Sitting inside the all-important top 25 who would earn European Tour cards for next year all week and starting the final day in a tie for 13th, McLeod found himself flirting with the cut-off when he bogeyed the 15th hole of his final round to fall to 1-over par on the day.

McLeod responded with his first birdie at Lumine Golf Club’s Lakes Course’s par-5 16th hole in his fourth attempt and then added a second at the par-3 17th to give himself the buffer he would need to guarantee safe passage back to Europe’s main tour.

The 25-year-old reigning PGA Tour Australasia Order of Merit winner finished the week at 14-under par, 28 players who completed the 108 holes in 12-under or better earning tour cards.

West Australian Jarryd Felton owned one of the hard luck stories of the final round despite a sensational 6-under 66.

Starting from the 10th tee, Felton made the turn in 4-under par to get to 10-under for the week, moving to 11-under and within reach of the magical number with a birdie at the par-4 third hole.

Yet as hard as he tried a seventh birdie for his round remained elusive and he was one of five players to finish one shot shy of the number required.

Dimi Papadatos and Deyen Lawson were the only other two Aussies to make the four-round cut but finished in 65th and 72nd position respectively.