A par on the second playoff hole – after the veteran Queenslander hit an exquisite bunker shot to inside a metre – shut out South Australian Carter who stumbled to a double-bogey to lose a third playoff of the season on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia.

A victor on Tour for the first time since the 2011 WA PGA Championship, Wright shot a final-round of 2-under-par 68 at Rosebud Country Club, while Carter, 10th overnight, stormed up the leaderboard with an equal best round of the day, a 6-under 64, to finish at 15-under-par.

Victorian Andrew Martin and Queenslander Brad Kennedy shared third place, one shot out of the playoff, after both shot final rounds of 68.

Heading out for the final round as joint leader with Corey Lamb, Wright, who has his scratch-golfer son Noah as fulltime caddie, pulled clear by three shots after birdies at the eighth and 10th holes.

But a bogey on the long par-4 15th, after Carter had birdied 16 and 17, left them level until the playoff was over.

“It feels fantastic (to win) and to have my son on the bag too made it even more special,” the PGA TOUR Champions member said.

“This was one for the old boys. It’s pretty cool.”

Wright says he’s a more relaxed golfer compared to when he was full-time on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia where he had five top-10 finishes in 2023 before going on to  successfully negotiate PGA TOUR Champions Qualifying School.

He finished his rookie season in the US 52nd on the moneylist, highlighted by two top-10 finishes.

As he prepares to return to America for a second campaign, Wright said such a win is testament to playing against the likes of major winners Bernhard Langer, Ernie Els, Stewart Cink, Fred Couples and Justin Leonard every week.

“Having played over on the Champions for a year now has given me a lot of experience,” he said.

“I’ve never been on a tour where I’ve played week in, week out. Playing on that tour, I played 23 events and it was like playing 23 Australian Opens.”

Carter has now experienced the disappointment of a playoff loss at the WA Open, Queensland PGA and at Rosebud in the 2024/25 season but has climbed to 10th on the Order of Merit.

After being the joint leader with Wright after rounds two and three, Lamb (73) endured a difficult Sunday with an uncooperative putter to drop to 10-under-par. His only birdie on Sunday came at the par-4 fifth.

Reigning Vic Open champion, Ashley Lau (Malaysia), ended up as highest-placed woman, in equal seventh at 11-under after two rounds of 68 at the weekend.

Queensland’s Cassie Porter (68) and WA’s Abbie Teasdale (68) finished strongly at 10-under but their 2025 campaigns will now head in different directions – Porter to the LPGA Tour for the first time and Teasdale to Webex Players Series Murray River next week.

Kelsey Bennett’s 65 was the low Sunday round for the women and lifted her to a tie for 28th.

Carter’s 64 was matched by Cam John as the men’s best score in the final round, John joining those in a share of seventh.

The Webex Players Series Victoria All Abilities title was won by Curlewis Golf Club’s Noah Schammer (72-73), who finished two shots ahead of Sandy Links-based professional Tom Ryan (72-75).

It’s the 16-year-old plus-3 handicapper’s first Webex Players Series title.

The top two will meet again at Cobram Barooga next weekend.

Riversdale Golf Club’s Arena Tran (71-73) won the Webex Players Series Juniors event thanks to holing from off the green on the first hole of a playoff against Huntingdale’s Elbert Kim (69-75).