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Michael Sim’s three-stroke advantage is now null and void yet the Queenslander is ready to reset for the match play section of the Gippsland Super 6 at Warragul Country Club.
After three rounds of stroke play the top 24 qualifiers for Sunday’s series of six-hole matches has been determined, Sim leading the top eight who will receive a round one bye.
Three birdies in the space of four holes from the 10th at the tricky Warragul Country Club layout provided the cornerstone of Sim’s third round of five-under 65 and a 16-under par total through 54 holes.
Round one leader Andrew Dodt (67) finished outright second at 13-under par followed by 2020 Victorian PGA champion Chris Wood, who played the back nine in three-over 39 for a score of one-over 71 to finish at 11-under.
The top eight was completed with five players who finished level at nine-under par, Queensland’s Jake McLeod posting the round of the day – six-under 64 – to join Bryden Macpherson (66), Daniel Beckmann (68), Shae Wools-Cobb (68) and Kade McBride (68) in the second round.
Defending ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winner Brad Kennedy, Blitz Golf guru Matthew Millar, defending champion Marcus Fraser and two-time Australian Open champion Peter Lonard were among the big names to miss out on what promises to be an unpredictable and absorbing day of golf on Sunday.
Play will begin early from 6.45am to avoid the worst of the weather expected Sunday afternoon and Sim has accepted the fact that it is effectively the start of a brand new tournament.
“I played really well. Putted really well, drove it pretty straight but it’s just a different feeling now. Kind of like a new tournament starting tomorrow,” said Sim.
“But we knew that coming in and I’m looking forward to it.
“I had a three-shot lead after three rounds and that doesn’t really matter now.
“I was thinking about what the top-eight number might be and just tried to get out of that and just play golf.
“I’ll qualify one – not sure who I’ll play – but get a little bit of a sleep-in.
“It’s just six holes match play now. It will be an exciting format for the fans, for the gallery and for the sponsors and hopefully it will be a good finish tomorrow.”
The 2005 Western Australian Amateur Match Play champion, Sim is no stranger to the head-to-head format and his all-around class and strong showing first-up last week at the Victorian PGA Championship makes him the popular pick heading into Sunday.
The Warragul layout is vastly different to the Moonah Links Open Course where Sim finished tied for 11th last week but it is one where mistakes can be punished and controlled aggression is rewarded.
“The wind really came up from the second hole and it was quite tricky out there,” Sim added.
“It wasn’t supposed to switch until about 4 o’clock this afternoon and then it switched on about the fifth hole.
“Moonah is linksy and exposed and this is a short, parkland-type course but it was tricky out there, especially as the warmer weather came in yesterday and today.
“You still had to be on top of your game and you could see there was a few guys leaking a few shots late.”
As the top-eight enjoy a direct passage through to round two the remaining 16 players to qualify will face off for the chance to advance.
The match-up between Blitz Golf Howlong champion Daniel Gale and two-time New Zealand Open winner Michael Hendry will be one of the highlights of round one along with the all-Victorian match between TPS Sydney victor Andrew Martin and 2019 NZ Open champion Zach Murray and Jordan Zunic and Tim Hart going head-to-head.
Round 1 draw
6.45am Jackson Bugdalski v Jack Thompson
6.53am Jack Buchanan (a) v Brett Rankin
7.01am Rohan Blizard v James Marchesani
7.09am Lawry Flynn v Ben Campbell
7.17am Daniel Gale v Michael Hendry
7.25am Andrew Martin v Zach Murray
7.33am Dimitrios Papadatos v Ben Wharton
7.41am Jordan Zunic v Tim Hart
Photo: Henry Peters
An injured shoulder proved to be no obstacle for New South Welshman Andrew Dodt in the opening round of the Gippsland Super 6 at Warragul Country Club today.
The former Queenslander, now Novacastrian, shot a bogey free seven-under par round of 63 to be one shot clear of Queenslanders Michael Sim and Lawry Flynn despite being unsure if he would be fit to play yesterday.
