling good, quite quick,” added Lawson, who will defend his WA Open title at Joondalup Country Club next month.

“There’s only four or five greens staff so to get the greens in the condition they are is absolutely fantastic.

“I had a look with three holes to go and saw that there were a few of us at 6-under.

“Rolled a couple of good putts in late. It’s always good to win, hole a few putts and get over the line.”

The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series continues its stretch along the Murray River with Thursday’s Stuart Appleby Cohuna Golf Club Pro-Am in Cohuna.

Final scores and prizemoney

Known throughout Australia for the annual Deni Ute Muster that has been running since 1999, Deniliquin gets its first adidas PGA Pro-Am Series event in 2023 thanks to support from the Edward River Council and local businesses, the first in a three-year commitment.

Other Tour winners who will tee it up at Deniliquin are Deyen Lawson (2022 WA Open), Austin Bautista (2021 NT PGA), Lachlan Barker (2023 PNG Open), two-time Vic PGA winner Ashley Hall and 2012 NSW PGA champion Matthew Stieger.

Edward River Council Mayor Cr Peta Betts hoped that the quality of the field would encourage visitors to the region to witness world-class golf on Deniliquin’s scenic golf course.

“We are very proud of our picturesque golf course here in Deniliquin and the wonderful natural attractions that make our region such a drawcard for visitors,” Cr Betts said.

 “Edward River Council is proud to support this Visit Deni tourism initiative and get behind a three-year arrangement with the PGA of Australia.

“Along with the Deni Golf Club committee we are looking forward to welcoming the PGA pros and golfers from all over New South Wales for our first spring Pro-Am.”

Located just an hour north of the Murray River and sitting adjacent to the Murray Valley Region Park, the Deniliquin layout will provide an exacting test for some of our best golfers and provide an attractive canvas on which they can showcase their skills to their amateur playing partners.

“The Deniliquin Golf Club is excited to host a PGA of Australia Pro-Am and we look forward to building on this event in the coming years,” said Deniliquin Golf Club President, Tony Kew.

“The Edward River Council and local business partners are supporting the event which will attract players from across the eastern states.

“We appreciate the opportunity this event has provided us to promote our beautiful golf course and our town.”

The morning groups will tee off in a shotgun start from 7.15am on Wednesday to be followed by the afternoon wave from 12.30pm.

Draw

Playing in the morning wave, Queensland rookie Sam Slater caught fire late in his round to post 7-under 64.

After starting from the 17th tee, Slater was 1-over through 10 holes yet produced two eagles and four birdies in his final eight holes to take the clubhouse lead in pursuit of his first win as a professional.

It looked like it would hold up almost all afternoon until Conran found the birdie he needed on the final hole.

Conran began his round from the second tee and was 3-under through six. His back nine was punctuated by five birdies and two bogeys, sending him to the par-5 first hole one stroke from the lead.

A two-time winner on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series, Conran found the green in two to leave himself an eagle putt from 30 feet for the win.

That putt came to rest a foot from the hole, leaving a straightforward tap-in to match Slater’s score of 7-under.

“It’s the first time I’ve done that,” Conran said of having to chase down a score.

“I’ve won two of these before when I’ve posted a score and didn’t have to go chase. Seeing a score posted and then playing good enough to beat it – or tie it at least – was satisfying.

“I started awful off the tee and was out of position and getting away with a few things. I chipped in a couple of times to get it going and then I straightened it out by the end of it.

“Putted nice and just hit it where I needed to on the right holes.”

Slater was tied for 27th in his PGA Tour of Australasia debut at the NT PGA Championship a week ago and is learning the key to contending in the professional game.

“The putting. It’s the putts out here,” Slater said.

“You can have a good ball-striking day but you’ve got to make the putts.

“It’s awesome. I’m happy, playing good golf and enjoying the process.”

Playing just his fifth event of the season, 2020 Order of Merit champion Matt Millar shared third with Victorian Cameron John just one stroke back, David Bransdon outright fifth with a round of 5-under 66.

The next event on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series is the inaugural Deniliquin Pro-Am at Deniliquin Golf Club on Wednesday, September 6.

