Ben Campbell shares lead in Japan – photo Japan Tour
It may or may or turn out that way, but May 15th is shaping as a significant day in New Zealand golf.
In Japan, Ben Campbell has a share of the lead at the Asia Pacific Open Diamond Cup event in the Oarai Golf Club in Ibaraki.
At the Soudal Open in Belgium, New Zealand’s highest ranked male golfer Ryan Fox leads on his own through 54 holes and on the PGA Tour Champions, Steve Alker is in second place and three behind Steve Stricker in the chase for one of that tour’s major titles, the Regions Tradition in Birmingham in Alabama.
Campbell is playing the event in Japan courtesy of his Asian Tour status as the event is jointly sanctioned by both tours and although one of four players tied for the lead heading into today’s final round, a win would provide the 30 year old with Japan Tour status for the remainder of the year at least.
Already bound for The Open Championship at St. Andrews this July, Campbell has another chance to turn his already encouraging season into an even better one. He has already finished runner-up at the Vic Open and 8th at the Singapore Open in 2022.
“I played solid,” said the Queenstown based Campbell. “My front nine was really good. I just putted solid the whole day,” he said. “It’s a great golf course. It’s tough. You just have to stay patient out there.
“If I can hit it a little bit better tomorrow, I think I should be in a good position. I’ve been putting well.”
Campbell, a former world number six amateur, has been on form this year, with a runner-up finish at the PGA Tour of Australasia’s Vic Open in February being his best result to date which resulted in him earning a start at the Open Championship.
Campbell, who was sidelined for 18 months following a hip surgery before returning in April last year.
Campbell will be relishing the prospect of playing full-time in Japan, having played four events in 2017 but failing to make an impact. But that trip was memorable enough to make him keen on coming back for more.
“I love coming to Japan. The people here are amazing. I love the food as well. I love the golf courses we play here,” said Campbell.
“Every time we come out here, it’s always been amazing. I always enjoy myself here. It would be great to have a good day tomorrow.”
Ryan Fox – begins his third round on Saturday – photo Getty Images
Last week Ryan Fox’s 8th place finish in Belgium ensured he would gain a start at this coming week’s PGA Championship in Tulsa.
Perhaps surprisingly, he decided to play this week rather than head to the US earlier and prepare for one of golf’s majors but he will be pleased he did so as he leads the €2 million event and is chasing his second title of the year having won in the UAE earlier.
Fox returned home after that win and spent two months back in New Zealand but since his return he has continued to play well having finished 15th, 9th and 8th in the three events since.
Fox started his third round slowly but a final nine of 30 swept him to the lead ahead of England’s Sam Horsfield.
“I played really solid on the back to be honest, holed a couple putts as well and I hope I figured something out after a couple of scrappy drives early on in the round, and it felt pretty good form the tenth hole onwards. So, hopefully I can take that into tomorrow.
“So, you know you are going to make a few mistakes which I have done, I’ve gotten away with a couple this week, I’ve not got away with a few as well, and thankfully made a few birdies to counteract it.
“I have been in contention the last couple of weeks as well and not really done much on Sunday, so I am looking forward to being in the mix again. Obviously, Sam Horsfield is playing some good golf as well, and he is a heck of a player, so hopefully we will have a good tussle tomorrow.”
Fox is currently in 13th place in the DP World Tour rankings for this season and a win tomorrow would move him from just outside the top 100 in the world ranking and close to 60th.
Alker has been a revelation on the PGA Tour Champions since making his debut last August where he was forced to pre-qualify. Since then, it has been a simply stunning run and in 2022 he leads the money list with earnings just over US$1 million, more than US$200,000 ahead of Miguel Angel Jimenez.
A win tomorrow would add another US$375,000 to his swelling bank account but given the event is a major on the PGA Tour Champions and would further elevate his standing at this level.
Alker trails Steve Stricker by three following a third round of 65 and is alone in second place and two ahead of Jimenez.
Golf works in strange ways and it might be that none of the three New Zealanders complete a victory tomorrow but there are hopes that Sunday May 15th could be one of the finest days in New Zealand golf.
