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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.
Starts alongside Australian golf’s biggest stars and the richest prize purse for an Associate or Trainee tournament anywhere in the world go on the line at the PGA Associate National Championship at Rich River Golf Club starting December 7.
Second-year Associate at Cobram-Barooga Golf Club Steffanie Vogel and first-year Associate at Rich River Cooper Gentle will carry the hopes of the Murray River golf community with male and female PGA Associates vying for a share of the $60,000 in prizemoney off respective tees.
Formerly known as the Futures National Championship, the PGA Associate National Championship will be contested from December 7-10 and is the first to be held since the 2019 championship at Ballarat Golf Club.
And the rewards are significant.
The winner of the event will gain entry into either the Australian PGA Championship or Australian WPGA Championship at Royal Queensland in January, teeing it up alongside the likes of Min Woo Lee, Geoff Ogilvy and Hannah Green.
Irrespective of the winner, the highest ranked female PGA Associate (that makes the cut) will also gain a start through a WPGA category in a Webex Players Series event in 2022.
“As a part of our ongoing collaboration with the PGA of Australia, the WPGA Tour is delighted to be able to offer the highest placed female at the 2021 PGA Associate National Championship an invitation to compete in the Webex Players Series Sydney which will be held at Bonnie Doon Golf Club from the 3rd-6th of March 2022,” said WPGA Tour CEO Karen Lunn.
“In addition, should the winner of the 2021 PGA Associate National Championship be a female, we will also offer them an invitation to compete in the inaugural Australian WPGA Championship, to be held concurrently with the Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland Golf Club from the 13th-16th January 2022.”
Host to the Rich River Trainee Classic for 33 years straight, Rich River Golf Club CEO Shane Gloury said the club was delighted to bring tournament golf back to the club.
“The Rich River Golf Club is thrilled that we’re able host the 2021 PGA Associate National Championship,” said Mr Gloury.
“We are proud of the long history we’ve had hosting the Rich River Trainee Classic for the past 33 years and can’t wait to continue that support through the National Championship.
“After a challenging 18 months, our members and community can’t wait to see Professional golf back at Rich River Golf Club.”
Despite various border restrictions, around 100 Associates are expected to take part in the championship with a number of players bringing strong credentials to the tournament.
Year 3 PGA Associate Brayden Petersen (pictured) from Kurri Golf Club in Newcastle has twice won at Rich River while Victorian PGA Associate Champion Lachlan Aylen (Eynesbury Golf Club) also boasts strong form in the region, his Victorian win coming at Tocumwal Golf Club by an impressive five strokes.
Leading after three rounds of the 2020 Rich River Classic, Steffanie Vogel was runner-up to Aylen in May and is considered a strong chance while Cooper Gentle will use the knowledge of playing on his home course to enhance his hopes.
A six-hole surge late in the first round has propelled Sanctuary Cove Golf and Country Club PGA Associate Mitchell Smith to a convincing win in the final of the Pampling Plate at Caboolture Golf Club.
Flying somewhat under the radar on his way to the 36-hole final against Caloundra’s Bailey Arnott, Smith was seeking to add to his victory at the NSW PGA Associate Championship earlier in the year against the current leader of the Queensland PGA MPP Order of Merit.
The pair are sitting first and second on the Order of Merit so it was little surprise to see them face off in Thursday’s final and the early exchanges were befitting of the standard of play they had produced all week.
The match was all square through nine holes before Smith pounced to assume the momentum late in the first round.
He won four of the next six holes to begin the back nine and managed to maintain that advantage through to the start of the second round.
Competition was again tight to start the second 18 with the first five holes all halved before Arnott reduced the deficit by winning the ninth and 10th holes.
The score remained 3 up to Smith through the 11th and 12th holes and when he won the 13th and 14th holes with consecutive birdies he was able to close out the match 5&4.
“I hit the ball great today but putted quite awful. Lucky for me Bailey was not putting well either,” said Smith, who was presented with the Pampling Plate by Rod Pampling’s mother Marge.
“I had a great week here at Caboolture and to win this prestigious event that Rod and Ange Pampling support and sponsor is a thrill.”