Final scores and prizemoney

The $50,000 two-day event drew a high-class field but no one could keep pace with the runaway Campbell.

Now based at Coffs Harbour, Campbell birdied his final four holes to post 10-under 62 in Round 1, equalling the course record set by Gallichan at the 2013 NSW/ACT Trainee Championship.

Four strokes back, Michael Wright was Campbell’s closest challenger heading into day two but his lead was never truly threatened.

Birdies at two, six and seven kept the chasing pack at bay on the front nine, further birdies at 12, 13 and 16 for 6-under 66 giving Campbell a bogey-free 36-hole total of 16-under.

Josh Armstrong had nine birdies in his final 13 holes to shoot 8-under 64 in Round 2 for an 11-under par total and outright second, Darcy Brereton (66), Darcy Boyd (69) and Cameron John (69) sharing third place.

The win was cause for double celebration for Campbell who has had his eye on Gallichan’s record with each visit to Hawks Nest.

“Richie is my best mate and he always tells me when I come down here that he has got the course record,” said Campbell, who started his first round from the 14th tee.

“I didn’t think it was going to happen but I just put the foot down. I hit a nice shot into 10 and holed the putt, bombed the drive down 11 and hit 9-iron to eight feet, holed a four-footer on the next hole and then made a 10-footer on 13 to finish at 10.

“I holed a lot of putts but I gave myself the opportunities through some good and smart golf.”

One of golf’s toughest assignments is to back up a low round with another.

Campbell took the opportunity to speak to both Gallichan and his sports psychologist prior to Round 2 to ensure he had the right mindset to close out his fourth win this year on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series.

“Shooting 10-under is my lowest round in a professional event by a shot but to back that up with a 66 is something that I haven’t done before,” he conceded.

“I was talking to my sports psych last night and Richie and they said that it is uncharted territory for me.

“I really wanted to push myself to see what I was capable of doing today.

“To be able to then go out and be bogey-free for 36 holes and lock it down with a 6-under today gives me so much confidence for all of the events that I’ve got coming up in the next four months.”

The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series stays on the New South Wales Mid North Coast for Sunday’s Stacks Finance Taree Pro-Am at Taree Golf Club before heading south to the Riverina for the inaugural Deniliquin Pro-Am on September 6.

Final scores and prizemoney

Making just his fourth appearance of the year on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series circuit, Thompson compiled a round of 4-under 66 to finish one stroke clear of in-form Queensland Dillon Hart (67) with Jayden Cripps (68) and Toby Walker (68) sharing third.

Originally from Bathurst in the New South Wales Central West, Thompson picked up his first win at the Forbes Pro-Am more than a year ago.

After a year working at Royal Canberra Golf Club, Thompson moved north to take the role as the Head Professional at Kareela Golf Club in Sydney’s south, leaving precious little time to play or even practice.

“It was good to be back out playing again. Definitely missed being out here,” said Thompson.

“Having only a little amount of time to practice just making sure that I’m doing the right practice. Just trusting it and being confident.

“That’s all I can do. There are no expectations so that helps too.”

In a field boasting PGA Tour of Australasia winners such as Andrew Martin, Austin Bautista and Chris Wood, Thompson emerged as an unlikely champion.

He started well with a birdie at his second hole – the par-3 10th – but dropped a shot at the next par 3, the short 12th.

He moved back into red figures with a birdie at the par-4 13th and then headed for the front nine on the back of birdies at 16 and 17.

He had seven pars and a lone birdie at the par-4 fourth to post 66 and finish one clear of Hart who was trying to go back-to-back after his joint win at the Better Homes Port Macquarie Pro-Am on Wednesday.

The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series has now moved on to Hawks Nest Golf Club for the $50,000 Hawks Nest Beachside Pro-Am.

Final scores and prizemoney

The $25,000 two-day pro-am on the New South Wales Mid North Coast drew a high quality field, a number of whom travelled down after playing the NT PGA Championship.

Martin and Hart both played at Palmerston Golf and Country Club, Martin playing all four rounds while Hart missed the cut in his first start on the PGA Tour of Australasia.