SCORES JAPAN
SCORES BELGIUM
SCORES ALABAMA
Ryan Fox finishes runner-up in Belgium
Ryan Fox – file photo Getty Images – his good season continues
New Zealand’s Ryan Fox has finished in a share of the runner-up position at the Soudal Open in Antwerp in Belgium.
Fox, who led into the final round, and his joint runner-up finisher, Paul Yannick of Germany, finished two behind the winner, England’s Sam Horsfield, Fox’s closing nine of 2 over par 37 costing him the chance of a second win in 2022.
The runner-up pair earned €166,000 each.
Fox will improve to the mid 80’s in the world ranking from just outside the top 100 and now heads to Tulsa in the US for this week’s PGA Championship in which he gained a start a week ago.
Josh Geary was the only other Australasian to make the weekend and finished 58th.
The winner Horsfield is a rising star of the European Tour and won his third event and his first since August of 2020 when he won twice. His regular caddie was unavailable this week and his girlfriend Issabella Byron stood in.
“I was trying not to cry while I was over that little tap-in (at the 18th),” said the winner. “Having Issi (Isabella Byron) on the bag, it’s been an amazing week. Mick (Seaborn, his regular caddie) is not here but I wish he was. I said yesterday I wanted to do it for him, and I was able to do it for him. I’m just so, so happy.
“I definitely thought about Mick quite a lot. Especially on the back nine, I pulled a few clubs that he definitely would have wanted me to hit.
“Issi has been amazing. I’ve been so happy on the golf course. It’s just like golf’s sort of got in the way this week, until a little bit there on the back nine. I asked her coming down 18 ‘are you nervous’ and she said yeah. But we’ve had an amazing week and I’m just so happy that she was here to enjoy this.
“This was a really special week for me, you know Issi my girlfriend was caddying for me, so it was a little different out there and we had a hell of a lot of fun. Unfortunately Mick my caddie couldn’t be here, you know I wish he was, and I was definitely thinking about him today. And this was for him.
Appleby, Pampling and Alker share 3rd at Regions Traditions
Stuart Appleby – his best finish on the PGA Tour Champions – file photo
Stuart Appleby, Rod Pampling and New Zealand’s Steve Alker have tied for 3rd place in the opening major of the PGA Tour Champions season.
The trio finished seven shots behind the runaway winner, Steve Stricker and one behind the runner-up Padraig Harrington at the Regions Traditions event in Birmingham in Alabama.
The trio finished in a five way tie for 3rd, a bogey at the last costing Alker US$52,000 being the difference between finishing 3rd alone and the US$128,000 he and the others earn for their share of 3rd.
For Appleby, who is playing just his 10th event on the PGA Tour Champions after joining the tour in 2021, it is by some way his best finish in the over-50’s tour, his previous best being when 12th in the SAS Champions event last year.
Pampling has been on the PGA Tour Champions since September 2019 and has one win to his name in that time and has earnings over US$2 million in that time.
Pampling’s final round of 67 saw him record his best finish of the season.
Alker has been the standout on the PGA Tour Champions in 2022 with two wins, two runner-up finishes and now a 3rd place amongst his 8 starts to date. He leads the standings on the tour this season.
The winner, Stricker, won by six to record his second win in this event, a major of the PGA Tour Champions.
Minjee Lee adds 7th LPGA Tour title in New Jersey
Minjee Lee with her Founders Cup trophy – photo Sarah Stier Getty Images
Perth’s Minjee Lee has taken her number of LPGA Tour wins to 7 and added another US$450,000 to her earnings on that tour with victory over Lexi Thompson at the Cognizant Founders Cup in Clifton New Jersey in an event which honors the 13 founding members of the LPGA Tour.
Lee took over the lead following a second-round of 63 at the Upper Montclair Country Club and although caught by Thompson early in the final nine holes today, She edged clear with three late birdies including one at the last to win by two.
