Super-dooper Cooper extends lead after round 2 at Futures Championship

Victoria Park Golf Complex PGA Trainee Cooper Eccleston has doubled down on his impressive start and extended his lead to four shots at the PGA National Futures Championship.

Eccleston built on an opening score of 6-under par by shooting a 5-under 67 to gain a comfortable margin over of the field.

The current PGA Trainee of the Year, which is awarded for academic and playing excellence, has added yet another achievement to his resume by recording the lowest 36-hole score in the history of the PGA Futures Championship with 11-under.

Eccleston’s round had a similar look to his first with a burst of birdies starting on his 7^th hole.

“I started ok, but then got on a bit of a heater on the 16^th and just kept it going for as long as I could,” Eccleston said.

“After that, my confidence was up and I was feeling good going into the back-nine.”

In ideal scoring conditions at Ballarat Golf Club with sunshine, light winds and receptive greens greeting the 96 Trainee strong field, Eccleston carded seven birdies and two bogies in his impressive round.

Also making the most of his first-round performance was Lakelands Country Club Trainee Ethan Andrews who fired a 4-under 68 to keep well within striking distance of the clubhouse leader.

Alongside Andrews at a 7-under two-round total is Yarrawonga Mulwala Resort Trainee and 2017 winner, Frazer Droop, who shot a solid 69 to stay within four shots of the lead.

Other trainees looking to make a move on day three will be two New South Welshman, Mitch Gannon from Kogarah Golf Club and Tyone Dowling from Northbridge GC, who both shot 4-under 68 to sit at 6-under and 5-under respectively.

A total of 52 players remain after the cut, with plenty of hot weather and even hotter scoring forecast.

Watch all the live scores on the PGA of Australia app or at pga.org.au. Round three commences at 7:30am.

Third-year PGA Trainee Cooper Eccleston has taken a one-shot lead after shooting a commanding 6-under 66 in the opening round of the PGA National Futures Championship.

Based at Victoria Park Golf Complex, Eccleston set a good foundation at even par after six holes but proceeded to put a sublime run together on the back-nine.

The Queenslander fired 5-under across the next four holes including an eagle on the par-5 10^th which was shortly followed by another birdie on the par-5 14^th.

Eccleston mastered Ballarat Golf Club’s four par-5s in 4-under, something he acknowledged was part of his game plan coming in.

“I love coming here, the course really suits my game. Some of the holes can be quite long, but you can take driver and really get reward particularly on the par fives,” Eccleston said.

“I probably took the driver a few more times then I should, but I’m not going to change anything tomorrow. I’ll just keep to my game plan and hopefully take advantage of these brilliant conditions.”

Trainees were treated to a superb Ballarat day for round one and they made the most of perfect scoring conditions early.

New Zealand Trainee Blair Riordan laid the gauntlet down early to his Australian counterparts, taking the lead in the morning with a round of 5-under 67 featuring an eagle on the par-5 7^th hole on the Ballarat Golf Club layout.

Riordan says his relaxed attitude was a key to his performance.

“My strategy was to treat this week as a holiday, take the pressure off and just enjoy myself. It’s working well for me so far so hopefully it can continue,” Riordan said.

The morning field started in cool conditions, but as the mercury rose so did the performance of Frazer Droop (VIC) and Sasha Murton-Cooper (VIC), both carding impressive opening rounds of 4-under 68 to sit tied in third place.

A high-quality field of Trainees produced a bevy of impressive scores, with nearly a third of the field shooting even par or better and with more idyllic conditions forecasted the scoring is sure to impress once again.

Follow all the scores live through pga.org.au. Round two commences at 7:30am.

A talented field of the world’s best Trainee Professionals will tackle the Ballarat Golf Club layout from 22 October as they strive for the title of 2019 National Trainee Champion.

Australia’s top PGA Trainees will compete against the best Trainees from PGA Great Britain and Ireland, PGA of South Africa and PGA of New Zealand who, after flying in for the tournament, have their eyes set firmly on the title.

