A rather rewarding week for the Dane – Neergaard-Petersen – image Golf Australia

As was the case at last week’s Australian PGA Championship, the eventual winner might not have been the result the huge crowds turned out to see, but the success of the event overall will stand the Australian Open in good stead moving ahead.

The star invite of the week, Rory McIlroy, more than covered his significant cost, given the incredible support the event received from Melbournians and others, and the positive manner in which the world number two, and only the 6th man to complete the Grand Slam, promoted golf on the sandbelt.

McIlroy bounced back from a slow start to the week and the threat of a missed cut to finish in a share of 14th, but his value to the event was established almost before the tournament had started, given the ticket sales ahead of the event.

The decisions made by Golf Australia to secure McIlroy’s involvement, to revert the event to a standalone championship and to play the event at Royal Melbourne, turned the 2025 Australian Open into arguably the highest attended in the history of the event and have established the base for its continued growth into an event of genuine world standing.

Denmark’s Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen and Cameron Smith stood on the tee of the 72nd hole with a share of the lead at 15 under. Both were in good shape with their tee shots but when Neergard-Petersen missed the green right into a seemingly impossible position on a sandy island in the greenside bunker, Smith appeared to have the edge.

Having seen that result and knowing the Dane had short-sided himself, Smith likely aimed for the middle of the green, but although he found the green he was left with a very difficult and lengthy two-putt.

Then came the magnificent pitch over the bunker by  Neergaard-Petersen. He finished 20 feet from the hole, which might not sound all that impressive, but given the degree of difficulty he faced, it was an outstanding result.

Smith putted down to 5 feet and seemingly still with the running. Neergaard-Petersen, however, saw it differently, holing his putt to effectively add another couple of feet to Smith’s putt.

Smith stood over his putt with a playoff likely, but when he pulled the putt, it was over, and Neergaard-Petersen had won his first DP World title.

“I have felt a similar kind of pressure, but nothing like the last six, seven holes with the crowds,” said Neergard-Petersen. “It was absolutely incredible the size of them, the cheering that was going on, it was absolutely fantastic, and it’s a day I’ll never forget. That’s for sure.

“I mean to win my first event, and for it to be the Australian Open, which is such an historic event, I think I asked you how it’s one of the oldest tournaments in the world, the national open of Australia. Just a quick peek at some of the names that are on there, and to be able to put my name among those names is unbelievable.

“There were a lot of people that asked me why I decided to go down here and that being able to have a chance to put my name on such a historic trophy was definitely one of them and just can’t wait to be back and try and defend.”

The winner was asked if he had any empathy for Cam Smith’s narrow loss.

“Absolutely. The thing that’s crazy, we’ve all been there. I know this is one of the events that are very big for him, so obviously I feel him in that way. I mean, I was nowhere on 18, I had nothing from the right, and somehow, some way I managed to get it up and down. So obviously feel for him. But he’s a class act, and it was great to be out there with him today.”

Neergard-Petersen has had an amazing 2025. By finishing inside the top ten of golfers in the Race to Dubai rankings and not otherwise qualified for the PGA Tour, he has earned the right to play in the US next year. He now has his first DP World title, and as a result of winning the event, he earns a start at the Masters next season.

“It means the world to me. I think growing up, the Masters wasn’t the first tournament that I watched, but as soon as I watched that tournament, it was the first event that I was like, if I one day I become a professional golfer, that’s the event I want to play. So it’s a dream come true, and I can’t wait for April.

“It’s the perfect exclamation point and what has been now a perfect season. I had two big goals going into this season – was to get a PGA TOUR card and to win a tournament. So to do it on the last event of the calendar year for me is – I’m speechless. It’s the perfect end to a fantastic year.”

It was a gut-wrenching finish for Smith, who has now been runner-up twice in his national open. It was, however, a brilliant comeback for Smith after missing the cut last weekend in Brisbane.

Smith finished one shot ahead of Si Woo Kim, South African Michael Hollick was 4^th and Adam Scott 5^th.

The leading three players in the event, not otherwise qualified for the Open Championship in July, earned an invitation to Royal Birkdale. Si Woo Kim, Michael Hollick and Adam Scott are securing those starts.

Scott has played 97 straight major championships, and by the time he gets to Birkdale, he will likely have extended that streak to 100, given that he has a start at the Masters as a previous winner, a start at the PGA Championship given his standing in the game and, although not yet qualified, a likely start at the US Open.