Hart trailed Queensland’s Harrison Wills (68) and New South Welshman Apostolos Tsolakis (68) by two shots after the opening round at Port Macquarie Golf Club before strong winds on day two put the squeeze on scoring.

Hart and Martin were the only two players in the field to complete both rounds under par, Hart following up an opening round of 2-under 70 with a 1-under 71, Martin leaving it late to post the equal best score of Round 2 – 2-under 70 – to join Hart at 3-under.

Level with Hart at 3-under through 16 holes, Martin made what looked to be a costly bogey on 17 but leant on his stellar wedge play to make birdie at the 506-metre par-5 18th playing directly into the wind.

“Seventeen was a really bad bogey from 90 metres out with a wedge,” Martin said post-round.

“I wasn’t too happy standing on the 18th tee.

“Straight back into the wind, I probably hit my drive better today than I did yesterday and I was 50 metres behind where I was in the first round.

“I was 50 metres out for my third, straight into the breeze and I hit a really good pitch close enough for a tap-in.”

If it was his finish that sealed a share of victory, it was Martin’s work around the turn in Round 2 that put him in position to win.

One-over on his round after bogeys at seven and eight, Martin made eagle at the par-5 10th and then added a birdie at the difficult par-4 11th to move back into red figures for the day and the tournament.

“Once I did that I did glimpse at the leaderboard,” Martin said of picking up three shots in the space of two holes.

“I didn’t take much notice of it until then but thought I’d better have a bit of a look. I hit a couple of wayward drives after that so maybe I shouldn’t have.

“I struggled to get the right wind direction for a lot of the round but the putter was pretty good today which was probably my saving grace.”

After earning his card at Q School, this is Hart’s fourth adidas PGA Pro-Am Series win of the year and a confidence-boosting bounce-back after his missed cut in the Northern Territory.

“It’s nice to turn that around and come down here and get a win today,” said the Gold Coaster.

“I knew it was going to be a grind. We knew the wind was coming in early so tried to get away OK, play safe and plot my way around.

“The ball-striking was pretty good to be able to control it in the wind out there and just stayed consistent with the putter.

“Managed to hole a few putts here and there and sure enough it came off.”

The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series continues to move south with the Kew Country Club Pro-Am on Thursday to be followed by the two-day Hawks Nest Beachside Pro-Am starting Friday.

Final scores and prizemoney

Sponsored by Belle Property, the Bulimba Pro-Am is one of few played on a nine-hole par-3 course, players taking two trips around the layout.

The trio of winners was befitting the unique tournament with former PGA TOUR player Michael Sim, veteran Mark Harrison and prolific All Abilities winner Lachlan Wood all posting rounds of 4-under 50 to share the spoils.

Following on from his recent wins at the Optilease Redcliffe Pro-Am and the Queensland PGA Foursomes Championship with Jack Munro, Sim had to fire late to match the mark set by both Harrison and Wood.

Two birdies in his final three holes brought Sim level but he needed to convert an eight-foot par putt on the last to finish tied at the top.

“I actually hit a close shot into the first and missed it,” revealed Sim, pictured with Bulimba Golf Club General Manager Neil Harrington and Mark Harrison.

“I made the turn in 1-under and felt like teeing the ball up. We don’t hit many lob wedges and sand wedges off a tee and just felt like the ball was going a little further.

“I got that going on the back nine, made a couple of putts late and got up-and-down on the last for par.”

The Golf Operations Manager at Maryborough Golf Club, it was a rare adidas PGA Pro-Am Series appearance for Harrison.

He estimated that his last win was some 15 years ago in Western Australian but produced four birdies in the space of five holes to match the best of the day.

“I just made sure to hit the greens and kept it in play,” Harrison said.

“Didn’t miss many by too far – might have had to only chip one – and the others I just putted from just off the green.

“Think I started with nine straight pars and just kept it pretty patient.”

The Bulimba Golf Club has bounced back spectacularly after the course and clubhouse were inundated by floods a couple of years ago.

With strong support from the local community, General Manager Neil Harrington and Assistant Manager Emily Holden have overseen a clubhouse renovation and brought the course back to wonderful condition for one of the players’ most popular stops of the season.

