Ryan Gerard – image Getty Images
A brilliant mid-round surge by Adam Scott during his second round of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth Golf and Country Club in Surrey to the west of London will see the Queenslander enter the weekend just two off the halfway lead held by American Ryan Gerard (pictured).
Beginning his second round at the 9th hole (caused by the logistics of accessing the 10th tee), Scott parred his first four holes before a bogey at his 5th hole had him one over for the day, but he would then unleash a run of eight birdies over the next ten holes to take the lead at 11 under par before a bogey at his 17th hole saw him finish with a second consecutive round of 67.
Scott played early on day two, and when he finished his round he was tied in the lead with Italian Filippo Celli, and it would not be until Gerard finished his round of 65 late in the day that the American would take a two-shot lead through 36 holes.
Understandably, Scott was delighted with his game and his position in the tournament.
I’m really pleased with it, actually,” said the 46-year-old, playing in his 11th BMW PGA Championship. “Early start, a quick turnaround. Took me a couple holes to kind of find the rhythm, certainly on the greens, anyway. Then I got going. Made a bunch of birdies, a few bogeys and in great shape going into the weekend.”
Scott was asked how the energy levels were holding up given a big end to the PGA Tour season.
“I feel all right, but you have to really understand that it’s getting late in the year. We played a big month to finish the FedExCup in the States. You want to be ready for a big event like this, too. I’ve had a couple of easy weeks. I felt a little underdone, probably, golf-wise coming in here, but at least fresh mentally, and I think that’s been good for me the last couple of days.
“This is one of the special events in the world. We have these major championships, and of course everyone recognises them and rates them so highly, but this sits very close to that level. I think there are so many things going for it from the golf course, but the atmosphere they create, the fans, the amphitheatre around 18, I think it’s a special, special feeling coming up there later on a Sunday. It feels like a big championship, and I’d dearly love to be in with a chance on Sunday.”
New Zealand’s Ryan Fox followed up his good start yesterday with a second consecutive round of 68 to be just four from the lead and in a share of 6th place alongside his playing partner Rory McIlory and three others. The other member of their trio, Aaron Rai, is at 9 under and just three from the lead.
Gerard has had a big year on the PGA Tour, improving from 44th to 21st in the world ranking, and although he has not won in 2026, there have been some very impressive results, including a 3rd place at the Tour Championship in August and three runner-up finishes, including at the Memorial Tournament.
“I think the course looks very similar to courses that I’ve grown up on, and I feel very comfortable with a lot of the tee shots and angles and things like that,” said the 27-year-old.
“So you know, it’s a golf tournament that you have to be prepared to play. Our job is to be prepared for that week, and I feel like the first year is kind of difficult sometimes, but second year, you should be ready to go. So I did a lot of prep last year, did some more this year, had a really good understanding of the wind and where the pins are and how some of the greens like to shape and slope and where you don’t want to be.
I’ve done a really good job of just staying patient and executing good golf shots up until this point, and hopefully more this weekend.
New Zealander Daniel Hillier is in 49th place at 3 under while Kazuma Kobori is in 64th place and on the cut line.
Fellow Australasians, David Micheluzzi, Jason Scrivener and Elvis Smylie missed out on the weekend.
Leaderboard
International side faces unenviable task at Medinah
Captains Geoff Ogilvy and Brandt Snedeker – image courtesy of Getty Images
The 16th edition of the Presidents Cup gets underway on Thursday at the Medinah Golf Club in Illinois, the International side still in the process of making the event a bona fide contest having won only one of the previous encounters and forced a tie on one other.
The Americans have therefore won 13 of the 15 times the two sides have met, including the last eleven in succession. Those stats suggest this week’s event will be a one-sided procession, although not all of the American victories have been as dominant as the records suggest.
The Internationals came close to victory when they lost by just one point in Incheon, Korea in 2015, a last-round battle between Sang Moon Bae and Jay Haas having the Internationals in with a real chance of sharing honours for the second occasion before Bae made an agonising mess of the final hole at the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club in front of his home fans.
In 2019, the event was played at Royal Melbourne, and the Internationals took a 10-8 lead into Sunday’s singles before being run down 8-4 and losing 16 -14.
The closest of encounters, therefore, including the win and the tie, have come at International venues, suggesting the Medinah Golf Club gives the Americans an even greater advantage than their ranking strength alone.