The Open Championship will be his 26^th start at the Open Championship.

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Rory McIlroy’s impact on the tournament has been clearly shown already – image Golf Australia

One of the features which makes Royal Melbourne the highly recognised golf course it is, is the capacity to show its many different faces day to day.

Today’s second round of the  Crown Australian Open provided further proof of just that when a reverse wind from that of yesterday’s opening day offered the opportunity for many who had struggled on day one to get themselves back into the event, the cut reducing by two shots from a projected 1 or 2 over last evening to even par and now 75 players who have made it to the weekend are within nine shots of the lead.

The blustery warm northerly winds, which had prevailed on day one until turning to the south late in the day, turned to the opposite direction today and made scoring a different proposition, with more than a dozen scores of 66 or better further confirming such.

The best of these was by one of our joint 36-hole leaders, Daniel Rodrigues of Portugal, whose round of 64, which included eight birdies in his last twelve holes to catapult him from the threat of a missed cut early in his round to a share of the halfway lead with Denmark’s Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen.

The pair are one shot ahead of Australia’s Min Woo Lee, whose round of 65 was highlighted by a hole out for eagle at the par 4 10th hole when holing his second shot from 174 metres.

“So it was a good number,” said Lee, referring to the shot. “Haven’t hit many three-quarter shots, and it was a three-quarter 9-iron and obviously firm greens, you don’t want to hit it too low. So that was an opportunity for a back pin and came off perfect.

‘It was 176 metres and it landed 164. We were trying to land 163, so we were one off.

“I mean, if I keep playing like this, I’ll be pretty happy. Very solid golf, so it’s going to be fun. Hopefully make some birdies and not too many mistakes, mate.

‘I think it’s going to firm up again, so yeah, you’ll be aggressive in the right moments. Again, you can’t overpower this course, and sometimes I feel like I was a bit too conservative, but at the end of the day, it wasn’t. So you can be like Rory and hit a driver, and he obviously had the time to do that as he was battling the cut. But you can make some birdies out there, being aggressive. So that’s the beauty of this place. You can play strong and sometimes conservative.”

Neither of the leaders has won on the DP World Tour, but there is quite a contrast in their respective experience; Neergaard-Petersen is currently ranked 82nd in the world while Rodriguez is outside the top 4000.

Rodrigues gained his DP World Tour playing rights when finishing 6th at the recent Tour School and played his first event as a cardholder last week in Brisbane, where he finished 33rd.

“Well, so far so good. I think the start in Australia has been awesome,” said Rodrigues. “It’s a little bit different from what I was used to, but it’s good, and I’m glad I’m here.

It’s (Royal Melbourne) hard, it’s good. It didn’t seem like it was hard today, but it’s a special place. I mean, you look around, and there are thousands and thousands of people on a Thursday and Friday, and it’s amazing. It’s awesome.”

Neegaard Petersen is a player good enough to have finished 3rd at the recent DP World Tour Championship behind Tommy Fleetwood and Rory McIlroy so he brings a lot of credentials to his standing in the halfway lead.

“It’s been a couple of really good days. I thought yesterday I stayed really, really patient and was able to put together a nice finish and then today I got off to a really good start, and I think from there, pretty much I hit a lot of really good golf shots, gave myself a lot of chances and was able to convert some of them. So two really good days’ work and looking forward to the weekend.”

“So, as I said yesterday, that eagle I made on 14 yesterday really got me going and gave me a lot of momentum, and it was playing a little bit easier today. Still, it was getting really, really firm and fast out there with the wind and the heat all day. So I’d say probably around 14 yesterday is when it started to just get a little bit more manageable.

“Well, certainly I feel like I’ve proved over the last year or so that I have the level to compete out here and be in the thick of things on Sunday. So right now I’m just looking forward to a nice, calm afternoon and then get ready for tomorrow. I know there’s obviously a lot of golf to be played, and we saw today a little bit less wind, it’s a bit more scoreable, but again, the wind could pick up at any time out here, and as soon as the wind picks up, it becomes really, really difficult. So also at the same time, golf for the weekend’s just going to be to stay really patient.”

First round leader, Carlos Ortiz, Cameron Smith and Adam Scott are at 7 under and just two from the lead, adding to the excitement of a possible Australian victory in the event, Smith’s bogey free 65, a big improvement on his recent efforts and a great confidence boost ahead of what will be an exciting weekend for him.