Final scores and prizemoney

Hailing from Narrabri an hour north of Gunnedah, Matt Stieger knew what to expect from the Gunnedah layout while Will Bayliss, a first year PGA Associate at Pymble Golf Club, was coming in blind.

It mattered little by day’s end as the pair posted rounds of 4-under 66 to finish one clear of James Grierson (67) and Luke Ryan (67).

The 2012 NSW PGA champion, Stieger has tasted success previously at Gunnedah, winning in 2015 and finishing second in 2018 and 2019. He again revelled in being back among familiar faces on a course he knows well.

“I was fortunate enough to win this Pro-Am a few years ago so it’s always good to come back home and show my face,” said Stieger.

“There’s obviously a bit more pressure when everyone knows who you are so it’s good to come out and put together a win.

“Some of these holes, you stand up on the tee and look down the fairway and it doesn’t even look like there’s fairway there because it’s so tight.

“Growing up around here and playing around here was awesome and certainly gave me a little bit of local knowledge today.”

There was no such local knowledge for Bayliss who relied on stellar iron play and a hot putter to match Stieger’s tally.

Formerly based out of Manly Golf Club, Bayliss started the Membership Pathway Program at Pymble this year and was thrilled to test his game against seasoned tour players.

“It feels really good. Happy to be out here and to be given the opportunity as a first-year trainee to be able to play these pro-ams,” said Bayliss.

“Absolutely love having the ability to come out here and compete with these guys. Hopefully I can go on with it in the future.”

The small, saucer-style greens found on country courses may not be what Bayliss is accustomed to but Bayliss took to the Gunnedah putting surfaces with aplomb.

He played the four par 3s in 2-under par with a mix of good iron play and some lengthy birdie putts.

“The irons were on today so I was able to go at some pins that I wouldn’t normally go at,” said Bayliss.

“Mind you, if you just get it on the green here you’re going to have some 20-footers and I was able to hole a couple of those which helped to keep the momentum going.

“It was nice to hole a couple of putts and if I missed the green I was able to get up and down which certainly helped the score.”

The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series now has a short break before resuming with the 36-hole Better Homes Port Macquarie Pro-Am at Port Macquarie Golf Club from August 22.

Final scores and prizemoney

A highly-coveted championship won by the likes of Ian Baker-Finch and Jeff Woodland, Terry and John Price, Jeff Senior and Peter McWhinney and Ryan Haller and Wayne Perske, 100 PGA Professionals competed across three divisions over two rounds at the acclaimed Kooralbyn Valley layout.

In addition to the Foursomes Championship, there were trophies and prizemoney on offer for the leading two PGA Associates and the leading two over the age of 50 for the senior champions.

A two-time former winner with Matt Ballard in 2015 and 2018, Sim’s second victory in succession with Munro makes it four in total and a strong representation on the perpetual trophy.

“There are a lot of great names on that trophy and therefore to see mine on there a number of times is a great feeling,” said Sim.

“Foursomes is a tough game though I have been thankful I have had really good partners who are great communicators. I think that is a key to a good partnership.”

Sim and Munro were tied with Brenton Fowler and Mitch Dunbar after morning rounds of 1-under 71 but they separated themselves from the field with a 3-under 69 in the afternoon to finish five clear of Gavin Fairfax and Brett Rankin (75-70).

David Merriman and Don Edwards won the Queensland PGA Senior Foursomes Championship after rounds of 73 and 75 with Dylan Knox and Jordan Rooke taking out the Queensland PGA Associate Foursomes Championship by one stroke from Bailey Arnott and Josh Holbrook.

“There were some tough pin positions out there today and when combined with a really long course, it is pleasing to have been able to put a couple of solid rounds together,” said Merriman.

Knox and Rooke are both first year PGA Associates, Rooke playing Kooralbyn for the very first time.

“It isn’t an easy layout to play when you haven’t played here before,” Rooke admitted.

“Dylan guided me around the course nicely and we managed to keep the big numbers off the scorecard.”

The adidas PGA Pro-Am Series now moves to New South Wales, starting with the Gunnedah Kelaher Industrial Pro-Am at Gunnedah Golf Club on Friday.

Final scores and prizemoney