Dodt, 35, withdrew from last week’s Victorian PGA Championship at the halfway mark because of his shoulder complaint and he has been racing against the clock to be ready for the final tournament of the year ever since.
“I kind of got through the last couple of days with a bit of physio and stretching. I decided yesterday afternoon that it felt pretty good and I’d give it a go,” he said.
“Seven-under it’s a little bit unexpected.”
In order to ease the pain, the 35-year-old refrained from using his driver on Warragul’s many short par-4s and instead opted for his trusty 2-iron while many others attacked the greens with the big stick.
“That was simply because hitting driver hurt and 2-iron didn’t. So I hit a lot of 2-irons and the shoulder was feeling alright so I started hitting more drivers,” he said.
“I might have to change my game plan now because the shoulder is feeling pretty good. There might be a few more drivers.”
A change of approach may be fraught with danger as keeping the driver in the bag proved to be the most effective strategy of the day.
After beginning the morning on the 10th tee, Dodt took full advantage of the front nine which was more conducive to low scoring.
He made five birdies – which included a brilliant putt from off the green on the ninth – to enter the clubhouse with the outright lead.
“When you’ve got an injury or you’re feeling a bit under the weather, you play each shot as it is,” he said.
“The shot comes to you a lot clearer and you take it one shot at a time, as you’re supposed to do anyway, but the shoulder kind of made me concentrate a little more and switch on that little bit more.”
Sim and Flynn both made eight birdies in their entertaining rounds of 64 to be in the hunt, while New South Welshman Lincoln Tighe put on a show in the afternoon during his five-under par round.
Tighe opened with five straight birdies and was level with Dodt after 15 holes, but two late bogeys left him visibility frustrated.
He is joined by fellow New South Welshman Rohan Blizzard, South Australian Jack Thompson, Queenslander Aaron Wilkin and Victorian Jack Murdoch in a share of fourth.
Andrew Dodt quotes:
“I wasn’t sure whether I was going to tee it up this time yesterday. I hurt my shoulder last week at the Vic PGA and I kind of got through the last couple of days with a bit of physio and stretching. I decided yesterday afternoon that it felt pretty good and I’d give it a go. Seven-under it’s a little bit unexpected.”
“That was simply because hitting driver hurt and 2-iron didn’t. So I hit a lot of 2-irons and the shoulder was feeling alright so I started hitting more drivers. I might have to change my game plan now because the shoulder is feeling pretty good. There might be a few more drivers.”
“When you’ve got an injury or you’re feeling a bit under the weather, you play each shot as it is. The shot comes to you a lot clearer and you take it one shot at a time, as you’re supposed to do anyway, but the shoulder kind of made me concentrate a little more and switch on that little bit more.”
Bendigo native Andrew Martin will tap into his regional roots as he seeks a second PGA Tour of Australasia title at this week’s Gippsland Super 6 tournament in Warragul.
After two years at Yallourn Golf Club, the innovative format that combines three rounds of stroke play with the excitement of match play on Sunday moves to Warragul Country Club for the second event on the 2021/2022 schedule.
Defending champion Marcus Fraser is back to defend his title, headlining a field that boasts recently-crowned Victorian PGA champion Blake Windred, reigning Order of Merit champion Brad Kennedy, European Tour players Jake McLeod and Deyen Lawson and former Australian Open winners Peter Lonard and Peter Fowler.
Martin delivered one of the rounds of the day in shooting 68 on Sunday at Moonah Links to finish tied for fifth at the Victorian PGA and is very familiar with the Warragul Country Club layout.
Prior to his breakthrough victory at the TPS Sydney event in March, Martin shared top honours with Tim Hart at the one-day Warragul Pro-Am and sees a number of similarities between it and the Neangar Park layout where he played as a junior.
“The course should suit me,” Martin believes.
“My coach, Darren Cole, has now taken the job at Traralgon but I usually go and see him at Drouin or Warragul so I know the boys quite well down there.
“It’s one of those courses that can jump up and bite you but there are a lot of opportunities as well.
