Korn Ferry Tour Cards Up For Grabs In Florida

Photo: New Zealand’s Nick Voke- gets a chance to advance his career – PGA Tour Series China

The holy grail of professional golf in terms of a place to play is undoubtedly the PGA Tour but in more recent years it has become increasingly difficult to access the riches of that tour.

This week, in Winter Garden in Florida, several Australasians get the chance to at least take the next step in the road to the PGA Tour when they tee it up at the Final Stage of Korn Ferry Tour qualifying.

150 golfers will play over 72 holes, the leading qualifier guaranteed full exemption for the PGA Tour’s secondary tour in 2020 while those finishing between 2nd and 10th are exempt for the first 12 events before the re-rank and those finishing between 11th and 40th exempt for the first 8 events at least.

New South Welshmen Brett Drewitt and Harrison Endycott will be joined by Victorian Ryan Ruffels, Queenslander Daniel Nisbet and New Zealander Nick Voke.

Drewitt has played the PGA Tour previously having gained access in 2017 but has been back on the Korn Ferry Tour (then known as the Web.Com Tour) and the Latino America Tour since. In 2019 he was unable to do enough to retain status for the Korn Ferry Tour and gets another opportunity after graduating from Stage Two.

Endycott and Ruffels have spent their year on the Latino America Tour where they did well enough to earn the right to at least attempt Korn Ferry Tour qualifying. Endycott advanced from the second stage to tee it up this week while Ruffels as a result of his efforts this season was exempt through to the Final Stage.

Daniel Nisbet has played in Asia and Australasia all year and played his way into the Final Stage via his performances in events this year.

It has already been a long road for many just to get to this stage and the chance for twelve months on the Korn Ferry Tour is just reward for what they have achieved to date.

There is still some way to go but they have at least created that opportunity.

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Brad Kennedy defeated in playoff in Japan

Queenslander Brad Kennedy has been defeated in a playoff at the Japan Tour’s season ending Golf Nippon Series event in Tokyo, his equal best round of the day (65) carrying him into a playoff against Japan’s Ryo Ishikawa who birdied the 3rd extra hole to win his third event of the season.

For Kennedy it was his best finish of the year in Japan and moved him to 18th place on the finalised money list for the year with earnings of A$ equivalent $720,000.

Considering Kennedy had bogeyed his opening hole on the final day it was a bold bid to win the event outright but he still earns a cheque for A$200,000 and finishes the year off in style as he now heads back to the Gold Coast for this week’s Australian PGA Championship.

Brendan Jones was the next best of the Australians when he tied for 5th in the 30-man field and finished as the leading Australian once again on the Japan Tour money list with earnings of A$735,000.

Anthony Quayle was 14th this week and Matthew Griffin 19th.

 

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Matt Jones holds on in final hole thriller at Australian Open

Matt Jones- enjoying the moment -photo Kirsty Wrice Golf Australia

It is never over until it is over as the saying goes and in today’s final round of the Emirates Australian Open at the Australian Golf Club in Sydney, there was yet another great example of how that applies to tournament golf.

When Sydney’s Matt Jones arrived on the 17th green after holding a minimum two shot lead all day, he led by two over South African Louis Oosthuizen who was playing in the group ahead and who, after a magnificent hybrid approach, faced a 16 foot putt for eagle at the last. Oosthuizen putted first and converted to draw level but just a few moments later Jones holed a 35-footer at the 17th to go ahead again.

As he stood on the 18th tee, Jones was one ahead and, surely, he could negotiate the par 5 last safely and claim his second national open, four years after his first. First, however, he had to find the fairway, but he pulled his tee shot left into a bunker guarding the left side of the fairway and at that point even a lay-up became problematical.

Adding to the confusion however was that Jones had thought he held a two shot lead, an issue that might well have changed his strategy had he known better.

Thinking long and hard as to which was the best option in terms of where he wanted leave his shot from the bunker, his execution was poor, failing to clear the pine needles and from there it was a case of just where he would leave his 3rd shot in order to set up a pitch and putt par and the win.

