A PGA Professional at Tasmania Golf Club, Priest started his round with bogeys at two of his opening three holes but an adjustment to his game-plan yielded instant results.

He posted seven birdies in his closing 14 holes to post five-under 65, good enough for a two-stroke win over Victorian pair Ben Eccles (67) and Cameron Kelly (67).

An ideal lead-in to the 54-hole Tasmanian Open that begins at Launceston Golf Club on Thursday, the first adidas PGA Pro-Am Series event in Tasmania in three years was a welcome one for local professionals.

A former winner of the Tasmanian PGA Championship, Priest’s only competitive outlet has been the weekly ‘Beat the Pro’ event on a Thursday afternoon at his home club.

After a difficult period on the course, Priest found form at just the right time.

“I’ve just come off a real bad patch,” Priest admitted.

“We play ‘Beat The Pro’ once a week so I try to keep up with it but having these pro-ams back is fantastic.

“I was lucky enough to play myself into form just last week at ‘Beat The Pro’ and ended up doing the same thing here.”

Starting from the eighth tee, Priest dropped shots at eight and then 10, necessitating a change in thinking to turn his fortunes around.

“I actually started really slowly,” Priest added.

“I missed a couple on the short side so I was a couple over early but then changed my game-plan, went for the middle of the green… even the front of the green.

“I was lucky enough then to hole a few putts.”

The challenge for Priest now is to transfer that form into the Tasmanian Open which boasts a prestigious honour roll of past champions.

“I’m keen to play a three-day event,” Priest said.

“I haven’t played one of those for a long, long time so really looking forward to it.”

Click here for final scores and prize money.