“I had six-under in the pro-am – the greens may be a little quicker this time around but there is a little bit of slope to them so I don’t know if they’ll go too crazy with the speed.
“If you miss on the wrong side of the greens it can sort some of the boys out with those smaller country greens.
“It’s probably a little more lush at Warragul than Neangar but it is very similar to the courses I grew up playing in the Bendigo area.
“I know they’re super excited to have it so I’m sure the course is going to be in great shape for it and the club will get behind it quite well.”
Back-to-back weeks in Thailand on the Asian Tour provided the perfect opportunity for Martin to tune up ahead of a busy summer of golf.
After this week the Tour will take a short break over Christmas and then resume with the Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland Golf Club from January 13.
Starting with the Mornington Peninsula last week this season will see tournaments conducted in a host of regional centres and Martin knows exactly how those communities will support them.
Although he insists Lucas Herbert has assumed the mantle of Bendigo’s No.1 golf product, 37-year-old Martin is grateful for the support he knows is at home wherever he plays.
“Bendigo has always been very supportive to me. I haven’t been back for a little while but the support that Bendigo gives all our sportspeople is very good,” Martin adds.
“Early days I might have put a bit more pressure on myself to try and do well and make people back home proud but I’m older now and ‘Herbie’ has taken over the crown with the stuff he’s doing.
“Although we both played at Neangar, the support that Lucas and I get from the region, the Axedale boys, it’s quite a close-knit golf community in Bendigo.
“Yallourn has been great the past couple of years but being a bit more central and closer to town I think Warragul is going to have a great atmosphere.
“They really get behind their pro-am so having that bigger event – and with the strength of the field this week – I’ve got no doubt it will be quite a good week.”
While the venue has changed, there is also a sense of unfinished business for Martin.
He led eventual champion Marcus Fraser by two shots with two holes to play in the second round of match play last year only for a three-shot swing on the second last hole to turn the match on its head.
“It’s something different,” Martin says of the format. “It’s good to have the three rounds and then the match play on the Sunday.
“The six holes do come up pretty quick so you do have to change your approach a little bit.
“I don’t try to change too much but this course might bring it out a bit more where you have to take it on a bit more depending on who you’re playing.
“If you can give yourself a lot of opportunities to putt for birdie there’s not much more you can do. Over the six holes if you can hole a couple of them you’re going to be right in the match.
“Warragul is quite tight in spots so if one of the boys who bomb it can hit it straight then they can eat it up.
“But you’ve got to do it for three rounds to get to the match play and then you never know what’s going to happen.”
The Gippsland Super 6 at Warragul Country Club starts on Thursday morning with the first of three rounds of stroke play. On Sunday the top 24 players face off in six-hole matches culminating in a six-hole final Sunday afternoon. Total prizemoney is $137,500.
Gippsland Super 6 Past Winners
2019: Tom Power Horan
2020/2021: Marcus Fraser
The summer of golf is officially underway as the morning groups have hit at the Legends course at Moonah Links.
In a format reminiscent of the Pebble Beach Pro-am and Dunhill Links Championship, our tour stars are playing alongside amateurs and they will compete for the Victorian Celebrity Amateur Challenge.
Among the professionals, one group to watch out for this morning is Australian Open champion Peter Lonard playing alongside Deyen Lawson – who played in this year’s The Open Championship at Royal St George’s.
Another morning group that has caught the eye is Western Open champion Daniel Gale who is paired with his mother Vicki.
AFL football fans can look out for the likes of Brendan Fevola, Paul Roos and Dale Thomas, while other celebrities in the field include champion jockeys Damien Oliver and Glen Boss, Australian Golf Show co-host Tiffany Cherry and The Block star Keith Schleiger.
Four players from four states and territories are locked in a four-way tie after all shot four-under in the first round of the PGA Associate National Championships at Rich River Golf Club.
The first to enter the clubhouse at four-under was the most experienced of the quartet, Jack Sandic, a third year PGA Associate from Ranfurlie Golf Club in Melbourne’s south-east.