“I was just hitting it out there to hit a 9-iron on the green and it caught a little pine cone and just dropped straight down.  I actually didn’t even see the tree limb, it was not even in play.”

His 3rd shot was good but came up ten metres short of the green and some 40 meters from the hole.

Between he and the hole there was also a gentle ridge to negotiate but he hit the most exquisite of pitch and runs to 5 feet and although the putt scrambled in the left edge it was enough to secure the par and the win by one over the gallant Oosthuizen who had thrown out all stops to force a playoff.

“I was under the assumption that it was at worst, I had a two-shot lead, so I wasn’t playing for the green on my third shot. I was happy to hit it in the bunker, which I’m happy I didn’t, because that bunker shot wouldn’t have been as comfortable, but then I realised what I had to do and the chip wasn’t that difficult.

“It was landing down grain, so I could just get it over the bunker and let it release a little.  It was a pretty easy putt. I made it more difficult than it had to be, but it went in.”

“It’s fantastic,” he added referring to what this means to him. “I’ve had a good start to the year (season) in the US.  Something like this has been coming and it’s very special when it’s your national Open and to do it two times in a row is something that’s pretty unbelievable right now. But I’m going to build on this. If I can play as calm on the US Tour as I did these four days, I think I’ll have a very good year.”

Sharing third place were the impressive Japanese amateur, Takumi Kanaya, and Queensland based Aaron Pike who, as a result of their efforts, will join Jones as the recipients of starts at next year’s Open Championship at Royal St Georges.

The leading three players finishing inside the top ten this week and not otherwise exempt to the Open Championship qualified for those spots and with Oosthuizen already in the field, Jones, Kanaya and Pike can make plans for a trip to Kent in England in July.

Paul Casey, two-time champion Greg Chalmers, American Cameron Tringale, Taiwan’s Chun An Yu and New Zealand rookie Denzel Ieremia tied for 5th.

Jones’ record at the Australian Golf Club is almost unequalled having now on two Australian Opens and been runner-up in another at the venue where he played a lot of his early amateur golf.

For Jones, however, it was a joyous moment in front of his home fans and family and the family he has met and raised in the US. His three girls and American wife were there to greet him as he walked from the final green

In addition to winning his national open championship, the opportunity to play the Open Championship once again was a source of great pleasure.

“I’ve played in maybe five British Opens and it’s the one Major I would most like to win.  To be able to do that and plan a schedule around that, will be fantastic.  I played Royal St George’s back in, I think when Rory won, and I liked it, so I’m looking forward to getting back there.

“As you can see by the two other guys that qualified, for them to get into a British Open is fantastic. I love coming back here because it’s a great chance for me to do it. I’ve been lucky enough to do it a few times and I’ll be back next year.  Hopefully I don’t have to do it next year, but I’ll be back here for it if I have to.”

For Aaron Pike the opportunity to play his first open Championship is not lost on him

“In all honesty, I know the spots are up for grabs and I knew going into the last day I was running top 10, so I had that idea in my head so to speak,” he would say before the finalisation of the three players.

“The 16th I saw a board and I realised that Louis would have been in because he’s won one and Matty Jones will definitely take one, because he’s not going to finish with five doubles or whatever it is and then I knew someone else there or thereabouts might get another one, so I’m going to have to put my foot down.  I birdied 17, I tried to birdie 18 to keep going, but it’s the biggest Tournament in the world for me.  It is.  It’s as simple as that. It’ll be amazing to get in it.”

Kanaya has already played one Open Championship courtesy of a victory at the 2018 Asia Pacific Amateur Championship but the rising superstar of Japanese golf gets another chance.

Australian golf now focuses on next week’s Presidents Cup in Melbourne ahead of the Australian PGA Championship on the Gold Coast.