“Yeah, really stoked,” said Smith, who would dearly love to add this title after finishing runner-up to Jordan Spieth nine years ago.. “It’s been a while, so I’m happy I’m up there. It was nothing special. I don’t think it was anything different to what I’ve been doing. It’s just a few putts went in, and the momentum was up and felt really good.

“Yeah, really excited. I mean, this is what the Aussie Open should be. It should be like this every year. There’s no reason why it can’t be. I think it had its darkest moments the last few years, and I can’t wait to see this tournament grow over the years to come.”

New Zealanders Daniel Hillier and Ryan Fox are just three off the pace, and with some 17 players within four of the lead, the weekend promises much.

Rory McIlroy gave tournament organisers a scare when after an air swing led to a bogey at the 14th, he was outside the cut line and the reason for so many people being at Royal Melbourne was in jeopardy but three birdies in his last four holes sorted that out and although seven shots from the lead he is not out of things by any stretch of the imagination.

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McIlroy kept his and the tournament organiser’s hopes alive – image Golf Australia

Rory McIlroy – in action during today’s pro-am – image Golf Australia

Not since 2009 has there been so much hype about a 72-hole golf tournament in Australia, and it is no coincidence that the man who is responsible for nearly all of that hype at this week’s Australian Open, Rory McIlroy, could well be compared to the great Tiger Woods, who won the Australian Masters at nearby Kingston Heath 16 years ago with thousands of Australian golf fans from all over the country in attendance

Woods arrived in Australia with the enticement of a $3 million incentive for turning up, courtesy of the Victorian Government, but the man who was the game’s most dominant player then and the greatest player of the last 40 years and perhaps even longer, repaid the faith that was placed in him by winning by two shots over Greg Chalmers.

The crowds that week at The Heath and the money they injected into the local economy more than covered the cost of Wood’s involvement, and this week Rory McIlroy appears to be having a similar impact, given that so much of the event has been sold out long in advance.

One of only six players in the history of the game to have won golf’s Grand Slam, (all four majors) when he secured his fourth different major at this year’s Masters, McIlroy might be the world’s number two mathematically, but many would suggest (with the greatest of respect to Scottie Scheffler) he is the current greatest in the game and if he was to take home a second Australian Open title he might add further strength to that argument.

McIlroy first claimed Australian golf’s greatest prize when he gazumped Adam Scott at the 72-hole of the 2013 Australian Open, creating a two-shot swing with his birdie as Scott bogeyed from behind the green.

McIlroy winning the 2013 Australian Open at Royal Sydney

McIlroy has won four events in 2025, including his historic victory at Augusta National and indicated the form has continued late into the year with a 3rd place finish in Abu Dhabi and a runner-up finish at the DP World Tour Championship at his last start.

McIlroy faced a packed media assembly following his pro-am play today.

“Yeah, it’s been a very warm welcome and obviously delighted to be here. First time playing in Australia in quite a while, so I’ve been excited to come back. It hasn’t been a secret that I’ve wanted it to come back as well.

“I think just with obviously the wonderful golf courses that we’re playing the next couple of years, also the change in the format, going back to the traditional Australian Open has probably helped that too. But yeah, just really excited to be back.”

McIlroy has played here previously in his amateur days and did win this event in Sydney

“I think Australia has been a very big part of my golfing life and my golfing journey, going all the way back to playing the Australian Open as an amateur back in 2005 and 2006. And then I just think the quality of the golf down here, the quality of the players that have come from here.

“I mentioned it last night, but you look at an event like LIV Adelaide and the people that come out to that event and how excited they are that some of the top players in the world are down here playing, it just feels like this country is starved of top-level golf. Obviously, you’ve had Presidents Cups come down here and you’ve had a lot of good players still come through, but maybe just not on a consistent basis. And I think a market like this, with amazing fans and the history that it does have, probably deserves more of a consistency of big players and big tournaments.”

McIlroy was asked his thoughts on just where this event should sit in the golfing landscape.

“If you look at the world of golf right now, there are three pretty big tournaments going on in the same week. You’ve got the Tiger’s event in the Bahamas, you’ve got the Nedbank in South Africa, and obviously you’ve got here.