The 26-year-old was the best of the morning field, dropping five birdies and one bogey in ideal conditions to finish with 66 in a revised layout of Rich River’s East Course.
“I was a bit nervous early on as I haven’t played many rounds since coming out of lockdown, so just to make three birdies early just really settled the nerves,” said Sandic.
The first to pull alongside Sandic was Muree Golf Club first year PGA Associate Chad Mackay, who also carded five birdies and one bogey to ensure New South Wales was represented at the top of the leaderboard.
The wind picked up late in the afternoon, but that didn’t slow the scoring with two more contenders making themselves known.
Aaron Maxwell, a second year PGA Associate from Federal Golf Club in the ACT, had the highlight of the day with an eagle-3 on the par-5, 11th hole to accompany his five birdies and three bogeys.
“I holed a few putts and got off to a good start with an eagle on my second hole and was able to drop some good putts today,” said Maxwell.
The final group of the day saw Queenslander Alexander (AJ) McCoy from Caloundra Golf Club join the leaders at four-under. The 18-year-old (pictured top) made a sparkling first impression at the National Championship with an impressive six birdies and two bogeys.
The quartet of youth and experience laid down the gauntlet to a strong field with 20 others all shooting under par as the field look to strengthen their position ahead of tomorrow’s cut.
Round two commences on Wednesday at 7am with sunny conditions and low scoring forecasted.
Queensland’s Chris Wood has returned to winning ways just days out from his Victorian PGA title defence at Moonah Links Resort.
Playing in his first adidas Pro-Am Series since the Bulimba Pro-Am in Brisbane in July, it was another nine-hole course where Wood made his competitive return for the MMD Geelong Pro-Am at the Geelong Golf Club public golf course.
The tight, par-33 layout demanded Wood played aggressively from the outset and he was more than up to the task, recording four birdies and an eagle at the 450-metre par-5 fourth in his winning score of five-under 28.
Victorian Darren Bowman was six-under through seven holes but dropped shots at his final two holes to grab outright second, one shot clear of a group of five players at three-under, Michael Isherwood, Wade Lowrie, Brett Rankin, Jackson Bugdalski and James Grierson all shooting 30 for nine holes.
With limited playing opportunities in recent months, Wood’s win was the perfect warm-up for Moonah Links next week and the summer ahead.
“Today was a really good way to get my summer of golf underway,” said Wood, who birdied his final two holes to steal victory.
“I love this nine-hole event. Conditions were really tricky out there this afternoon and even though the course is short, those pins today were pretty tough in the breeze.
“It’s great to get a win and some confidence heading into next week.”
Highlight of the day came from the Northern Territory’s George Worrall who holed out for an albatross two on the par-5 fourth hole, propelling him up the leaderboard alongside Australian Senior PGA champion Guy Wall, Geelong local Tybin Lawson and former Geelong Pro-Am winner Simon Hawkes.
The adidas Pro-Am Series continues on Sunday with the Higgins Coatings Sands Pro-Am at The Sands Torquay.
A rejuvenated club in Canberra, more than 200 new female golfers at a regional golf club, close to 100 juniors engaged across two Sydney golf clubs and victories on two of the world’s biggest professional golf tours.
These are just some of the accomplishments of the four recipients of the 2021 NSW/ACT PGA Professional of the Year awards.
Nominations for each of the four categories were again of the highest order as PGA Professionals guide newcomers to the game, foster new areas of growth amongst juniors and women, guide the fortunes of elite amateurs and world-class professionals and take an active leadership role in the performance of many of our top golf clubs.
“Our PGA Professionals have perhaps never been busier than the past two years and their influence on golf facilities has never been greater,” said NSW/ACT PGA State Manager David Barker.
“Their skills are diverse – from conducting lessons, coordinating golf operations all the way through to being actively engaged in management decisions at golf clubs.
“Our four award winners this year have been exceptional in their particular areas of expertise but I’d like to congratulate all of our PGA Pros for the way they have contributed to the game in the past year.”