Known for the quality of fields it attracts, an impressive line-up of 96 Trainees will contest the Championship including 16 of the top 20 Trainees on Australia’s player rankings.

Victorian, Queensland and Western Australian State Trainee Champions Dale Crothers (Yarrawonga Mulwala Resort), Brayden Petersen (Asquith Golf Club) and John Boulton (Mt Lawley Golf Club) will be among the front-runners this week as they aim to take out the title.

Warm weather and hot scoring conditions are forecasted for Ballarat which has Ballarat Golf Club Head Professional, Dave Wallis, predicting some impressive scores to come in.

“Tuesday will be sunny, 24 degrees, but there’s no wind forecast which is rare to see for us, so I would expect some good scores to come in for Round 1,” Wallis said.

The tournament will take on a new look for the first two rounds with a Pro-Am format that will see amateurs playing alongside the Professionals during the tournament.

Ballarat Golf Club President, Wayne Hines, said the club was excited to be able to offer this opportunity.

“The Ballarat Golf Club is proud and privileged to host the National Futures Championship,” Hines said.

“To play alongside the professionals under tournament conditions is such a unique opportunity to offer our members and partners and it’s something we’re really looking forward to.”

The National Futures Championship is the world’s richest Trainee tournament and has been a world leader in gender equality, with the field consisting of male and female competitors playing for the same prize purse and title for over 25 years.

Three Victorians will represent the female cohort this year, with Joanna Flaherty from Commonwealth Golf Club, Emily Pell from Yarra Bend Golf Complex and Catherine Odgers from Woodlands Golf Club all looking to take it up to their male counterparts, and potentially becoming the first female winner in the event’s history.

An extra incentive is on offer for the winner of the National Futures Championship who also receives a place in the Australian PGA Championship field from 19-22 December.

The 2019 National Futures Championship will be played from 22-25 October at Ballarat Golf Club. Play commences Tuesday morning. Entry to the tournament is free for the public.

PGA Trainee Ben Stowe from Royal Sydney Golf Club will finish the third year of his PGA Traineeship on a high note after winning the $60,000 National Futures Championship at Ballarat Golf Club.

After setting the course record at 7-under 65 in round three, Stowe’s final round of even par was enough to see him record a five-shot victory finishing at 9-under the card.

“It feels unbelievable, it really does, all the hard work I’ve been putting in has come to fruition,” said Stowe who will finish the final year of his PGA Traineeship as a winner of the world’s richest Trainee tournament.

“I played really well and did what I needed to do. Frazer (Droop) and the boys kind of battled a little bit on the front-9, Frazer made a really strong charge at me at the end so I had to keep my wits about me, but I’m ecstatic I got it done.”

Stowe began the final round with a four-shot buffer which admittedly played on the 24-year-old’s mind. After nervously teeing up on the 1^st, he was quickly able to settle into stride around the Ballarat Golf Club course.

“It was in the back of my mind and last night I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I was probably the most nervous I’ve ever been on a golf course on the first tee this morning, but it didn’t really come into play today.

“I stuck to my game plan like I did all week and hit really good shots to give myself lots of opportunities to make it hard for the guys to catch me and got the job done.

“I can’t wait to get back to Royal Sydney, I was on the phone to my PGA Pro coach Michael Smyth last night and he said just to keep doing my thing and it should be good enough and it was.”

Following the completion of his PGA Traineeship, Stowe is looking to ply his trade on the international scene with a tilt at the Asian Tour Qualifying School as well as his home Tour, the ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia.

“I’m planning on heading over to Asian Tour Qualifying School and hopefully get through that then I’ll play ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia Qualifying School in December,” added Stowe.

“Hopefully I play well enough to get status somewhere and just keep progressing and keep the hard work going.”

Along with his Futures title, Stowe also receives automatic exemption in to the Australian PGA Championship at RACV Royal Pines Resort.