As is the case with the Ryder and Solheim Cups, the USA side enters the event as the heavy favourite as a result of their superiority in terms of world rankings. The USA side can boast that nine of their 12-man side are currently inside the top 20 in the world rankings, while the Internationals have only Si Woo Kim (14th) in that category.
Not that world rankings are the only barometer for success. Both the Solheim and Ryder Cups have been won more regularly in recent years by the less credentialed side mathematically, but the numbers in this week’s encounter are so heavily weighted in the favour of the Americans it is hard to see the Internationals mounting a serious contest.
The decision by Ernie Els in 2019 to introduce a shield to assist the International side in unifying under a common theme has perhaps assisted the side in overcoming the wide range of countries it represents and providing a rallying cry and a clearer identity for a team which regularly faces a very partisan American side and their fans was noble. That will be further the case this week, given the event is played about an hour west of Chicago.
Australian Geoff Ogilvy gets his chance to join fellow Australians Peter Thomson, Greg Norman and David Graham as team captains for the Internationals, the 2006 US Open winner and eight-time PGA Tour titleholder adding further benefit to the side given his role in his design team’s redesign at Medinah although that is unlikely to play too great a part in the team’s chances.
Whether his appointment is a poison chalice remains to be seen, but Ogilvy’s record, forthright manner and ownership of his own decisions suggest he will not back off from making the many hard decisions that will come his way during Cup week.
If there is one nugget that the Internationals could hope to utilise this week, it is that the USA side have to face either the Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup every year, and whether the typically one-sided nature of this particular contest creates apathy and complacency might just provide some hope of a contest at least, but, in all reality, it would seem the outcome of the 2026 Presidents Cup is a foregone conclusion.
A side that can leave out J.J. Spaun and Gary Woodland must be very good.
I would dearly like to see a different outcome, but it is hard to imagine it.
THE TEAMS AND SCORING
Scott finishes runner-up, Fox 6th at BMW PGA Championship
Scott began the day two shots behind Manuel Elvira and Filippo Celli, but an almost compulsory birdie at the par-5 4th put him among 15 players within one shot of the lead. A bogey at the 6th after missing the green and then a five-foot putt was followed by several frustrating near misses on the greens, but the final seven holes at Wentworth provided plenty of opportunity, and Scott took near full advantage with birdies at the 12th, 13th, 17th and 18th for his round of 68 and to have a share of the lead at that point.
2025 US Open Champion, Spaun, was playing two groups behind Scott, and although he missed an opportunity at the 17th, he would two-putt for birdie at the last to claim the lead, although he was joined almost immediately at 17 under by Elvira, who hit the most magnificent approach to the par 5 17th and converted for eagle.
Elvira, without a win as a professional, needed a birdie at the reachable par 5 last to take the title and, after finding the fairway with an iron from the tee, was left with just over 250 yards to the hole. He decided to lay up but found a fairway bunker, then missed the green with his third.
He then found the greenside bunker with his 4th. He needed to get up and down to take second outright but failed to do so, and the resultant double bogey saw him fall back into a share of second place, still a great result, but it was a case of what might have been for the 30-year-old Spaniard. The difference between a potential win and his share of second place was €800,000
Scott earned €520,000 for his share of second place and moved 50 places to 34th in the Race to Dubai rankings.
New Zealand’s Ryan Fox began the day three from the lead but made a great start, and when he birdied the 8th and 9th holes for an outward nine of 31, he had the lead at 14 under par. After a mid-round talk with Sky’s on-course interviewer, Tim Barter, Fox pulled his second slightly at the 11th and found the front left bunker and was unable to get up and down. Then, after finding the rough at the reachable par 5 12th, he unluckily hit a bunker rake left in front of the greenside bunker and was faced with an awkward pitch over that bunker, which he failed to negotiate and was forced to save par from the sand.
It had been a costly stretch and perhaps more thought should be given to interviewing players so late in an event when there is so much going on. Fox obviously agreed to the on-course chat, but he might have been better advised to refuse given the circumstances. It is not in Fox’s nature to do so, but it might also be up to the producers to avoid such a situation.
Fox did, however, hit a fine shot to the last, and although he missed his eagle chance, his birdie saw him finish with a round of 68 and a share of 6th place. Fox earned €220,000.
Daniel Hillier added a second consecutive round of 69 to finish 36th, while Kazuma Kobori was 56th.
For Hillier, he is now in 9th position amongst the players in line for one of the ten PGA Tour cards for 2027, given to the leading ten in the Race to Dubai rankings at season’s end and who are non-exempt for the PGA Tour. Hillier is now 12th in the Race to Dubai rankings.