 

Open Championship qualifiers Aaron Pike, Matt Jones and Takumi Kanaya photo – R&A / Getty

 

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Jones Extends Lead in Pursuit of 2nd Australian Open

photo: Matt Jones in action early in his 3rd round. – Justin Falconer Golf Australia

Australia’s Matt Jones has extended his one shot 36-hole lead to three through 54 holes of the Australian Open Championship in Sydney and his already impressive record at this venue, and in this event, appears as if it may well be extended in tomorrow’s final round.

Jones won his national title around the Australian Golf Club in 2015 and finished runner-up two years later, so, that he enjoys such a fine history at the golf course, suggests he will again be the man to beat.

Jones leads over American Cameron Tringale, with another shot back to Japanese amateur star Takumi Kanaya, South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen and the man who might yet be Jones’ biggest threat on day four, Paul Casey.

Unlike the opening two days of the event where benign conditions prevailed, the morning, easterly breeze turned into a wind around mid-morning and by the time the leaders hit off at 11.55 the Australian Golf Club layout began to bare its teeth for the first time this week.

The often irrelevant and overused term of ‘moving day’ became even more so as nobody appeared capable of breaking clear of the field and by the time the leaders made the turn, 11 players were within two shots of the lead headed by South African Louis Oosthuizen, former champion, the US based Sydneysider, Matt Jones and New Zealand rookie Denzel Ieremia.

They led by one over American, Cameron Tringale, recently turned professional Blake Windred and England’s Paul Casey who had just three putted the 9th to drop out of the lead he had on his own to that point.

Also at 8 under and just one from the lead, was another US based Sydneysider Jamie Arnold who emerged from the cutline of 1 under par to be just one from the lead with his stunning early morning round of 64, a round that would become four shots better than any other.

Three holes later, however, and it would be Jones who established a break on the field with three birdies in his opening four holes of the closing nine and he led by three over Tringale with another shot back to Casey, Ieremia, Kanaya, Oosthuizen and Arnold who four hours earlier had finished his round.

When Jones walked from the 16th green he had added yet another birdie to open-up a four-shot lead and although he found trouble at the 17th and took bogey he would find the green with his second at the par 5 18th.

When he had safely two putted for birdie he had added a round of 68 and at 13 under he had established a cushion heading into tomorrow.

The golf course was clearly more demanding today and Jones summed up the reason why in his post round press conference.

“It’s just not a normal wind, I don’t find out here from years of playing, the easterly’s not a normal wind,” he said. “I find it normally a north or a south wind. So, you’ve got some side winds out there. It was just tricky because it kept going from east, then it went to northeast, then it went to southeast and it’s just tough to trust some of those numbers.

“It got Paul on number 9 where he hit a perfect shot and it came up in a bunker. It was tougher and the pin locations were tougher. It was tougher to get access out there.”

“I started off a little shaky and I knew once you get through certain holes, you’ve got more holes later on in the round that you can make some birdies and I was lucky enough to get through them and got to the back nine and I made, I think, five birdies on the back nine to have a good round.

“I was very calm out there today. My caddy said on the first tee if you’re not nervous – I can’t remember what he said – then I must be wrong, because I wasn’t very nervous, I was very comfortable and excited to go out and play. I played with Paul for many years in college and it was fun to go out there and play with him.”

Jones’ closest challenger, Cameron Tringale, has yet to win on either the PGA or Korn Ferry Tour so tomorrow holds hopes for him to finally breakthrough with a win of significance. He has been three times runner-up however and a win tomorrow would be just reward for his efforts to date and for making the decision to come to Australia. A win this week may well be the making of the 32 year old.

Casey summed up how many are perhaps feeling about their chances tomorrow.

“Matt played fantastic golf I thought, really good stuff and if he plays like that tomorrow then I think he’ll probably be a bit too tough, because I’m too far back probably, but we’ll see. I played a wonderful round of golf on Friday; I need to try and replicate that tomorrow

“It was a flat day, I just never really got going, not much to really say, I didn’t do a hell of a lot wrong but when I had opportunities, I didn’t capitalise and there was obviously a couple of errors in there. But how do you get around this course without making errors?

Oosthuizen birdied his final hole to remind all that the classy former Open Champion is still a major chance tomorrow. So how did he feel about the four shot margin between he and the leader.