It’s not the first time the Trainee has teed it up in first class events after making his debut on the ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia in 2017.

“I pre-qualified into the NSW Open last year and then I was super fortunate to get into the Australian Open the week after that just off my Trainee category last year.

“Playing the Australian Open was awesome, crowds everywhere and mixing it with Jordan Spieth and Jason Day, hitting balls next to them on the range I was a bit star struck.

“So the Australian PGA Championship won’t be completely new to me, my prep will be the same, I’m really looking forward to it for sure it’s an unreal opportunity.”

Finishing in second place was 2017 champion Frazer Droop who shot 1-over 73 to finish at 4-under the card, Cooper Eccleston finished third at 3-under the card.

To view the full leaderboard, visit pga.org.au.

Third year PGA Trainee from Royal Sydney Golf Club Ben Stowe has a commanding lead in the National Futures Championship following a course-record round of 7-under 65.

It’s Stowe’s first course record after breaking the old score of 66 by one shot at Ballarat Golf Club.

“I didn’t know I had the record so that’s really cool. I’ve never held a course record before so it’s nice to have my name next to something like that,” said Stowe who now leads the tournament by four shots at 9-under the card.

“I definitely got off to a better start today and eased myself into it with par, birdie start. Then I was lucky enough to hole out from 85 meters on the third hole for a nice eagle.

“I just kept the momentum going through the round, I birdied seven, eagled 10, birdied 11, birdied 13, birdied 15, I just didn’t do too much wrong.

“I made a couple of bogeys as well but I’ll cop those, it was a great round of golf.”

Stowe will play in the same group in round four as he did today after his playing partners Frazer Droop and Brayden Petersen put together great rounds to stay within reach of the lead.

“We all sort of fed off each other, Brayden had 3-under and Frazer had 2-under, we all sort of kept each other going. I was just lucky enough to make a few more putts and hit some nice shots to put me in a good spot for tomorrow.

“I know the guys will be coming at me as hard as they can so I’ve just got to keep my foot down and not get too aggressive, just keep making some nice putts and hopefully it’s good enough.”

Defending champion Droop, a second year Trainee from Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort, continues to battle through illness but is still within reach of Stowe at 5-under the card following his round of 2-under 70.

“It was another good grind today, just hanging in there really, I’ll give it everything tomorrow,I won’t leave anything in the tank,” said Droop who has proven he can go low after posting his own course record of 8-under 62 at RACV Cape Schanck Resort just a fortnight ago during the Victorian PGA Championship.

“Full credit to Ben, he played unreal today it was great to watch, you’ve got to appreciate every one of those rounds, well done to him today.

“I’ll head into tomorrow a few back but I’ll still keep the game-plan exactly the same but I’ll just try and empty the tank and give it everything I’ve got.”

The 2018 Rich River Trainee Classic champion Brayden Petersen, a first year Trainee from Asquith Golf Club, is one shot further back at 4-under the card following a round of 3-under 69.

He too certainly has the ability to record low scores after winning Rich River by a commanding seven shots, after shooting a round of 8-under 64 during that week.

“I’m playing well at the moment and the course is in good shape, so to have a repeat of Rich River would be great,” said Petersen.

“I definitely think there’s a low round out there to catch Ben but full credit to him today, he played well and it was nice to watch.”

Mitch Gannon, a first year Trainee from Kogarah Golf Club is fourth at 2-under the card with second year Trainee Cooper Eccleston from Victoria Park Golf Complex rounding out the top-5 at 1-under the card.

For the full leaderboard visit pga.org.au.

The leading group of Frazer Droop, Ben Stowe and Brayden Petersen will tee off at 9:23am AEDT.

For full tee times, visit pga.org.au.

Defending National Futures Champion Frazer Droop has battled through illness to gain the lead at the halfway mark of the world’s richest PGA Trainee tournament.

Greeted with icy conditions at Ballarat Golf Club more akin to winter than spring, Droop grinded out a tough round of 1-under 71 to get to 3-under the card and lead by one shot.