“I mean Sun City used to be, the million-dollar event, it’s probably lost a little bit of what it had. I’d say this tournament has lost a little bit of what it had back in the say 30, 40 years ago, and I’d say even Tiger’s event is probably the same way. So I think because there’s so much golf and there’s so many tournaments, the eyeballs are divided and the interest in every one of those tournaments this week is probably not as high as it should be.

“So I think this tournament in particular, because of the history, because of the tradition, deserves to be a standalone tournament, a week on its own, and hopefully one day they could put together a schedule where the biggest and best tournaments in the world and the oldest and the ones with the most heritage can be elevated and stand on their own.”

When asked how he rates Royal Melbourne by world standards, McIlroy was very candid.

“I don’t want the membership to take this (the wrong way), but it’s probably not the best course in Melbourne. I think that’s my opinion, but certainly in the top 10 in the world. So it’s like there’s so much great golf in this country and especially in this area. But yeah, I guess I didn’t know what to… I watched this on tv, I didn’t anticipate how many blind tee shots there were going to be, and it takes a little bit to figure out. It’s certainly not straightforward.

“I think as well, it probably plays better in the southerly wind rather than a northerly wind. Some of the shorter holes are down wind and it plays a little funky then, but if you get the southerly wind, then it gets back into the wind, then they play really good. So it’s probably not a fair reflection on the golf course playing it in this wind. It would be good to play it in a few other directions, but it’s obviously an amazing golf course I’ve come here to go out and compete on this week.

Not that McIlroy will necessarily have things all his own way this week, several of the European players showed last week they have a real opportunity to contend again. Not to mention, most of Australia’s best (except Jason Day) are here to tackle not only one of the game’s greats but one of Australia’s greatest layouts and arguably one of the leading courses in the world.

Throw in the ever-improving New Zealander Daniel Hiller and his fellow countryman Ryan Fox and Australasian golf fans will have a great week either at Royal Melbourne or watching from afar, although many have made the pilgrimage.

Min Woo Lee played well enough last week in Brisbane to be considered a good chance to win what may be the first of several Australian Open titles. His win in Houston this year, his first on the PGA Tour, took him to another level, and as Australia’s now leading world-ranked player, he is clearly a great local hope.

Adam Scott has not won in 2025 and, in fact, has recorded only one top ten in tournament golf, but he continues to play well all the same, and did so at Royal Queensland last week. The 45-year-old won this event in 2009 and was runner-up in 2013, 2015, and 2022.

Scott has experienced success on the sandbelt, twice winning the Australian Masters, including his win at Royal Melbourne in 2013. He also finished runner-up to Ernie Els in the Johnnie Walker Classic at Royal Melbourne very early in his career (2004).

Marc Leishman won on the LIV Golf Tour this season and showed last week in Brisbane that his game is in good enough shape to do well again. Being a Victorian, golf courses in this region of Melbourne are familiar to him, and there is no reason why he can’t at least contend for the title despite little in the way of success in the event to date, other than a 3rd place last year.

Cam Smith is somewhat of a mystery at present. Smith has missed the cut in his last seven non-LIV Golf events and hardly inspires the confidence he has brought to this event in more recent years, although, even then, he missed the third-round cut in 2022, was 17th in 2023 and was 39th last year. Smith has played the sandbelt well in the past, having won his Australian Amateur title at nearby Commonwealth Golf Club in 2013, but his current form and underlying confidence must be in question.

There is little doubt, now that the Australian Open has regained its singular focus after a few years trying to please everyone by becoming just too inclusive, that it has a chance to return to some of its glory days and the involvement of one of the most watchable golfers in the history of the game in Rory McIlroy has already proven a success in that regard and is likely to even more by week’s end.

Tee Times Day One

Anthony Quayle hits his tee shot at the par 5 9th – image PGA of Australia

A Spaniard, a Portuguese and a Queenslander will take a one-shot lead into the final round of the BMW PGA Championship at the Royal Queensland Golf Club in Queensland, the trio one ahead of New Zealand’s Kazuma Kobori and Australian Min Woo Lee.

Anthony Quayle, Ricardo Gouveia and David Puig finished their 54 holes at 13 under, but with 25 players within five shots of the lead, then tomorrow’s final round promises to be one of the great shootouts in major championship golf in this country.

All three leaders have yet to win on the DP World Tour; Quayle, in fact, is playing in just his first event as a cardholder after securing playing rights for this coming season through his efforts on the PGA Tour of Australasia last season.