RESULTS
Can Steve Alker make it four in succession?
Steve Alker – file image courtesy of USGA
Steve Alker is just one shot off the lead at the PGA Tour Champions Pure Insurance Championship at Pebble Beach Golf Links as the 54-hole event heads into tomorrow’s final round.
Alker, who has won his last three events, two on the PGA Tour Champions and one on Europe’s Staysure Legends Tour, now has a chance to win four events in succession.
Alker is surrounded by major champions as he heads into tomorrow’s final round, with Y.E.Yang, Henrik Stenson and Ryan Moore leading at 8 under par, while tied with the New Zealander at 7 under par is two-time major winner, Zach Johnson.
Alker is playing the event for the sixth occasion, and although he has yet to win, he has been no worse than 6th in those five previous events, so coupled with his current form he is well placed to complete an amazing run.
When asked why he is on such a roll at present, Alker suggested it was a combination of forces.
“I think it’s just everything, to be honest. Everything’s just getting much sharper when you’re playing a bit more, and now back into the routine of like, I know my schedule, I know where I’m going. I think that’s the big thing. Everything’s just getting a little bit better.
“I haven’t played for 10 days before this event. I literally put my clubs away. So the mind’s fresh, the putting feels good, I’m driving it good. So yeah, it’s just all clicking, just getting a little bit better for the Playoffs.”
Playing at one of American golf’s most iconic venues is providing even greater incentive for Alker to record his first win in the event.
“Oh, it’s super special. I mean, it’s iconic, right? Just think of the people who have played here, the greats of the game. Not just greats, but celebrities here. It’s a special place. You have a lot to choose from around here; it’s not just Pebble, but I think if I had my choice of courses in this area, Pebble’s right up there with the best of them.”
Australian Michael Wright is just two off the lead and in a share of 6th place while Scott Hend and David Bransdon are in a share of 18th place at 3 under and five shots from the lead.
Leaderboard
Scott and Fox keep hopes alive at BMW PGA Championship
Adam Scott – just two from the 54-hole lead – file image
Adam Scott and Ryan Fox remain very much in contention as the BMW PGA Championship heads into the final round at the Wentworth Golf and Country Club in Surrey.
Scott birdied his final two holes on a blustery Saturday for a round of 71, and at 11 under he is two shots behind the joint lead held by Italian Filippo Celli and Spain’s Manuel Elvira.
Wentworth has two par fives to finish, and Scott, who was battling at 1 over for the round when he reached the 17th tee, holed a 30-foot birdie putt before hitting a magnificent approach to 6 feet at the last. Frustratingly, he missed the eagle putt, but the birdie kept him very much a contender heading into Sunday’s final round.
“That was a grind out there,” said Scott. “I saw all these good scores up on the board, but it didn’t feel like that was really doable. It was kind of one step forward and a couple steps back out there. Very hard to get in a rhythm. Hard to feel like you had a number where you could attack.
“It felt pretty good, overall. Trusting it is hard on a day like today, especially when, you know, you might misjudge a shot here or there, especially on the wind, the direction, and it hangs far offline. It’s hard to keep believing that you’re doing the right things.
“The swing does feel good. With it being so windy today, I pulled a couple of wrong clubs off the tee, and I think that was more the error than the swing so much. It just left no margin for any error. If it’s like that tomorrow, hopefully I’ll learn a lesson, but looking forward to having a chance.
“I rate this tournament so highly. I’ve enjoyed playing here for a lot of years now, and with strong connections to European golf, I would love to etch my name into the history here at Wentworth.”
Fox bogeyed the 3rd after finding the fairway bunker from the tee but added four more birdies and a bogey for his round of 70 to be tied for 11th place, just three shots from the lead.
“It was tough, said Fox. “The wind was so gusty. Felt like I hit a lot of decent shots that didn’t end up where I thought they were going to end up. I made a couple of nice par putts to keep it going on front nine, and then when you feel like you can score on the back nine, it just became hard to hit the ball close. I’m glad I snuck one in there on the last, even though I didn’t hit a very good second shot. I’m still in the hunt, at least.
“I’m happy with how I grounded out. I think Rors (McIlroy) and I had a fairly similar round in that regard. Some scratchy stuff. Put together a decent score, and as I said, we got a chance going into tomorrow.”