“We got around which is the main thing. I was a bit rusty this morning when I woke up with a pretty sore throat but we hung in there today, it was a good grind,” said Droop, a second year PGA Trainee who works under his father, PGA Professional Evan Droop at Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort.

“Being pretty cold this morning and with a lot of dew on the ground the golf ball wasn’t reacting like it normally would do, there was hardly any spin out there early on.

“To get around in 1-under par was pretty solid so no complaints there.

“Tomorrow will just be sticking to the game plan and enjoy it with the boys, that’s the main thing. Then we’ll see if we can go a bit lower.”

Ben Stowe, a third year PGA Trainee at Royal Sydney Golf Club is still within striking distance of his first four-round tournament win following his round of 1-over 73 and is outright second behind Droop at 2-under the card.

“I’m actually not as disappointed as I thought I would’ve been with that score. I got off to a horrific start, I bogeyed the first two holes from the middle of the fairway which was disappointing but I grinded out pretty well,” said Stowe.

“I got my round back to under par but just made a couple of silly errors on the back-9, it was definitely harder out there today I thought.”

While in a good position come ‘Moving Day’ tomorrow, Stowe is aware that he will be fighting off a chasing pack of PGA Trainees.

“It’s nice to be in a good spot after 36 holes but there are still 36 holes to go. it’s a lot of golf, we’ll see what happens over the last two rounds.”

Reigning Rich River Classic champion Brayden Petersen, a first year PGA Trainee at Asquith Golf Club is outright third at 1-under the card following his round of 2-under 70, a score that earned him round of the day alongside Cooper Eccleston (Victoria Park Golf Complex) and Dylan Thompson (Bathurst Golf Club).

The 2017 PGA Trainee of the Year, Ben Pisani, a second year PGA Trainee from Royal Melbourne Golf Club and Mitchell Gannon, a first year PGA Trainee from Kogarah Golf Club share fourth place at even par.

The cut was made at 15-over the card with 51 PGA Trainees making the final two rounds.

For the full leaderboard visit pga.org.au.

The leading group of Frazer Droop, Ben Stowe and Brayden Petersen will tee off at 9:38am AEDT.

For full tee times, visit pga.org.au.

Third year PGA Trainee Ben Stowe has recorded 3-under 69 around Ballarat Golf Club to hold the lead in the National Futures Championship.

Stowe battled the gusty conditions to lead the field of 76 Trainee Professionals by one stroke heading into round two.

“I’m very happy, I didn’t really do too much wrong apart from a couple of loose shots at the start but my short game saved me all the way through,” said Stowe who is in the final year of his Traineeship at Royal Sydney Golf Club.

“You can say it after every round but I did leave a lot of putts out there, but the short game really saved me, I made some really good up and downs.”

Stowe has seen improvements in his short game following some work with his coach Michael Smyth, a PGA Professional at Royal Sydney Golf Club.

“I’ve been working really hard with my coach Michael especially with my swing over the last three weeks or so leading up to this event.

“I changed my wedges out at the start of this week for a little bit more bounce to help me with the softer conditions around here which definitely helped me a lot.”

It’s Stowe’s second appearance at the world’s richest PGA Trainee event after missing last year’s tournament due to injury.

“The first year I played it was reduced to 54 holes so I’m looking forward to playing the full week this year. I’ve got good memories of this course from that first year and my game has improved a bit since then,” added Stowe.

“I haven’t won a four round tournament yet and that’s been the goal since I started my Traineeship, so I’ve got myself off to a nice start this week which is good.

“It’s a great tournament with great prizemoney on offer and obviously an exemption into the Australian PGA Championship which would be awesome. It’d be a really nice way to wrap up my Traineeship.”

In second place at 2-under card is defending champion Frazer Droop, second year PGA Trainee at Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort.