“I wasn’t that nervous, but obviously I wasn’t striking it as well as I wanted to,” said Lee. “I still drove it and putted it really well, so trying to take the positives.
“I feel really, really good, and even though I didn’t strike it that that well today, I’m really, really happy.”
For Lee it was her first win of 2022 although she has finished 2nd and 3rd in two earlier events so her consistency has been rewarded with another title and likely further elevation from her current 5th place in the Rolex World Rankings.
Lee is now ranked 1st in the Race to the Globe rankings for the season with earnings of US$818,000 and has now taken her career earnings on the LPGA Tour beyond US$9 million.
Lydia Ko improved sharply over the weekend to finish in a share of 12th and Sarah Kemp was the only other Australasian to make the weekend and finished 63rd.
NZ amateur Kazumi Kobori impresses with Japan Tour 6th
Today’s winner – Shugo Imahira – photo Japan Golf Tour
New Zealand amateur, Kazuma Koboro, has led the Australasians at the Japan / Asian Tour’s Asia Pacific Diamond Cup Golf event in Ibaraki Prefecture, the 20 year old from Christchurch eventually finishing in a share of 6th but only two shots from the winner, Shugo Imahira.
Kobori shocked the golfing world in 2019 when winning the 2019 New Zealand PGA Championship as a 17 year old, but it has been his sister Momoka who has been to the fore in recent months with some outstanding performances including a win in mixed gender events in Australia.
Kobori’s fellow countryman, Ben Campbell, shared the 54 hole lead this week but would finish in a tie for 8th, a double bogey at his 17th hole today costing him a much higher finish and the chance of winning the tournament.
“Very frustrated with the finish,” said Campbell. “Lost the ball on 17th. I thought it was on the fairway, but it actually went left. It was a week that could have been unfortunately. But overall, still a positive week.
“I thought I was feeling rusty coming into this week and that sort of showed a little bit today. Had a good chance after making birdie on 13 but three putted 14 and that really killed me. I only had about 10 feet there for birdie. To three putt that really hurts.”
Victorian Todd Sinnott led after the opening round but would finish in 18th place, a third round of 77 costing him dearly.
SCORES
Ben Campbell – unable to turn contention into victory today – photo Diamond Cup
Potentially big day ahead for New Zealand Golf
Ben Campbell shares lead in Japan – photo Japan Tour
It may or may or turn out that way, but May 15th is shaping as a significant day in New Zealand golf.
In Japan, Ben Campbell has a share of the lead at the Asia Pacific Open Diamond Cup event in the Oarai Golf Club in Ibaraki.
At the Soudal Open in Belgium, New Zealand’s highest ranked male golfer Ryan Fox leads on his own through 54 holes and on the PGA Tour Champions, Steve Alker is in second place and three behind Steve Stricker in the chase for one of that tour’s major titles, the Regions Tradition in Birmingham in Alabama.
Campbell is playing the event in Japan courtesy of his Asian Tour status as the event is jointly sanctioned by both tours and although one of four players tied for the lead heading into today’s final round, a win would provide the 30 year old with Japan Tour status for the remainder of the year at least.
Already bound for The Open Championship at St. Andrews this July, Campbell has another chance to turn his already encouraging season into an even better one. He has already finished runner-up at the Vic Open and 8th at the Singapore Open in 2022.
“I played solid,” said the Queenstown based Campbell. “My front nine was really good. I just putted solid the whole day,” he said. “It’s a great golf course. It’s tough. You just have to stay patient out there.
“If I can hit it a little bit better tomorrow, I think I should be in a good position. I’ve been putting well.”
Campbell, a former world number six amateur, has been on form this year, with a runner-up finish at the PGA Tour of Australasia’s Vic Open in February being his best result to date which resulted in him earning a start at the Open Championship.
Campbell, who was sidelined for 18 months following a hip surgery before returning in April last year.
Campbell will be relishing the prospect of playing full-time in Japan, having played four events in 2017 but failing to make an impact. But that trip was memorable enough to make him keen on coming back for more.
“I love coming to Japan. The people here are amazing. I love the food as well. I love the golf courses we play here,” said Campbell.
