Martin soars to win Hawks Nest Pro-Am by four - PGA of Australia

Martin soars to win Hawks Nest Pro-Am by four


Peter Martin’s second round of nine-under 63 was a surprise in more ways than one as he came from two back to win the $50,000 Beachside Hawks Nest Pro-Am at Hawks Nest Golf Club.

Flying in from Queensland the day prior to try and have a practice round, Martin was confined to just walking the course due to the wet weather in the region leading up to the two-day tournament.

He opened with a three-under 69 to be in the mix and then defied an indifferent warm-up on the putting green to post nine-under on day two for a four-shot win.

Martin’s two-round total of 12-under par was four clear of Ben Clementson (67-69) with Doug Klein (67-70), Peter Wilson (68-69) and Tim Hart (69-68) all sharing third place at seven-under.

A two-time winner on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series last year, the 43-year-old had 10 birdies in his stunning second round, pleasantly surprised to see putt after putt drop into the cup.

“It was a bit of a surprise to be honest,” Martin said of his 63.

“I was feeling OK with my swing and stuff but on the putting green I felt like I was battling a little bit before going out there.

“I got off to a nice start to be honest. I birdied two of my first three and I knew I had some shortish par 5s in my last few holes.

“I just allow myself these days to hit a putt on line and if it goes in it goes in; if it doesn’t, it doesn’t.

“The greens got bumpy towards the end – which is only to be expected with the softer conditions – but I just committed to hitting a good putt and they went in, which was great.”

Calling on the mental performance work he has been doing with Jenny Jones at Lakelands Golf Club on the Gold Coast, Martin was not even aware of what he had shot until after inputting his scores at the end of the round.

“I wasn’t looking at the scores and I didn’t even know what I was,” added Martin, who had three birdies in his final four holes in fading light.

“I actually ended up playing the last hole with the pro in the group behind me just so that we could get finished.

“I hit a nice 8-iron in there from 150 to six or seven feet and hit a great putt in the hole. He was like, ‘Good round, what’d you finish?’ And I turned around and said, ‘I’ve got no idea what I’ve had.’

“I just hit the shot in front of me and add them up at the end. Thankfully it was good enough and a nice surprise at the end to see that I’d shot 63.”

The next stop on the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series is the $50,000 Murray Open at Murray Downs Golf and Country Club from September 6-7.

Click here for final results and prize money.


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