“I think around here it’s not too much. You can really get it going around here if you start making a few putts, the greens are so good. I think it all depends on your start. If you have a good start and he just goes 1-over maybe through five holes, then different story. I think it’s all on if he’s going to start really well and pull away from everyone, then it gets difficult, but I need to start well tomorrow.”

Matt Jones, however, has had a very commercially successful career in professional golf with more than US$12 million in earnings on the PGA Tour alone but at the age of 39 it is titles that are perhaps equally important.

With only two of significance to his name (the Houston Open and the 2015 Australian Open), a win tomorrow will help balance the ledger.

 

 

 

 

 

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Course Specialist Matt Jones Leads Australian Open

Photo – Jones in action today – Golf Australia Kirsty Wrice

Sydney’s Arizona based, Matt Jones, has an enviable record already at the Australian Golf Club and this weekend it might well get even better.

In the benign, but smokey conditions that have been a feature of the opening two days, scoring has been outstanding on one of Australia’s best tournament layouts, with a total of eight rounds of 6 under par 65 produced on day two.

The winner of the Australian Open in 2015 and runner-up to Cameron Davis in 2017 at the same venue, Jones today served notice that he could well add a second national title with a round of 65 to go with his opening 67 and, at 10 under par, he leads by one over the leading world ranked player in the field, Paul Casey and last year’s runner-up, Dimitrios Papadatos.

A birdie at his final hole, one of four over his closing nine, gave Jones the outright lead and after his round he was delighted to be in the lead although felt a couple more ahead would have been even nicer.

“Any time you get to lead is fantastic. It would have been better to be more in front, but I’ll take 1 in front.  Still a long way to go. I’m sure the wind is going to pick up the next two days, which will make it a little tougher.

Jones, however, was more than happy with where he finds himself heading into Saturday’s third round and when asked if he had left any shots on the golf course was quick to respond.

“I would say when you combine both rounds, no, I think I’m exactly as good as I could be. I made a lot of par putts yesterday, made some good birdie putts today, maybe missed one or two, but it’s evened itself out, so I’m very happy to be where I am.”

Papadatos, who is also a New South Welshman, was delighted with his performance, especially after missing out on his European Tour card recently. He was asked if he could take anything out of out of his second place behind Abraham Ancer at the Lakes Golf Club last year.

“Yeah, last year was a bit of a surprise and I played well,” said the 2014 New Zealand Open Champion. “I better take something from that and know that to get that close you surely can be able to go a little bit better one day, so maybe this week.

“The putting was good today. I didn’t actually hit it fantastic, but with the conditions, you didn’t need to hit it too good out there. Because of the wind, it was pretty still, so there were a lot of wedges in there. But I putted really well today, which was good.”

Casey began this week as the favourite and the leading world ranked player in the field and if the opening two rounds are anything to go by then there is little reason to think any differently as the event enters the weekend.

Casey has won previously in Sydney but that was 16 years ago at the nearby New South Wales Golf Club when winning one of his first events as a professional, but all this time later he returns as one of the leading players in the world and the manner in which he handled the Australian Golf Club’s layout today suggests his second Australian title might not be far away.

Casey’s morning round of 65 today swept him into the lead after his opening round of 68 on Thursday had him in a share of 6th place. The afternoon field, however, would take advantage of conditions that remained conducive to scoring all afternoon.

Birdies at his final four holes turned an average round into something special and the 15th ranked player in the world will take all sorts of beating over the weekend.

As he indicated earlier in the week, Casey is here to give it his all in his quest to win a title which would complete a remarkable year.

“As I said earlier in the week, I didn’t come down here for a jolly,” said Casey. “The weather’s perfect in Arizona right now where I live, so it would be very easy to be back home. I’ve never played an Aussie Open before and I’d love to win it.

“Two victories this year, I’d love to have a third and that would be on three different tours, which would be pretty cool. I don’t think I’ve done that before. I’m not here to make up the numbers, I’m here to try and win.”