In the playoff for third and fourth it was KDV Sport PGA Associate Harrison Wills who took the honours, defeating AJ McCoy from Caloundra Golf Club.
He shot to prominence playing nine holes with Adam Scott but Caloundra trainee Bailey Arnott can establish a new claim to fame after qualifying for the final of the Coca-Cola Pampling Plate at Caboolture Golf Club.
Arnott will face off against Sanctuary Cove’s Mitchell Smith in the 36-hole final on Thursday after both came through their quarter-final and semi-final matches on Wednesday.
Arnott was tasked with getting past AJ McCoy in his semi-final after McCoy had accounted for a second former Pampling Plate champion in as many days, defeating Dean Jamieson 1 up in the quarter-finals.
“To knock over the past two champions of the event in consecutive matches is a pretty good feeling,” a happy McCoy said after advancing to a semi-final showdown with Arnott.
With a place in the final up for grabs the tension reached new heights in the afternoon semi-final matches, Arnott securing Caloundra bragging rights with a hard-fought 1 up win in a match of the highest order.
“It’s been a dream week so far but there is still a big day tomorrow to go so trying to keep it all in check,” said Arnott, who spent three months at Iowa State University prior to the Covid outbreak and then returned to the Sunshine Coast for pick-up matches with Scott, a long-time friend of Bailey’s father Tom.
Smith’s path to the final was slightly less stressful as he recorded convincing wins in both of his matches.
The 2021 NSW PGA Associate Champion at Moruya Golf Club earlier this year, Smith moved past Ray Harris 5&3 in the quarter-finals and then overcame arguably the player of the tournament to date, Harrison Wills, 5&3 in the semi-final.
Given Arnott’s connection to a former world No.1, Smith is ready to embrace the underdog tag for the 36-hole finale.
“It feels like I have snuck under the radar a little this week with most of the other favoured players playing each other,” said Smith.
Wills and McCoy will play over 18 holes to determine third and fourth positions with the final between Arnott and Smith to commence at 7.20am.
Live scoring of the final is available at pga.org.au.
For graduates of the PGA Membership Pathway Program and their indentured professionals, 2020 presented some challenges that didn’t come with a roadmap to navigate.
In Victoria in particular, various periods of lockdown meant that there was a physical disconnect between Associates and their workplace, but Director of Golf at Kingston Heath went out of his way to ensure that Lachlan Kenny and the golf operations team were actively engaged throughout.
“During lockdown Justin was always very active in making sure that we had something to do or could be involved with any changes or processes made from an operational perspective and also club perspective,” explains Kenny, who completed the PGA Membership Pathway Program at the end of 2020.
“Whilst everyone was locked up so to speak, we were working quite diligently throughout that lockdown period.
“From a support point of view, he always made sure that all of us had the ability to stay connected which was a massive boost.”
The mentorship that is a feature of the PGA of Australia’s Membership Pathway Program was crucial in Kenny’s career development.
His father Andrew has been the General Manager at Pelican Waters on the Sunshine Coast and Heritage Golf and Country Club in Melbourne and his family are close friends with former ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia player Heath Reed.
When Kenny moved to Melbourne to advance his playing career he sought the counsel of Ben Bunny at Ranfurlie Golf Club and found a mentor in Burrage at Kingston Heath who would provide clarity around his career prospects within the golf industry.
“Heath always taught me to work hard and if I was going to give something a go to give it my all,” Kenny explains.
“Ben Bunny at Ranfurlie was always a shoulder to lean upon and run ideas past, especially while I was looking at playing. He was a great coach and definitely helped with my coaching to membership.
“Justin has been at Kingston Heath for 18 years and really invested his time into me, ensuring that if I had any questions or concerns to voice that to him.
“That’s where the communication side really came to life with myself. If there was an issue, rather than stewing on it, to talk it through. He was always very supportive with any ideas or challenges that we had in the workplace and how we could work through those.
“Those three as PGA Members were definitely big mentors for myself.”
Recognising that staff turnover at Kingston Heath is minimal, Kenny and Burrage began evaluating opportunities elsewhere when a twist of fate opened the way for a return to where Kenny’s traineeship had begun.
