Cam Davis – file photo Masters Tournament
Cam Davis will head into tomorrow’s final round of the Masters as not only the leading Australian but with a genuine hope of challenging for the title in what promises to be yet another Sunday shootout at Augusta National.
Davis finds himself in a share of 6th place and five shots from the lead held by 2022 champion Scottie Scheffler after a round that saw him 2 under through nine before four dropped shots in the next four holes.
Davis would however birdie the 14th from 20 feet and produced an impressive par save at the 15th after finding the water. He would miss makeable birdie opportunities at 16 and 17 before a par at the last gave him a round of 73.
Given the rollercoaster today’s third round at the top of the leaderboard produced and the typical shootout that is so often tournament Sunday, then Davis is still very much up to his neck in contention.
“Scottie just birdied 18,” said Davis after his round. “We’re a little farther back than we were a few minutes ago. I hung in there quite well. Quite a few risky shots not panning out for me.
“It was playing tough, but I feel pretty proud walking away with 1-over after a few, it felt like, disasters while I was out there.
“I’m trying my hardest. “It’s hard out there, but I’m giving it everything I’ve got. I feel like today I wasn’t laying up, and I was giving it a good crack. Tomorrow hopefully we’ll make the right decisions in the moments and come away with a round that’s as good as we can make it.
“I’m trying, but it would be awesome to have a great day tomorrow.”
Just one shot behind Davis is Cam Smith who at 1 under is just five from the lead and still a potential challenger. Smith’s round of 72 consisted of one bogey and one par with many missed opportunities
“I couldn’t have done much more, I don’t think, with the irons today,” said Smith. “I think you had to struggle to get the ball in the hole. I think there were so many times out there where as close as you can hit it is kind of five or ten foot, and it’s breaking a foot or two down the hill.
“It was just one of those days I couldn’t quite match up the speed and the line. Yeah, I feel like it could have been probably a lot better today.
“I think I’m still in the golf tournament. The way that the golf course is playing, I feel really confident with my ball striking, probably the best I’ve felt in a while. Yeah, I feel like I’m in the golf tournament. It’s only one or two their way and one or two my way, and it’s really close.”
Adam Scott’s round of 70 was the equal second-best of the day improving him from the cutline to a share of 26th. His round was made even more impressive given the triple bogey he recorded when missing the green left at the 10th. His six birdies told the story of day of considerable improvement on the opening two rounds and further progress can be expected tomorrow.
Ryan Fox again began well with two early birdies to get within three of the lead and held his ground until struggling through Amen Corner where he dropped four shots in four holes. He appeared to be holding his ground until a horror triple bogey at the 17th after his approach missed carrying the front bunker by a yard and he would then four-putt for a triple bogey. He would then add salt to the wound with a bogey at the last for a round of 77 and at 3 over he now finds himself in 26th place after beginning the day in a share of 6th.
“Probably everyone saw what happened on 17,” said Fox. “That’s one of the more unlucky breaks I’ve had on a golf course. It rolled in a crap lie and had no way of getting near it. Had a bit of a brain explosion on that putt and kind of ruined what was a really good round.
“I think if I had not had that flag on 17 and probably not making worse than 4, maybe had a good chance at 3 and I’m still in the golf tournament. That kind of screwed my head a little bit.
“Made a good bogey in the end up the last. I kind of don’t know what to think. I felt like I played really good and shot 77.
“It was nice to feel comfortable out there in that scenario, and just the golfing gods weren’t overly kind to me today. I had a lot of good shots that didn’t get rewarded. Looking at the scoring, it’s pretty damn tough out there. It’s beating everyone up this afternoon.
“Hopefully I can go a little earlier tomorrow. The golf course might be a little softer, and I can put a score together.”
Min Woo Lee and Jason Day are 41st and 45th respectively after rounds of 75 and 76.
Leaderboard
Wade Ormsby runner-up in Saudi Open
Wade Ormsby – file photo
South Australian Wade Ormsby has finished runner-up at the Asian Tour’s Saudi Open in Riyadh and although finishing seven shots behind the winner, John Catlin of the USA, the 44-year-old earns US$110,000 and improves to 8th on the Asian Tour Order of Merit for 2024.
Ormsby acknowledged the emphatic win of Catlin and is looking forward to next week’s Liv Tour event in his hometown of Adelaide.
“John had a big lead, it was difficult, you just want to go out and play as well as you can,” he said.
“I played great, probably one little blemish on number five. There were a couple of potential tiny openings there, but he closed the door straight away.
“I am really happy with the way I played. First week after 10 years with a new caddie, Mike, so it’s nice to get off on the right foot.