Daniel Hillier recorded a solid third round of 69 to be in a share of 34th and seven shots from the lead, while his fellow New Zealander, Kazuma Kobori, is another shot back.
Leaderboard
Scott and Fox remain close to BMW PGA lead
Ryan Gerard – image Getty Images
A brilliant mid-round surge by Adam Scott during his second round of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth Golf and Country Club in Surrey to the west of London will see the Queenslander enter the weekend just two off the halfway lead held by American Ryan Gerard (pictured).
Beginning his second round at the 9th hole (caused by the logistics of accessing the 10th tee), Scott parred his first four holes before a bogey at his 5th hole had him one over for the day, but he would then unleash a run of eight birdies over the next ten holes to take the lead at 11 under par before a bogey at his 17th hole saw him finish with a second consecutive round of 67.
Scott played early on day two, and when he finished his round he was tied in the lead with Italian Filippo Celli, and it would not be until Gerard finished his round of 65 late in the day that the American would take a two-shot lead through 36 holes.
Understandably, Scott was delighted with his game and his position in the tournament.
I’m really pleased with it, actually,” said the 46-year-old, playing in his 11th BMW PGA Championship. “Early start, a quick turnaround. Took me a couple holes to kind of find the rhythm, certainly on the greens, anyway. Then I got going. Made a bunch of birdies, a few bogeys and in great shape going into the weekend.”
Scott was asked how the energy levels were holding up given a big end to the PGA Tour season.
“I feel all right, but you have to really understand that it’s getting late in the year. We played a big month to finish the FedExCup in the States. You want to be ready for a big event like this, too. I’ve had a couple of easy weeks. I felt a little underdone, probably, golf-wise coming in here, but at least fresh mentally, and I think that’s been good for me the last couple of days.
“This is one of the special events in the world. We have these major championships, and of course everyone recognises them and rates them so highly, but this sits very close to that level. I think there are so many things going for it from the golf course, but the atmosphere they create, the fans, the amphitheatre around 18, I think it’s a special, special feeling coming up there later on a Sunday. It feels like a big championship, and I’d dearly love to be in with a chance on Sunday.”
New Zealand’s Ryan Fox followed up his good start yesterday with a second consecutive round of 68 to be just four from the lead and in a share of 6th place alongside his playing partner Rory McIlory and three others. The other member of their trio, Aaron Rai, is at 9 under and just three from the lead.
Gerard has had a big year on the PGA Tour, improving from 44th to 21st in the world ranking, and although he has not won in 2026, there have been some very impressive results, including a 3rd place at the Tour Championship in August and three runner-up finishes, including at the Memorial Tournament.
“I think the course looks very similar to courses that I’ve grown up on, and I feel very comfortable with a lot of the tee shots and angles and things like that,” said the 27-year-old.
“So you know, it’s a golf tournament that you have to be prepared to play. Our job is to be prepared for that week, and I feel like the first year is kind of difficult sometimes, but second year, you should be ready to go. So I did a lot of prep last year, did some more this year, had a really good understanding of the wind and where the pins are and how some of the greens like to shape and slope and where you don’t want to be.
I’ve done a really good job of just staying patient and executing good golf shots up until this point, and hopefully more this weekend.
New Zealander Daniel Hillier is in 49th place at 3 under while Kazuma Kobori is in 64th place and on the cut line.
Fellow Australasians, David Micheluzzi, Jason Scrivener and Elvis Smylie missed out on the weekend.
Leaderboard
Adam Scott one from the lead at Wentworth
Adam Scott – file photo courtesy of Australian Golf Media
Adam Scott has made an impressive start to the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, an opening round of 5 under 67, having the 46-year-old in a share of third place and just one behind the joint leaders, Aaron Rai and Joakim Lagergren.
Scott played in the afternoon field and day one, but tomorrow will be in one of the early groups out from the 9th tee (half of the field begin their rounds at the 9th) and so gets the opportunity to build on what has been a fine start to the US$9 million event.
Scott reached the first of the two par-5 finishing holes at Wentworth at 5 under par and seemingly in a position to either join or take the opening round lead, but at the demanding driving hole hit his tee shot out of bounds at the 17th and, in the end, did well to lose only one shot. He would, however, hit his second to the last to 5 feet, and although he missed the eagle attempt, the birdie moved him to just one of the lead.
Scott is playing this event for the 11th occasion, but in the main his record is rather ordinary for one of his standards, with just one top ten in those starts, but he is clearly playing well, and perhaps slightly easier conditions on Friday morning might see him in or near the lead heading into the weekend.