Sharing 4th place and just two from the lead are New Zealand rookie, Denzel Ieremia, International Presidents Cup team member, Louis Oosthuizen, American, Cameron Tringale, Queenslander Shae Wools-Cobb and the brilliant Japanese amateur Takumi Kanaya, who just two weeks ago won one of the more prestigious events on the Japan Tour.

The big stories of the day were the missed cuts by Adam Scott and Sergio Garcia, Scott missing out on a chance to gain further tournament exposure ahead of next week’s Presidents Cup after a month away from competitive play.

The other talking point of the opening 36 holes has been the performance of the amateurs.

Victoria’s Lukas Michel is at 7 under and just three from the lead along with Chinese Taipei’s Chun An Yu while youngsters Hayden Hopewell of WA and 17 year old Queenslander, Elvis Smylie, are at 6 and 5 under respectively.

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Amateurs Share Lead at Australian Open

Photo Takumi Kanaya – Golf Australia

Two of Asia best amateur golfers in recent years have a share of the opening round lead at the Emirates Australian Open, Japan’s Takumi Kanaya and Taiwan’s Chun-An You opening with rounds of 66 at the Australian Golf Club in Sydney to lead by two over Australians Matt Jones, Dimi Papdatos and Daniel Nisbet.

Both players have been beneficiaries of the Asia Pacific Amateur Championship in recent years, Kanaya a winner in 2017 and runner-up in 2019 and Yu a regular top ten finisher in recent years, highlighting the benefit being provided to golf in the Asia Pacific region by the increasingly significant world class amateur event.

Kanaya won one of the flagship events on the Japan Golf Tour two weeks ago when successful at the Mitsui Sumitomo Visa Taiheiyo Masters and twelve months ago finished 17th at the Australian Open while Yu is currently the 6th ranked male amateur in the world.

Kanaya began his round at the 10th hole and book-ended his day with four consecutive birdies to begin and two consecutive birdies to finish. His only bogey would come at his 12th hole bit it was another impressive performance in an Australian event for the 21-year old.

“I play Australian Golf Club third time this year,” said Kanaya.  “So, I was 17 years old, I played 2015, so I shot 85 second round, so I learned (the) Australian golf style.  I just (knew) Japanese golf style before 17 years old. I have confidence, but I have three more days, so I will do my best tomorrow.

After beginning his day with an early bogey at his second hole, Yu birdied seven of his last twelve holes to join Kanaya in the lead several hours after Kanaya finished his morning round. Yu gets the chance to steal a march on Kanaya with an early tee time on day two while Kanaya plays in the afternoon field.

“Yeah, it feels great,” said Yu who attends Arizona State University. “I’ve played here four, five years ago and so I know the course a little bit.  I played great out there, so hopefully tomorrow I can do it again, yeah. The better scores actually came in this morning and this afternoon was much more difficult.  So, you’ve got an early start tomorrow, ready to go.

PGA Tour player, Jones, continued his love affair with the Australian Golf Club where he has spent so much time in earlier years and when visiting his coach while home, Gary Barter. Jones defeated Jordan Spieth and Adam Scott to win this event in 2015 and has again begun well, his round highlighted by an eagle at his 9th hole (the 18th of the course).

Papadatos finished runner-up behind Abraham Ancer at the Australian Open last year and although he has not recorded a top ten anywhere in the world since he has again shown a liking for playing at home.

Nisbet, who, like Papadatos, is a former New Zealand Open champion, but aside from a win at the Queensland PGA Championship earlier this year his season in 2019 has been well below his best. Today’s round was a real encouragement for the Gold Coast based golfer.

Pre-tournament favourite Paul Casey is three shots off the lead after his round of 68, an eagle at the 14th after an iron to 2 inches from 210 yards boosting his round after a slow start to the day.

Australia’s number one and the number two world ranked player in the field, Adam Scott was a surprise, his round of 71 leaving him a massive ten shots from the lead.