“Every time we come out here, it’s always been amazing. I always enjoy myself here. It would be great to have a good day tomorrow.”
Ryan Fox – begins his third round on Saturday – photo Getty Images
Last week Ryan Fox’s 8th place finish in Belgium ensured he would gain a start at this coming week’s PGA Championship in Tulsa.
Perhaps surprisingly, he decided to play this week rather than head to the US earlier and prepare for one of golf’s majors but he will be pleased he did so as he leads the €2 million event and is chasing his second title of the year having won in the UAE earlier.
Fox returned home after that win and spent two months back in New Zealand but since his return he has continued to play well having finished 15th, 9th and 8th in the three events since.
Fox started his third round slowly but a final nine of 30 swept him to the lead ahead of England’s Sam Horsfield.
“I played really solid on the back to be honest, holed a couple putts as well and I hope I figured something out after a couple of scrappy drives early on in the round, and it felt pretty good form the tenth hole onwards. So, hopefully I can take that into tomorrow.
“So, you know you are going to make a few mistakes which I have done, I’ve gotten away with a couple this week, I’ve not got away with a few as well, and thankfully made a few birdies to counteract it.
“I have been in contention the last couple of weeks as well and not really done much on Sunday, so I am looking forward to being in the mix again. Obviously, Sam Horsfield is playing some good golf as well, and he is a heck of a player, so hopefully we will have a good tussle tomorrow.”
Fox is currently in 13th place in the DP World Tour rankings for this season and a win tomorrow would move him from just outside the top 100 in the world ranking and close to 60th.
Alker has been a revelation on the PGA Tour Champions since making his debut last August where he was forced to pre-qualify. Since then, it has been a simply stunning run and in 2022 he leads the money list with earnings just over US$1 million, more than US$200,000 ahead of Miguel Angel Jimenez.
A win tomorrow would add another US$375,000 to his swelling bank account but given the event is a major on the PGA Tour Champions and would further elevate his standing at this level.
Alker trails Steve Stricker by three following a third round of 65 and is alone in second place and two ahead of Jimenez.
Golf works in strange ways and it might be that none of the three New Zealanders complete a victory tomorrow but there are hopes that Sunday May 15th could be one of the finest days in New Zealand golf.
SCORES JAPAN
SCORES BELGIUM
SCORES ALABAMA
Sinnott’s great opportunity in Ibaraki
Todd Sinnot – Japan golf Tour
Australia’s Todd Sinnott admits he will have to conquer a “tough and demanding” Oarai Golf Club if he harbours hope of walking away as the winner of the Japan / Asian Tour’s Asia Pacific Open Golf Championship in Ibaraki on Sunday.
Sinnott battled through wet and windy conditions to shoot a two-under-par 68, leaving him at six-under 134 for the week and just two shots behind Japanese leader Kaito Onishi.
“Today’s a tough day, with the rain and wind. Honestly, I was just trying to stay really patient and just hang tough out there,” said Sinnott, who won the Myanmar Open in 2017 when it was held as a co-sanctioned event by JGTO and Asian Tour.
“I can’t even remember the round, very tired. I hit it solid in patches, but I think it’s my short game that stood out.
“I was able to get up and down whenever I missed the green. By doing that, I was able to keep the round going and keep the momentum going.
Starting the day from the 10th tee, Sinnott sandwiched three birdies between a bogey on 13 and a double bogey on 17 to make the turn at 35.
He then recovered strongly on his outward nine, with birdies on holes five and six to finish in a three-way tie for second place with defending champion Rikuya Hoshino and The Crowns winner Yuki Inamori.
Sinnott believes the playing conditions can only get trickier over the weekend, especially with the gusting wind. However, he is relishing the challenge.
“It’s a tough course. The wind will get up, so it’s important to stay patient. It’s a demanding golf course. Need to hang in tough,” Sinnott explained.
“There’s going to be bogeys, but just need to remain calm and try to make as many birdies as possible. I love playing challenging golf courses like this. You think your way around, hitting certain spots, keeping it below the hole.