“I played really, really solid,” said Scott. “I would say for sure one of my best rounds, tee to green this year. Not really sure why, just a nice tee shot off the first, kind of calmed any nerves and then went about my business from there. It’s a nice way to play Wentworth when there’s low stress. So three to go.
“I mean, a bit more of that kind of golf would be fantastic, but I know I’m going to have to dig deep to hang in there this week. We’ve always known driving to be a strength of yours in your game, but it felt like it was particularly solid with maybe the exception of today. Yeah, it was.
“You know, I put a new driver in earlier this week. Mine kind of broke leading into here. So a new one went in and that’s working nicely. But it is the key to Wentworth. If you’re in the fairway, you can create some opportunities. If you’re not, it’s a long day out there.
“It’s a nice way to finish. It would have been great to make the putt, but it was a bit of a bit of a slider and I kind of hit it a bit too weak. But, you know, keep making swings like that. As I said, the opportunities will come. I can take a few. And, you know, to be in the mix here on Sunday would be so fantastic. It’s one of my favourite events. Love being here. So I’d love to have a shot at it.”
A massive 79 golfers are under par on the magnificent West Course layout at the completion of day one, but only six shots separate those players.
Ryan Fox played in the morning field with Aaron Rai and Rory McIlroy and was 4 under through 14 holes before a bogey at his 17th hole, then finishing off with a 12-foot birdie putt on the 8th (his final hole of the day).
Kazuma Kobori opened with a round of 2 under 70, Daniel Hillier and David Micheluzzi had 71, and Elvis Smylie, in his first event for three months, had 3 over 75.
Leaderboard
Ryan Fox returns to scene of significant victory
Ryan Fox holds his 2023 BMW PGA Championship trophy aloft
This week’s US$9 million BMW PGA Championship over the Burma Road (West Course layout) at the famed Wentworth Golf Club in Surrey, sees the return to European golf of the recently crowned Open Champion and a man who has had success previously in this flagship event of the DP World Tour.
Ryan Fox will join a field which includes Masters Champion, Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, USPGA Champion Aaron Rai, world number four Matthew Fitzpatrick, last week’s runaway winner in Ireland, Shane Lowry, and current Race to Dubai leader Patrick Reed.
Fox won this event in 2023 when defeating Aaron Rai and Tyrrell Hatton by one shot, his most significant victory of the four standalone DP World Tour events he has won, and there will be a lot of interest as to how the 39-year-old will perform now that he is a major champion following his win at the Open Championship nearly two months ago.
Fox’s form since his win at Royal Birkdale has been below his best, but there has been a lot to adjust to, and he did make it to the Tour Championship in Atlanta, which is an achievement in itself. Interestingly, in eight other attempts at this week’s event, he has a best of 20th, another factor worth considering when assessing his chances. Fox is, though, a significantly more experienced and credentialed player than was the case three years ago.
Fox will play with McIlroy and Rai in the opening two rounds, resulting in three of this year’s four major champions are paired over the first 36 holes.
Other Australians and New Zealanders in the field are Adam Scott, Daniel Hillier, Kazuma Kobori, Jason Scrivener, David Micheluzzi and Elvis Smylie, who returns from an injury break, having last played at the Italian Open in June.
TEE TIMES
Kazuma Kobori’s improved driving helps in Ireland
Kazuma Kobori – file image Australian Golf Media
New Zealand’s Kazuma Kobori is in a share of 5th place at the halfway stage of the US$6 million Amgen Irish Open at the Trump International Links in Doonbeg, Ireland, the 24-year-old’s second round of 67, leaving him six shots behind the former winner, Shane Lowry, but just three shots out of second place.
Kobori, who is currently 76th in the Race to Dubai rankings, comes off an improved 9th-place finish at the recent British Masters and is pushing for a place in the top 50 in the Race to Dubai to earn a place in the DP World Tour Championship in November, the field for which he made in his rookie season in 2025.
Kobori began the day with a bogey but followed up immediately with three consecutive birdies and added one further birdie at the 10th and given his early tee time, was vying for the lead at that stage.
Lowry was out two hours after Kobori, and when he added an amazing round of 62, he was three ahead, and it would be he that the field will chase over the final 36 holes.
Daniel Hillier, who was forced to withdraw from last week’s Omega European Masters, added a second consecutive 69 to be in a share of 20th as he looks to consolidate his position inside the top 10 recipients of a PGA Tour card for 2027, the leading 10 in the Race to Dubai rankings and not otherwise exempt on the PGA Tour earn the right to play there next season.