 

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Australian Open offers strongest field in recent years

Paul Casey – seen here in one of his previous visits to Australia – SMP Images

This week’s Emirates Australian Open brings together one of the stronger fields assembled for the event in several years.

Sure it might not boast the likes of Jordan Spieth who won twice in three years in 2014 and 2016 but it is the depth of the field that makes it one of the strongest in recent times.

The event’s positioning in the PGA Tour of Australasia schedule ahead of the Presidents Cup has opened the opportunity for several of those in the International Team for Royal Melbourne Golf Club next week to play in Sydney and while some may well have played either way, the likes of Adam Scott, Louis Oosthuizen, Abraham Ancer, C.T Pan, Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith will benefit by an outing the week before.

It would have been even stronger but for the late withdrawal due to injury of Jason Day.

Their entries certainly strengthen both the field and the interest in the event but along with them, Paul Casey and Sergio Garcia add yet another dimension to what is shaping as an intriguing contest.

The defending champion is Abraham Ancer whose victory last year was perhaps a surprise given his ranking of 96th in the world on his arrival in Sydney last year but in the twelve months since he has elevated his standing in the game to number 38 and he begins the week as the 6th highest ranked player in the field.

Ahead of Ancer in terms of world ranking order this week are Casey, Scott, Oosthuizen, Leishman and Garcia but the Mexican has put together several good finishes on the PGA Tour in 2019 including a runner-up finish at the Northern Trust Open and importantly has played well in his two last starts with top tens in China and Mexico.

This, of course, is a different venue in 2019 to that which Ancer won over last year, his victory coming at the adjacent Lakes Golf Club, but the Australian Golf Club is one of Australia’s best tournament courses and typically fine players win around the eastern suburbs of Sydney layout.

Paul Casey begins the week as the leading world ranked player in the field having completed a season which has seen him advance to 14th in the world after starting the year in 22nd place.

He has developed into a very consistent player in 2019 with seven top 5 finishes worldwide in 2019 including wins at the Valspar Championship in the US and at the Porsche European Open in Germany.

Casey has shown a capacity to win anywhere in the world including at the ANZ Championship in Sydney in 2003 and it would be no surprise if he was to contend at worst this week.

Adam Scott has won his national championship just once and that was ten years ago but he has not played the event in recent years, so his return is a welcome one for the tournament and Australian golf fans.

Scott is the second highest ranked player in the field and while yet to record a win in 2019 he has played very solidly in recent months with top tens in more than half of his last twelve starts and while it has been a month since his last start 11th at the WGC HSBC Champions event in China he does space his events and a good showing would not surprise.

Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith add further strings to the Australian bow, Smith going so close to winning the event three years ago when losing a playoff to Jordan Spieth at Royal Sydney in 2016 and then when 4th the following year at the Australian Golf Club and 10th last year. He has won the last two Australian PGA Championships so his form at home is hard to fault.

Leishman is now Australia’s second highest ranked player and although he has not won in 2018, he has continued to play well.

Oosthuizen has not missed a cut in his last eighteen starts and his recent 3rd place in China and 6th place at the Nedbank Challenge suggests his game is peaking for both this week and next.

So the 2019 Emirates Australian Open offers plenty of interest for golf fans both in Sydney and across the world and might well

It appears as if it will be the last time Emirates will play host sponsor of the event but it might well be one of the best during their welcome tenure in that role.

The first hole at the Australian Golf Club

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Anthony Quayle Finishes 3rd at Casio World Open

Anthony Quayle has today fallen short in his quest to win his first Japan Tour title but his 3rd place finish at the Casio World Open has seen the 25 year old Queensland based golfer produce his best result in eighteen months and boost his bank balance by the equivalent of A$180,000.

Quayle will improve to 29th on the money list for 2019 and earn himself a start at the season ending Golf Nippon Series event in Tokyo which is limited to the leading 30 players on the money list.

Quayle took a lead into the final round today after a barnstorming finish to his third round on Saturday and appeared to be on his way to a first victory as a professional with four birdies in his first ten holes.