“I like playing golf like that. That’s how golf is like in Melbourne, where I come from. We have to play really fast greens on difficult courses.”
Thailand trio Prom Meesawat and Sadom Kaewkanjana and Kosuke Hamamoto, New Zealand’s Ben Campbell and promising amateur Kazuma Kobori and American Ben Henson are the next best-placed international players in tied seventh on 137.
Scores
Bautista breaks through in NT as three gain European cards
This week’s winner Austin Bautista – photo PGA of Australia
The 2021/2022 PGA Tour of Australasia’s Order of Merit was finalised over the weekend with the leading three players earning the right to play the DP World (European) Tour in 2023.
Jed Morgan, Blake Windred and Andrew Dodt retained the positions they held leading into this past weekend’s NT PGA Championship at the Palmerston Golf Club outside of Darwin and for Morgan and Windred they will play the DP World Tour for the first time as members next season, while Dodt will regain his previous full status there.
The new initiative to allow the leading three players to graduate to the European Tour was announced in January ahead of the win by Morgan at the Australian PGA Championship and was devised in some respects as a measure to counteract the push from the Saudi Arabian Liv Tour.
Morgan won the Australian PGA, Windred the Victorian PGA Championship and Dodt’s runner-up finish to Morgan at the PGA Championship were the catalysts for their career boost.
The NT PGA Championship was won by first time PGA Tour of Australasia winner, Austin Bautista from Sydney, who cleared out to win by seven over Victorian Ben Wharton and the Gold Coast’s Tim Hart who stormed home over the weekend with rounds of 64 and 67 to share second place.
Bautista earns $27,000 for his win and follows up a runner-up finish at the recent runner-up finish at the WAPGA in Kalgoorlie.and two 3rd place finishes earlier in the year in TPS events in Australia.
Dimi Papadatos and Aaron Pike finished 4th and 5th respectively on the Order of Merit and will earn the right to Finals qualifying for the 2023 Korn Ferry Tour in the US, Papadatos missing out on the third DP World Tour spot by just $1300.
Jason Day moves further ahead at Wells Fargo Championship
Jason Day – file photo
Jason Day has turned his one-shot opening round lead into three with a second round of 67 at the Wells Fargo Championship in Potomac outside of Washington D.C.
Playing early in the generally easier, but still demanding conditions, Day made the turn in even par but three birdies on the way in opened up a three-shot gap that was maintained throughout the day as conditions worsened into the afternoon.
Day showed improvement in his recent outing at the Zurich Classic where he combined with fellow Australian Jason Scrivener but in his last three individual events he has missed the cut and so this week’s performance to date represents a significant turnaround for the 34 year old.
Day leads by three over Max Homa and after his round mentioned that he feels he benefits from tough conditions.
“I actually do. I’ve always kind of liked U.S. Open formats in regards to how tough the golf course is. You kind of have to grind it out. Obviously typically when you have tough conditions, long golf courses, tough conditions, thick rough, the guys that are playing well, they kind of usually find their way towards the top.
“Now, granted, I’m coming off some nice play at Zurich, so I’ve got some confidence there. It’s nice to be able to get in at 10 under through two rounds, especially with what kind of weather we’ve got coming in on the weekend. I’m looking forward to it. It’s nice to be back in the mix, nice to be leading. It’s still two more days left, so I can’t get too far ahead of myself.
“It was nice to get this round under my belt in these conditions. All the 2 Tee-Scripts.com work that I put in kind of in the off-season, off weeks, it’s starting to show a lot of signs and I’m finding a lot of confidence in that swing.
“Like I said yesterday, the driver swing is not where it needs to be, but it’s getting better each and every time I get to work on it.
“Every now and then it kind of falls back to some of the old stuff, but big thing for me is just to not kind of panic and just take a step back and go through my shots and try and trust it the best I can and if I can do that, hopefully I’m somewhere, if not leading come Sunday.”
Day appears to enjoy the area, the TPC at Avenel Farm just three or four miles from where he finished runner-up on debut at the US Open at Congressional in 2011.
