The Gippsland Super 6 Amateur event at Warragul Country Club on Sunday offered a spot in the field for the ISPS HANDA PGA tour of Australasia event that will kick-start the 2021 run of tournaments and Sclater’s 3-under 68 was the leading qualifying score to secure a start next month.

The top eight scores from the morning round advanced to a mini-Super 6 medal match play format in the afternoon with Warragul local Alan Manley getting the better of fellow Warragul golfer Deano Bubeck by four shots in the final.

But the big winner was Sclater who will now play amongst Aussie legends such as Peter Fowler, David McKenzie and Andre Stolz, PGA Tour of Australasia tournament winners such as Matthew Griffin, Jake McLeod, Dimi Papadatos and Aaron Pike and emerging talents such as Blake Windred, Shae Wools-Cobb and Charlie Dann.

An 18-year-old based at Maffra Golf Club an hour east of Yallourn, Sclater is a Pennant representative with Huntingdale Golf Club and was determined to play his way into elite company at Warragul.

“I came out to Warragul during the week for a practice round as I really wanted to qualify for the Gippsland Super 6s,” revealed Sclater, winner of the Tasmanian Junior Masters back in January.

“I’m really excited about playing alongside the pros at Yallourn.  I went out last year to watch a bit of the tournament amongst all the rain.

“My goal is to eventually turn professional and this is going to give me a good idea of exactly where my game is at.”

Although he didn’t receive an invite into the main event, Alan Manley was thrilled to emerge victorious at the completion of the medal match play section.

“I have always enjoyed playing match play and the six-hole matches kept it exciting the whole way through,” Manley said.

“It was a really great day. It was long but it was really great fun.”

Last year’s inaugural Gippsland Super 6 was disrupted by persistent rain but the 2021 edition will serve as the first in a run of seven events that will complete the 2020/2021 PGA Tour of Australasia season.