Life-changing opportunity awaits eight Aussies - PGA of Australia

Life-changing opportunity awaits eight Aussies


Eight Aussies, six rounds and one life-changing opportunity. After close to three years of being shut off from world golf, eight Australians can play their way onto the DP World Tour in 2023 at this week’s Final Stage of Qualifying School in Spain.

To be played across the Lakes and Hills courses at Infinitum in Tarragona, 156 hopefuls are vying for one of the DP World Tour cards that will be awarded to the top 25 finishers and ties at the completion of six rounds.

Each player will play two rounds at the Lakes Course and the Hills Course before the top 70 and ties play the final two rounds at the Lakes Course.

It is the first time since 2019 that the DP World Tour has conducted a complete Qualifying School and three Aussies in particular can credit the strategic partnership between the DP World Tour and ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia for their place in the field.

In addition to the top three on the Australasian Order of Merit receiving 2023 DP World Tour cards – Jed Morgan, Blake Windred and Andrew Dodt – the next three were exempt into Final Stage.

Dimitrios Papadatos (pictured, far right), Aaron Pike (far left) and Louis Dobbelaar (second from left) were able to bypass Second Stage and plot their path to Final Stage.

Of the 19 Aussies who teed it up at Second Stage, Jarryd Felton, Jordan Zunic (pictured, second from right), Hayden Hopewell and Kyle Michel all advanced, keeping alive their hopes of playing in Europe in 2023.

Maverick Antcliff returns to Q School after failing to keep his card, PGA of Australia CEO Gavin Kirkman hoping to see a strong representation of Aussie professionals on the DP World Tour next year.

“The ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia is extremely proud of the strategic partnerships we have established with both the DP World Tour and PGA TOUR and the pathways they open for our players to further their careers on the world stage,” said Kirkman.

“Three of these players – Dimitrios Papadatos, Aaron Pike and Lois Dobbelaar – were exempt into Final Stage of Qualifying School as a direct result of their finish on the ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit, and a further three players – Jarryd Felton, Jordan Zunic and Kyle Michel – were exempt into Second Stage via their finish on the Order of Merit and last week played their way into the 156-man field for Final Stage.

“I want to wish all eight of our players teeing it up this week the best of luck and hope to see many of them start their DP World Tour season on home soil at the co-sanctioned Fortinet Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland Golf Club in a fortnight’s time.”

Whether or not they secure full status for next year, Felton, Zunic, Papadatos, Pike and Dobbelaar are entered for the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland Golf Club from November 24, a tournament that is co-sanctioned with the DP World Tour.

It is another of the many ways in which the PGA Tour of Australasia is providing the pathways for Aussie golfers to take their games to the world stage.

DP World Tour
Qualifying School 2022 – Final Stage
Lakes Course, Infinitum, Tarragona, Spain
Lakes Course
8.29pm Jarryd Felton, Félix Mory, Frederic Lacroix
8.50pm Hayden Hopewell, Anton Karlsson, Pedro Oriol

Hills Course
7.21pm Kyle Michel, David Hague, Harry Goddard
7.32pm*             Jordan Zunic, Alfonso Buendia, Craig Ross
8.14pm Dimitrios Papadatos, Renato Paratore, Stefano Mazzoli
8.14pm*             Maverick Antcliff, Craig Howie, Richard McEvoy
8.24pm*             Aaron Pike, Tom Lewis, Francesco Laporta
8.45pm*             Louis Dobbelaar, Tobias Eden, Felipe Aguilar


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