Day lost his way a little after the passing of his mother, Dening, in March but he now appears to be heading back in the right direction, both mentally and technically.
None of the other Australians in the field will make it to the weekend but given the nature of the weather forecast, it might be that they will enjoy a weekend at home rather than battling the predicted wind and rain.
SCORES
Jason Day’s encouraging start at the Wells Fargo
Jason Day – file photo
Jason Day has rekindled memories of an era where he was one of the more dominant players in the game with an opening round of 63 at the Wells Fargo Championship in Potomac in Maryland to give him a one-shot lead after day one.
Currently ranked 127th in the world, the former number one’s otherwise significant career has been disrupted by injury and illness throughout but he remains as a winner of 12 PGA Tour titles including a major title, two World Golf Championship titles, the Players Championship and just under US$50 million since first joining the PGA Tour in 2008.
Coming off the back of three consecutive missed cuts in individual events, Day was not getting too excited after one good round but he was clearly happy with the direction things are taking after so much recent work with swing coach Chris Como.
“I think it’s a good step in the right direction. Obviously, I’ve got to give myself a pat on the back because I played some nice golf today, but we’ve got three more days after this and I think the main goal is to try and focus and get
yourself in a position where you can win. Yeah, good positive stuff today. Get back, recover and try and get into tomorrow’s round
“Obviously I don’t want to get ahead of myself because I know that it’s easy in the position I am right now after a good round to get ahead of myself and start talking where it could potentially go.
“I think I’ve just got to stay as present as possible because if I can swing it the way I’m swinging it and have the short game and the touch that I have on the greens, I mean, I played some really good golf today. I feel like I can get back to where I need to be, but that’s a total decision up top in my head if I want to climb that mountain again.
“I feel good about myself and I’ve just got to slowly work on the confidence. The thing that’s different between now and when I was No. 1 in the world, even though the technique might not have been as crisp as it is right now, I had all the confidence in the world, especially on the greens. So that’s always the goal.
“I mean, obviously we’ve got some weather coming in, so I feel like we’re going to go into grind mode over the next few days, which I typically like. It’s going to be difficult, I know that we’re going to get a lot of rain, so just got to take it as it is and just focus on myself and just do whatever I can to shoot a low one.”
Cameron Davis is the next best of the Australians after his opening round of 67.
SCORES
Ryan Fox shares early lead at British Masters
Ryan Fox in action today – photo Getty Images
Playing in just his 7th DPW event of 2022, New Zealand’s Ryan Fox has a share of the opening round lead at the Betfred British Masters and the Belfry Hotel and Resort in Sutton Coldfield in England.
After an extended break back in New Zealand following his win in the UAE in February, Fox returned to the DP World Tour two weeks ago with a 15th place at the ISPS Championship in Spain and followed that up with a 9th place in Catalunya last week so the break has had no impact on the form he was showing earlier in the year.
Fox shares the lead with Denmark’s Thorbjørn Olesen, a four-time winner on the European Tour, after the pair both recorded rounds of 67 to lead by one.
“I hit it really solid,” said Fox. “Maybe one tee shot on the second which looked a little dicey but hit a lot of wedge shots close and took advantage on a couple of the hard holes on 12 and 18. Holed a couple of 40-footers which is always nice to keep the round going and.
“I did everything pretty well which is nice and had a good group to play with Thomas (Bjorn) and Jack (Singh Brar), and we had a few laughs out there, especially on 10. It was just a nice day.
“It’s a fun golf course to play. I grew up on this kind of grass as well. So it fits quite nicely in my head. Kind of know what it’s going to do and how it’s going to react and just went out and tried to hit a couple of shots and did that well.”
Fox has won twice on the European Tour, the last of those coming when wining by five at the Ras Al Khaimah Classic in February.
Fox is currently 110th in the world ranking having reached a high of 66 when winning the World Super 6 Perth in 2019.
Jason Scrivener is the leading Australian in a share of 17th after his round of 70.
SCORES