“It was pretty tough, the wind got pretty gusty in a few spots. I had 1-over on my front-9 and just tried to hang in there and see what I could do on the back-9 and shot 3-under which was really solid,” said Droop.

“I wasn’t feeling great today but I’ll take 2-under for sure.”

With just one morning field taking to the Ballarat Golf Course each round this week, there’s no ‘luck of the draw’ to rely on with the entire field playing in the same conditions.

“It’s pretty even for everyone which isn’t a bad thing at all, some tournaments can play really differently with afternoon and morning fields but everyone is off at the same time here which will be really good,” added Droop.

Tim Purtill, second year PGA Trainee from Wodonga Golf Club and Mitchell Gannon, first year PGA Trainee from Kogarah Golf Club share third place at 1-under the card rounding out the top-4.

For the full leaderboard visit pga.org.au.

Ben Stowe will tee off tomorrow at Ballarat Golf Club at 8:18am AEDT, Frazer Droop begins at 8:34am AEDT.

For full tee times, visit pga.org.au.

Defending National Futures champion Frazer Droop will attempt to go back-to-back next week at Ballarat Golf Club when the world’s richest PGA Trainee Championship tees off on Tuesday.

Droop, a second year PGA Trainee at Yarrawonga Mulwala Golf Club Resort under his father PGA Professional Evan Droop, has been dominant on the Trainee scene winning six events already this year including the NSW/ACT and VIC/TAS/SA state PGA Trainee championships.

He recorded a comfortable win in 2017, winning the $60,000 event by three shots from New South Welshman Robbie Hogan.

“Any time you defend a title is a pretty good sign you can play well around that course and my game is looking pretty good at the moment,” said Droop, who is fresh off playing in the Victorian PGA Championship at RACV Cape Schanck Resort where he finished tied for fourth and set a course record of 8-under 62.

“The Ballarat Golf Club is quite long off the back tees and it gets pretty windy out there at times but I enjoy the challenge of playing in the wind. It should be a great week.”

As one of the in-form Trainees in the field this week, Droop expects stiff competition from his fellow future PGA Professionals and good friends on the playing circuit.

“We’re all just out there trying to beat each other, at the end of the day we’re all really good mates, as soon as we walk off the 18^th hole we’re straight back to being good mates.

“But when we’re out there on the course it is all business.”

The winner of the National Futures Championship receives automatic exemption into the Australian PGA Championship at RACV Royal Pines Resort from 29 November – 2 December, one of the marquee events on the ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia and co-sanctioned with the European Tour.

This year it will be headlined by defending champion Cameron Smith, four-time PGA TOUR champion Marc Leishman and Englishman Andrew ‘Beef’ Johnston.

Droop will be aiming to make back-to-back appearances at the $1.5 million tournament and will not be daunted by the star-studded line-up after teeing it up last year with one of Australia’s most successful golfers.

“That was a really good experience, I actually got to play with Robert Allenby up there and it was great to play two rounds with him and hear a few of his stories,” added Droop.

“It’ll be good if I can at least give it a good nudge in the final round, but whoever can play the best during the week will obviously get the title and deserve it too.”

PGA Trainees have the chance to cash-in off the course at the world’s richest PGA Trainee event with the BMW TrackMan Open onsite at Ballarat Golf Club.

The six-month global Combine challenge open to all golfers sees two tournaments running at the same time – a Female-only and an Open contest – giving the unique opportunity to play against the best players in the world while competing for prizes totaling $120,000.

The Trainee Professionals can win cash prizes; amateurs have the chance to win a spot at the 2019 BMW PGA Championship Pro-Am event in England.

By the end of October, the 2018 winners will be announced, and the grand prizes of $50,000 for the Open category, and $25,000 for the Female category will be awarded to the leading TrackMan scores.

For more information on the BMW TrackMan Open, visit bmwtrackmanopen.com.

The 2018 National Futures Championship will be held at Ballarat Golf Club from 23-26 October.

To view the full field, visit pga.org.au.

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