The trio have, however, won tournaments on other tours previously, but this is a different level, and the opportunity to get their 2025/2026 DP World Tour seasons off to the best possible start is one that provides both opportunity and pressure.

Lee and several of those just off the pace, including the likes of Adam Scott, Marc Leishman and to a lesser extent Daniel Hillier are winners on either the DP World Tour or above and with other highly experienced players such as Geoff Ogilvy and Cameron Davis not far behind, tomorrow promises something quite special.

Quayle was treading water through the middle of his round after a strong start today but managed to birdie the 15^th and 17^th to rejoin the lead and set up perhaps the most important day of his career tomorrow.

When asked as to how he felt compared to his thoughts heading into last year’s final round, Quayle responded ;

“It’s funny, actually, going into the last round last year, I was driving here with my girlfriend, and I was in the car and I sort of just felt for the first time… I had some poor form leading up to it, and for the first time, I remember just saying to her, ‘I could go out and shoot 62 today and contend, and it could change everything.’

“I didn’t shoot 62, I shot 63, and I did contend, and it did start to change things for me. So yeah, I mean that last round was just such a massive momentum shift with my career in recent times, and I think tomorrow could be another chance to take it another step further.”

It has been well documented that Quayle has had the services of one of the game’s great caddies on the bag this week, Steve Williams, and he referred to his influence.

“I think I’ve already learned so much working with Steve. I’ve learned so much just about what I’m probably looking for in a caddie. And I think probably also learning a bit about my own game as well, and how that stacks up against some pretty good players. So look, I think you could probably call it a win irrespective. I think either way, I’ve had a fun week, and I think it’s something I’ll remember for a pretty long time.”

Gouveia suggested what  a breakthrough DP World Tour win would mean if he were able to get the job done tomorrow

“It would mean the world. It was one of my goals for the season. So if I can do it on the first event of the year, that would be pretty special. But there’s a lot of golf to go, A lot can happen, and I’m just going to focus, obviously shot by shot, hole by hole, the normal cliche.

“I think everyone is going to try and come out hot tomorrow. The front nine is a bit more gettable than the back nine. So you’ve got so many good players. It doesn’t mean the good players are all going to come out hot. Everyone plays really well out here. So yeah, it’s just got to stick to my game plan and focus on what I can control, which is myself.”

Puig plays the LIV Tour in the main but is loving the opportunity to play these events.

“I mean, I never played in Australia besides the LIV event in Adelaide. And I was really looking forward to playing in different cities, and especially big cities like this week and next week. So it was in my schedule at the beginning of the year, coming here, and hopefully playing well.

“You guys have amazing golf courses here, and I was lucky enough to play some of them and finding that time to be here and playing this course, it meant a lot, and I’m glad that I’m actually doing pretty good.”

Not that the chances stop there. As round three has already shown with 12 rounds of 66 or better and an improved forecast tomorrow, anything is possible.

It is shaping as a fascinating final day with as many as twenty players going to bed tonight feeling they might have a chance to win one of Australian golf’s finest titles.

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Sebastian Garcia – can he build on his early lead – image PGA of Australia

With the predicted afternoon deluge arriving at 3.15 at Royal Queensland during round one of the BMW Australian PGA Championship, many golfers were left having to finish off their opening rounds at 6.00 a.m. on Friday morning and with Friday’s second round being delayed by 90 minutes, the possibility exists for round two play to carry over to Saturday.

When play was called after lightning and a heavy deluge forced players form an already damp golf course, Spain’s Sebastian Garcia was playing his 15^th hole of the day and at 7 under par he led by two over New South Wales’ Danile Garcia who, irrespective of what happens for the rest of the week, will walk away as one of the big winners having secured a BMW M5 Touring car for his hole in one at the 11^th hole.

Gale was on the 13^th when play was called, following a up his ace with a birdie at the 12^th despite the fact that he had just secured a windfall worth A$260,000.

36-year-old Garcia has only recently regained his DP World Tour card after finishing 10^th on the feeder Hotel Planner Tour in Europe, including a recent win in China and two other top fives in his last five starts.

Garcia’s best finish to date on the DP World Tour when holding a card to play there was when 4^th in Kenya and Austria earlier in his career, but he has a great opportunity to finish this round off well and take a good lead into round two.

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Daniel Gale – a great week, whatever happens – image PGA of Australia