Another Melbourne lockdown delayed his start date by a week but the doors open again Kenny will be employed as the Golf Operations Manager at Settlers Run Golf and Country Club.
“Throughout the last year I worked out that I wanted to transition out of playing and into club management and golf operations,” said Kenny, who began the Member Pathway Program at Settlers Run before moving to Kingston Heath with the club’s full blessing.
“Towards the end of my traineeship I sat down with Justin and we talked through the avenues I wanted to work into and openly discussing areas that I can work into outside of Kingston Heath.
“I knew from a little way out that a move was necessary and he was fully supportive of talking through the pros and cons of each avenue that I wanted to go down.
“The opportunity came up at Settlers Run where I originally started my traineeship and I jumped at it.”
Courtesy of his mentors along the way, Kenny now understands how he wants to impact the facilities he works at throughout his career, starting at Settlers Run.
“Whatever which operation you are in, a level of attentiveness and service has no price,” says Kenny.
“It’s all down to effort and making sure that members and anyone attending the club feels welcome. “I’ll still learn how to deal with people management but it’s taking ownership of everyone’s accountability to ensure that anyone waking through the door is going to have an enjoyable experience.
“Hopefully that will help to grow the game of golf.”
An extraordinary front nine highlighted by an albatross at the par-5 eighth has propelled Sanctuary Cove’s Mitchell Smith to a runaway nine-stroke victory at the GOLFMATE NSW/ACT PGA State Associate Championship.
Seeking to complete a wire-to-wire win at Moruya Golf Club on the New South Wales South Coast, Smith began the fourth and final round with a three-shot buffer, a lead that was reduced to two when Jackson Jubelin (Palm Meadows) opened his round with a birdie.
But after pars at his opening two holes Smith then set about separating himself from the rest of the field, making three straight birdies from the third hole and then holing his second shot from close to 200 metres out at the 468-metre par-5 eighth.
After a front-nine of 6-under 30 and with the chasing pack kept at bay, Smith made 10 pars in succession to complete a round of 6-under 65 – the best of the week – and record a dominant victory with a four-round total of 7-under.
A round of 1-under par 70 was enough for Goulburn’s Luke Humphries to claim outright second at 2-over par with Beau McDonald from Hawks Nest Golf Club finishing at 3-over par after also completing the final round in 1-under 70.
TOURNAMENT RAFFLE RESULTS
1st Place – Graeme Fairchild (1 set of Titleist T200 T-Series Steel Irons *Custom Fitted*)
2nd Place – Phil Chesham (1 Scotty Cameron Putter)
3rd Place – Mark McDougall (1 Riverside Oaks Stay & Play Package for two; including 2 rounds of golf with motorised cart plus 1 nights’ accommodation in a Deluxe Room with Breakfast)
4th Place – Jordan Peters (1 Mid-Week round of golf for 4 including Motorised Carts at Riverside Oaks Golf Resort)
5th Place – Ian Anlezark (1 Titleist Stand Bag)
6th Place – Greg Kable (1 Pair of Footjoy MyJoys)
A final round showdown looms at the GOLFMATE NSW/ACT PGA State Associate Championship after runaway leader Mitchell Smith came back to the field in Wednesday’s third round at Moruya Golf Club.
The icy blast sweeping the eastern seaboard hit hard on the New South Wales South Coast, a hailstorm forcing a brief postponement of play.
Eight shots clear at the halfway mark of the tournament, the Sanctuary Cove Golf and Country Club Associate struggled to maintain his heady pace in the bitterly cold conditions, three bogeys on each nine adding up to a 6-over 77 to be the only player under par through 54 holes at 1-under.
As Smith struggled, fellow Queenslander Jackson Jubelin (Palm Meadows) made up ground albeit in wildly fluctuating fashion.
Despite bogeys at one and three and a double-bogey at the par-4 seventh, Jubelin made the turn in 1-over, two birdies and two bogeys on the back nine enabling him to cut the margin by five strokes with a third round of 72.
The two Maroons will have a host of New South Welshman hot on their heels on Thursday with Toby Williams (St Michaels) and former tour player Luke Humphries (Goulburn) four strokes back of Smith in a share of third.