Few have made a greater impact on their golf club than NSW/ACT Management Professional of the Year, Anthony Sinclair.
The General Manager at Federal Golf Club in the heart of the ACT, Sinclair has had an extraordinary influence on all areas of the business.
Through his leadership and skill set Sinclair has turned around the club’s previous financial struggles, instituted a rebrand and comprehensive marketing plan and implemented new course management practices that has the layout in superb condition.
The results of that are some 400 new members, close to double the number of monthly rounds, an increase of more than 200 per cent in equipment sales and the addition of 15 new corporate partners.
With a high priority placed on service, James Single’s devotion to the membership at Port Macquarie Golf Club on the Mid North Coast has earned him the coveted crown as the NSW/ACT Club Professional of the Year.
With a focus on the little things and providing the connection between the members and their club, Single has built a strong rapport since coming to the club eight years ago and continually looks for ways to engage new golfers.
One of his great success stories of the past 12 months is the Swing Fit program that has attracted more than 200 new female participants to Port Macquarie Golf Club.
More than 30 of those women have since become regular playing members and the ladies who have taken part in the Swing Fit program have encouraged partners, parents and even children to also give golf a go.
Giving golf a go has also been a key driver for Ryde-Parramatta Golf Club Professional Anthony Summers.
Summers has been named the NSW/ACT PGA State Coach of the Year (Game Development) largely due to the junior programs he has conducted not only at Ryde-Parramatta but also at St Michael’s Golf Club in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.
An accomplished player on the PGA Tour of Australasia and now PGA Legends Tour, Summers is engaged with 36 juniors at St Michael’s, writes and conducts the program with 56 juniors at Ryde-Parramatta and has also contributed to the Western Sydney Academy of Golf High Performance program.
At a time when many juniors in Sydney have been restricted in terms of accessing the golf course, Summers went above and beyond in establishing online programs to keep the kids engaged and continuing to improve even when they couldn’t get on course.
The restrictions imposed by COVID-19 have also presented new challenges to coaches of elite players based overseas yet Gary Barter has experienced another year of great success.
Director of Tuition at The Australian Golf Club and a PGA Member for the past 33 years, Barter’s international movements have been limited the past two years but that hasn’t prevented him from guiding Matt Jones to a second PGA Tour title and Stephanie Kyriacou a second Ladies European Tour win in 2021.
Barter has also worked in elite amateur golf programs for Golf Australia and Golf NSW and his insights a highly sought after as a keynote speaker, appearing at both the NZ PGA and Victorian PGA teaching summits as well as presenting to the Australian PGA Teaching Summit.
Daniel Gale lost a $20 bet to good mate Grace Kim on Tuesday, but he could not have cared less.
Gale, 25, fended off a swag of challengers from around the Dubbo Golf Club to win the adidas Pro-Am Series Western Open by a stroke – his first multi-round professional crown in Australia.
As it turned out, he needn’t have looked too far because his fiercest rival came from within the final group as Kim launched a tremendous late attack.
Earlier, Gale had peeded off four birdies on the front nine as Kim and their playing mate Charlie Dann couldn’t find the spark to go with the overnight leader.
By the time Kim and Dann finally matched him on the ninth green, Gale had pushed out to 13-under to ram home the advantage of his opening 63.
At that point, Josh Armstrong (64 to finish nine-under) and the white-hot Justin Warren (64 to finish 12-under) were making the most noise among the chasing pack.
And to be fair, it wasn’t until Warren took bogey from the front right sand on the 18th that his sensational challenge ultimately proved fruitless.
But that was all pre-Kim.
Playing against the men and in her first professional tournament on home soil, the 20-year-old Sydneysider made five birdies in succession from the ninth to the 13th to roar from her overnight position of seven-under and back into contention.
Her putts for birdie on the 14th and 15th burnt the cup before another one dropped on the 16th and the reigning Australian Amateur champ was suddenly within one after Gale’s three-putt bogey from the back fringe on the 13th.