Victorian David Micheluzzi was the only other Australasian to make the cut, finishing in a share of 47th heading into the weekend.
Kobori leads the driving accuracy statistics on the DP World Tour but has struggled a little form the tee of late although he feels he may have it worked out.
“Actually been battling a bit like maybe the last month or so, but I think we figured out what’s going wrong and, yeah, drove it well today,” said the man from Canterbury in New Zealand’s South Island.
“Just experimenting with the driver heads and stuff like that. I had a bit of a hard time adapting to the new model that Titleist brought out. But I’ve done a bit of experimenting, and I think we got to a good setup. With the driver, you want to get to a spot where you can just swing it and not really steer it all too much. So, yeah, I think we got to that point.
“ Yeah, hopefully keeping that going would be good.”
Leaderboard
The Solheim Cup shaping as another tight contest
The USA side – image Ladies European Tour
It may not involve players from our region, but there is little doubting the interest created here in the Australasian region by the Solheim Cup, which, like its male counterpart (The Ryder Cup), has developed into one of the more competitive and fascinating battles in world sport.
This week sees the 20th edition of the event between the USA and European female golfers, first played in 1990, and while eight of the first eleven encounters went to the seemingly more powerful Americans, the Europeans have balanced the ledger to a great extent by winning four and sharing the honours in five of the last eight stagings of the event.
This week, the Americans will again hold the advantage in terms of world ranking strength, but as the European Ryder Cup team has shown over the last 40 years at least, rankings on paper count for little in the fierce contest that has developed between the two teams.
Nine of the USA side are inside the top 50 in the Rolex World Ranking, while only five of the Europeans are in that category, although it is in the last few players of each team where the discrepancy becomes even more obvious in the favour of the Americans.
That the event is to be contested on what is essentially home soil for the Europeans, the partisan European crowd in Bernardus in the Netherlands will ensure some of that imbalance in rankings is reduced.
The event is played over three days, with Fourball and Foursome matches played on each of the first two days, and 12 Singles matches played on day three for a total of 28 points.
European Team
USA Team
The European side – image – Ladies European Tour
Steve Alker makes it three in a row
Alker’s amazing run continues with success in Northern Ireland – image Staysure Legends Tour
New Zealander Steve Alker has made it three wins in succession with a two-shot victory over South African Hennie Otto at the NI Legends Galgorm in Northern Ireland, an event on the Staysure (European Senior) Legends Tour.
Alker, who in the previous two weeks had won in Canada and in Michigan on the PGA Tour Champions, led after his opening round of 67 and was tied for the lead through 36 holes of the 54-hole contest with Scotland’s David Drysdale.
Drysdale’s birdie at the first to Alker’s bogey saw a two-shot swing in Drysdale’s favour, but a birdie at the 3rd by Alker and consecutive bogeys at the 5th and 6th by Drysdale had Alker back in front. A powerful back nine of 32 was enough to see off a strong challenge from Otto whose bogey-free 64 ensured Alker needed to remain vigilant over the closing stages.
Birdies at the 16th and 18th saw Alker home to win his second standalone Staysure Legends Tour event nearly two years after his first, which came at his last start on that tour.
“It’s pretty special, three in a row doesn’t happen very often, so you’ve got to make the most of it,” Alker told the Staysure Legends Tour after his two-stroke victory.
“It was a tough day — it got pretty close. The front nine, nothing was really happening, so to finish strong on the back nine, just hitting some better shots and making a couple of putts. That was really nice. There were some good players up there, guys who’ve played on the European Tour for a long time, so I knew I had my work cut out.
“The birdie on 16 was huge for me. I hit a nice 3-wood and wedged it to four or five feet. That meant I didn’t have to birdie 18 — it’s always nice when you don’t need to birdie the last. Having that one-shot cushion meant the heart wasn’t going as fast. It was nice to have that feeling.
“I’ve had a blast on the Staysure Legends Tour this week — always do when we come over here. My wife and I stayed in the hotel, it’s been a special week for us, and one we’ll remember for a long time.”
Alker’s next appearance is likely to be at the Pure Insurance Championship at Pebble Beach Golf Links in ten days where he has regularly finished inside the top 5.
Mark Brown 17th and Michael Campbell 21st were the next best of the New Zealanders in the field.
RESULTS