Williams was the only player able to better par in Wednesday’s difficult conditions, his round of 3-under 68 featuring three straight birdies to close out the front nine and back-to-back birdies to complete his round and move inside the top five.
First groups tee off at 7.15am on Thursday morning with the group of Smith, Jubelin and Williams to commence their final rounds at 8.27am.
Sanctuary Cove’s Mitchell Smith shows no signs of slowing down as he extended his lead to an imposing eight shots at the halfway mark of the 2021 GOLFMATE NSW/ACT PGA State Associate Championship at Moruya Golf Club.
The New South Wales South Coast threw up some challenging conditions for players on day two but after a steady opening nine Smith continued to separate himself from the pack.
Backing up from a brilliant 5-under 66 in the first round, Smith made the turn in 1-over before moving to Moruya’s front nine where he picked up birdies on the second, fourth and eighth holes in a round of 2-under 69.
At 7-under through 36 holes Smith is eight strokes clear of Links Shell Cove’s Danielle Vasquez (73) and Palm Meadow’s Jackson Jubelin (74) with a total of 53 players qualifying for the final two rounds.
Two of just five Queenslanders to have made the cut, Smith and Jubelin will likely feel some State of Origin heat from the NSW players on their tails with Brayden Petersen (70) and Beau McDonald (73) in a share of fourth at 2-over through two rounds.
The third round will commence at 7am Wednesday morning.
Sanctuary Cove Associate Mitchell Smith has shown an instant affinity with the Moruya Golf Club layout on the New South Wales South Coast, taking the early lead at the 2021 GOLFMATE NSW/ACT PGA State Associate Championship.
Smith has already established a three-shot buffer at the top of the leaderboard following a brilliant round of 5-under 66 on Monday highlighted by an eagle three at the 468-metre par-5 eighth, fellow Gold Coaster Jackson Jubelin (Palm Meadows) in outright second at 2-under.
With four birdies and a lone bogey Smith’s round was all the more notable given he had only flown into Canberra and driven down to Moruya the day before but he quickly adjusted to Moruya Golf Club’s pure putting surfaces.
“It was good to get down here on the South Coast and play on some NSW greens,” Smith said.
“The conditions were magnificent and I was glad I managed to take full advantage of the conditions out there.
“The greens are pretty quick, so if I can manage to get the ball in the right areas and stay consistent with the putter, I should be well in-contention come Thursday.”
Cromer Golf Club Associate Corey Fairchild and Danielle Vasquez (Links Shell Cove) share third place after opening rounds of 1-under 70, only four players breaking par on the twisting, tree-lined layout.
Round 2 begins Tuesday morning at 7.30am with live scores available at pga.org.au.
Lachlan Aylen has cruised to a five-shot victory to claim the Vic/Tas PGA Associate Championship.
The second year PGA Associate at the Eynesbury Golf & Homestead in Victoria, lead wire-to-wire to secure the title, and created tournament history in the process.
Aylen shot a steady 1-under par 71 around the Captains course of the Tocumwal Golf & Bowls Club to record a comfortable victory.
The forecast was a foggy start to the morning but the players awoke to another beautiful Tocumwal morning.
There was no breeze to speak of and the only challenge that was presented to the players was the Captains course and their quick greens.
Aylen put any nerves to rest from the outset with a birdie at the first followed by another at the seventh, but these were offset by bogeys at the fifth and sixth holes.
Unfortunately, neither of his playing partners were able to apply any pressure and Aylen was able to complete a great week with a birdie on the 71st hole to have a relaxed walk down the 72nd.
Aylen finished with a Tournament Record equalling total of 17-under par 271 ahead of Steffi Vogel (Cobram-Barooga) in outright second on 276.
Tim Walker (Peninsula-Kingswood) was outright third on 280. Tied for fourth was Danny Nesbitt (Wollongong) and Connor McLean (Melton Valley) on 283.
With his win Aylen not only claimed the Vic/Tas PGA Associate title and just over $6000 in prizemoney but also the Victorian PGA Associate Championship which was played concurrently during the tournament.
View the final leaderboard at pga.org.au.