Bogeys at his 14th and 18th holes however allowed former Presidents Cup player, Kyung Tae Kim, of Korea to win his 14th Japan Tour title but his first in over three years.

Kim won by two over South African Shaun Norris with Quayle another shot back.

Quayle’s fellow Sanctuary Cove based golfer, Dylan Perry, was the next best of the Australians when he produced a brilliant weekend to finish 18th after only narrowly making it into the weekend field.

Brad Kennedy was 49th, Won Joon Lee was 53rd and David Bransdon 58th.

The final event of the year is played in Tokyo next week, the Golf Nippon Series field containing four Australians, Brendan Jones, Brad Kennedy, Matthew Griffin and Anthony Quayle although Quayle may possibly be considering playing the Australian Open instead.

Scores

 

 

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Josh Younger’s Australasian Tour Breakthrough at NSW Open

Photo: Josh Younger – Golf NSW

35-year old Victorian, Josh Younger, has today won his first PGA Tour of Australasia title with a playoff victory over Travis Smyth at the AV Jennings NSW Open at the Twin Creeks Golf and Country Club in Sydney’s west.

Younger had led after the opening round on Thursday when he began the week with a round of 63, but he slipped off the pace over the next 36 holes but remained close to the lead as the event headed into its final day.

A double bogey at his final hole added to the long wait Younger has experienced for the breakthrough win in his career but he was able to seal the deal with a birdie at the second extra hole to claim the significant title.

“Normally when you make six down the last it’s all over, you need things to go your way but it’s a massive relief,” said Younger.

“It’s relief. I’ve been (a professional) for 10 years. I got pipped in a playoff in New Zealand PGA in 2016, finished runner up at the (Australian) Masters, so I sort of haven’t really gotten near it as much,” Younger said.

“It’s just so hard to win, that’s the reality of it. There’s 150 blokes each week, competition is just that good now and the cards have got to fall your way.

“There’s times where you can play your best tournament and someone just does better. There are other times when it might fall your way a little bit so it’s a massive relief.”

Smyth will rue the bogey he made at the 17th hole today but his runner-up finish was his best on the PGA Tour since winning the 2017 NT PGA as an amateur and follows several good finishes in Asia of late where he currently plies his trade.

Min Woo Lee’s final round of 73 was never going to be good enough but he would still finish 3rd and record his highest finish since turning professional late in 2018.

Local golfer, Justin Warren, would also double bogey his final hole but the youngster from Picton near Sydney has already displayed an impressive game in his very short career since turning professional in the middle of 2019.

The round of the day came from former winner Ben Eccles whose seven under par 65 saw him finish in a share of 10th place with, amongst others, Brody Martin and another former winner, Peter Lonard, who both recorded rounds of 66.

The PGA Tour of Australasia now heads to Sydney’s coast for this week’s Emirates Australian Open at the Australian Golf Club.

scores

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Anthony Quayle’s Big Move at Casio World Open

Gold Coast based, Anthony Quayle, continued his recovery from a mid-season slump on the Japan Tour, a second round, best of the day 65 at the Casio World Open moving the 25-year old into second place at the halfway mark.

Quayle, who was born in Port Macquarie but raised in Gove in the Northern Territory before moving to Queensland, is in his second season on the Japan Tour and has shown in his short time there he has the game to win.

He has already been runner-up in the prestigious Crowns event early in his Japan Tour career but there have been several other top tens and his first win must surely be not far away.

After struggles through the middle of the year, Quayle has played well in each of his last two starts and in his second round at the Kuchi Koroshio  Country Club in the island of Shikoku, his 7 under par round swept him from 36th overnight to just two from the lead of Shintaro Kobayashi.

Kobayashi has yet to win on the Japan Tour in fact he plays the secondary tour in Japan so this is an opportunity the 33 year old will be keen to capitalise on.

Quayle’s fellow Gold Coast based golfers, Brad Kennedy and Dylan Perry are the next best of the Australians in a share of 35th while Won Joon Lee and David Bransdon just scrapped into the weekend field.

 

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