Kim put another great roll on her birdie attempt on the penultimate hole only to watch it finish less than 10 centimetres directly behind the cup.
It left the pair separated by one as they stepped to the final tee, an uphill and testing par-3 with a testing short right pin.
Both players were equal to the challenge and knocked stellar shots within four metres of the flag, leaving Kim an uphill birdie try to heap the pressure on the frontrunner.
That putt having been tugged, Gale was left with two of his own for victory.
He took them both and was clearly delighted to win on home soil, following his previous big pro win in the 2018 Papua New Guinea Open.
“I knew I had to hit a good shot there,” Gale said after rounds of 63 and 67 left him at an imposing 14-under.
“I hadn’t really thought about it until then, but I had a look and saw that Grace was just one back and I knew she’d hit a good one, which she did.
“But I was really happy with the way I dealt with the (overnight) lead throughout the round and how I played my own game.
“It shows me that what I’ve been working on is all worthwhile. I’m really proud to have my game hold up like that with so many great players coming at me.”
Not forgetting Dann (68 to finish 11-under), the final group made only one bogey all day despite an hour lightning delay before their round and a light drizzle throughout.
Kim, though, was nothing short of sensational.
She played all 36 holes without a blemish on her scorecard and, while obviously disappointed not to have notched a victory, gave an account of herself that belied her years in rounds of 65-66.
“I’m very happy to have played like that,” she said.
“There’s a lot happening here for me this week, so it’s really good that I could do that.”
And on top of her $5,300 runner-up cheque, Kim was thrilled to take the $20 off Gale in their side wager.
“Absolutely, that’s what it was all about today,” she joked afterwards.
Lucas Herbert will have the best of both worlds next year as he intends to balance his schedule between the PGA Tour and the new DP World Tour.
The boy from Bendigo won on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean this year – and he has status on each major tour as a result – but he will not be abandoning Europe in 2022.
“I don’t want to turn my back on Europe and I’d like to play as many Rolex Series events as I can. It was the European Tour that helped me out when I first came out on Tour in extending me invitations to play,” Herbert told Australian golf writer Bernie McGuire for Golf, by TourMiss.
“Those invitations kick-started what I have been able to do in recent years, so I don’t want people to be thinking now that I have my PGA Tour card I will be forgetting about the new DP World Tour.”
Herbert wrapped up his breakthrough season at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai last night – he came T21 – and he now returns home for the first time since January with clear plans for next year.
“I’m just looking forward to getting back, having a few weeks off and then heading to Hawaii for the Sentry Tournament of Champions,” Herbert said.
“I’ll play Hawaii, the Farmers Insurance, Phoenix and the Genesis Invitational so it’s a very nice early new season schedule as I am not going to play too many events in a row to be nice and ready to play The Masters.”
After the completion of the three US majors, the 2020 Irish Open champion will be heading back to the Emerald Isle to defend his crown and possibly play his way to St Andrews.
“I’m starting my season in the States but I will be back to Ireland to defend the Irish Open,” he said.
“It’s important to me to defend the tournament and I see from the new 2022 schedule it’s returning to Mt Juliet and that’s great news, so I’ll be going there looking to win for a second time.
“I’m also not into The Open, so I may need to win to get myself in The Open at St Andrews.”
Herbert secured his place at The Masters and the US PGA Championship with his victory at the PGA Tour’s Butterfield Bermuda Championship, but he needs to remain inside the top 50 in the world – he is currently No. 45 in the Official World Golf Rankings – to guarantee his spot in the field at The Open and the US Open.
In order to maintain, and hopefully improve upon, his ranking, the Victorian has declared the need for greater consistency in his game – despite winning on the PGA Tour already this season, he has missed the cut in his other three events.
“I need to get better as a golfer to have every golf course suit me and I just shouldn’t turn up to a venue and go: ‘oh, this place doesn’t suit’,” he said.
“I need to get better so that every tournament venue suits me and if a golf course I need to walk onto doesn’t suit me, then I have to get it sorted so that I can figure it out and get comfortable.
“And rather than thinking that with PGA Tour and European Tour membership means I can probably pick-and-choose where I want to play, it’s not about that.
“It shouldn’t matter whether it’s Bay Hill, Riviera or Augusta, every golf course should suit me and that is the level I want to get to.”
After two years of uncertainty some of Australian golf’s most familiar names and a host of up-and-comers will make their long-awaited return to tournament golf at a course perfectly suited for the occasion.
Howlong Golf Resort just outside Albury on the banks of the Murray River will host its first Blitz Golf event on Friday and has drawn some of this country’s most accomplished players.
Three-time European Tour winner Marcus Fraser, NSW Open champion Bryden Macpherson, 2021 Blitz Golf Series winner Matthew Millar and three-time PGA Tour of Australasia winner Matthew Griffin (pictured) will all tee it up in the unique one-day format that starts with 40 players and culminates with four players facing off on one hole for the title.
It will mark the first time that Griffin puts a new putting style to the test of tournament pressure, 166 days since his last tournament appearance in Japan.
‘How long since you’ve played?’ has been a common question for many Aussie golfers the past 18 months but ahead of the Blitz Golf event, two-day pro-am at Barham and the first of two $50,000 NSW Open qualifiers at Murray Downs, Griffin is happy to have a schedule he can build into over the coming weeks and months.
Following the New Zealand Open in March 2020, Griffin went 329 days between tournaments, his only solace coming from the time he has been able to spend with his young family.
“You can’t get away from the fact that I’ve lost two years of the peak period of my golfing life but I’ve been able to spend two years with my young son Jack,” said Griffin, who has fallen almost 1,200 spots in the Official World Golf Rankings since the NZ Open.
“If I didn’t have Jack it would have been a very long two years.
“Instead of having to travel half the year I’ve been able to spend a lot of quality time with him. My wife’s been working so I’ve been able to look after him most of the time at home and that’s been really nice.
“The good part about it is that seeing a bit more behind the scenes (as a member of the Tournament Players Council) there’s a lot of really good stuff going on.
“Hopefully as we come out of this COVID break I can see the next three or four years being really positive for the tour.”
In the initial lockdown Griffin and coach Denis McDade invested time in addressing swing issues that they hadn’t been able to fully get on top of amidst a hectic playing schedule.
The 38-year-old was top-15 in three consecutive events on the domestic tour earlier this year but was frustrated by his putting performance, using this latest hiatus to experiment with two different methods.
“I’ve trialled the arm lock and the cross-handed so I’ll be starting at Howlong putting cross-handed which is the first time I will have done that in my career,” Griffin revealed.
“It’s been a lot of experimenting, just to see what works. The hard thing is that I can use it playing a social round at Victoria but I won’t know if any of these methods that I’ve been working on for the last five months are any good until I put it into competition.
“Both methods feel good in practice, it’s just a matter of when the heat comes on and I need to hole a six or seven-footer for birdie on the first hole at Howlong, that’s when I’ll know if they’re any good.
“It’s eager anticipation that hopefully it does feel good when I step out onto the golf course.”
With the field cut in half after just six holes trialling a new putting style at a Blitz Golf event could result in an early exit.
Having never progressed past the semi-final stage, Griffin concedes the mix of patience and aggression can be a tricky one to get right.
“My Blitz Golf record is really good for the first round,” said Griffin, who will play the adidas Pro-Am Series events at Barham and Cohuna ahead of The Murray Open at Murray Downs.
“The first round is a delicate balance because if you make a mistake you can be out of it straight away. You’ve got to play aggressive but if you make a double on the first it’s almost all over.
“When you do get into that second round you’ve got three holes and if you don’t make a birdie you’re probably going home so then you really have to play pretty aggressive because there’s no difference between missing by one shot or five.
“I’ve topped the first round two or three times but I’ve never got past the semi-finals. I’ve got to get some revenge on that at Howlong on Friday.”
Play at Blitz Golf Howlong begins at 2pm AEDT on Friday. Click here for the field and scoring.