“I am really happy to be playing well again. I hit a lot of good shots out there today. Next week is going to be amazing at LIV Adelaide, that’s where I am from, it’s a golf course I grew up around, so I am looking forward to that.”
Ormsby will attend the LIV Golf event as a reserve player having played several events Liv Golf events in 2022.
Scott Hend was unable to capitalise on a promising position through 36 holes when just one off the lead, but finished in a share of 8th place while Queenslander Maverick Antcliff was the next best of the Australians in a share of 14th place.
Leaderboard
Asian Tour Order of Merit
Scott Hend contends again at Saudi Open
Hend, who three-putted the last hole at Millbrook Resort in early March to finish second to winner Takahiro Hitaji, added a second round of 68 to his opening 68 to be just one back of American John Catlin in the US$1 million event.
The winner of ten Asian Tour titles, Hend appears to be finding a rich vein of form at the age of 50.
“No wind this morning and the greens were rolling, so it was all good, much easier to manage the process,” said the 2016 Asian Tour Order of Merit winner.
“I missed a few but will save them for the next two days. I have been playing a lot of golf at my home course in Australia and really enjoying it and that’s been helping.”
South Australian Wade Ormsby has also started well and finds himself in a share of 6th place and three from the lead.
Leaderboard
Large Australasian representation at women’s first major
Lydia Ko – currently second on Race to the Globe – image LPGA
Just a few days after the first major of the year for men’s golf was completed at Augusta National, women’s golf gets its major season underway with the staging of the Chevron Championship at the Woodlands just outside of Houston in Texas.
The event moved to Texas in 2023 after being held at Mission Hills in California since its inception in 1972 but moved east after the introduction of a new naming rights sponsor Chevron Corporation who are headquartered in the Houston area.
Australia has won the event on two occasions with Karrie Webb succeeding in 2000 and 2006 and, in 2016, New Zealand’s Lydia Ko won the second of her two majors to date.
In 2024 nine Australians and one New Zealander will tee it up on Thursday, one of the strongest representations for our region in the history of the event.
Minjee Lee, Lydia Ko, Hannah Green, Grace Kim, Gabi Ruffels, Stephanie Kyriacou, Sarah Kemp, Hira Naveed, Karis Davidson and Robyn Choi are those players, taking on a red hot Nelly Korda and she attempts to win her 5th straight LPGA event.
Korda trails only Nancy Lopex and Annika Sorenstam who have each won five consecutive events on the LPGA Tour but given that Korda finished 3rd in this event at this venue last year, and is clearly playing even better now, then the chance of her adding a 5th title seems high.
It wasn’t a great year for the Australasians in the event and this venue last year with Minjee the best in 41st place, although, with both Lydia Ko and Hannah Green winning already this season, chances seem high of a significant improvement.
Prizemoney for the event has reached an all-time high with a purse of US$7.9 million up for grabs of which the winner will receive US$ 1.185 million.
Leaderboard
Cam Smith shares 6th place at Augusta National
Cam Smith in action today – image Augusta National
Cam Smith continued his outstanding record at Augusta National with a share of 6th place at this week’s Masters following a final round of 1 under 71 and in doing so would once again lead the Australasian challenge.
Smith began the final round with a fine par save at the 1st hole but a holed bunker shot at the par 5 second resulted in an eagle and perhaps the possibility of a challenge to the leaders was on the cards.
Smith was unable to build further on the start however and 13 straight pars followed a bogey at the 5th, although he did make progress on the leaderboard as many others struggled with the demands of Masters Sunday.
He would share 6th place with Bryan De Chambeau and although nine shots from the eventual winner and the game’s most dominant player, Scottie Scheffler, it was nonetheless another reminder of Smith’s standing in the game.
Cam Davis was within five shots heading into the final round but got off to a slow start with two early bogeys. He fought his way back before a careless double bogey at the 17th saw him finish with a round of 75 and a share of 12th place.
Min Woo Lee’s final round of 69 saw him improve to a share of 22nd and Adam Scott’s final round of 70 was highlighted by an eagle at the 3rd hole after holing out from the greenside bunker at the driveable par 4. Scott would also finish in a share of 22nd.
Jason Day improved with a final round of 69 to finish 30th and New Zealander Ryan Fox , who contended early in the tournament, slipped to finish in 38th place.
But the honours go to Scheffler who not only won his second Green Jacket but his 10th PGA Tour title and further consolidated his position as the game’s number one player.
In now nine starts in 2024, Scheffler has won three times and been inside the top 6 on four other occasions further highlighting just how dominant he is at present and has been for the last two years.
SCORES
Davis and Smith retain hope at Augusta National
Cam Davis – file photo Masters Tournament
Cam Davis will head into tomorrow’s final round of the Masters as not only the leading Australian but with a genuine hope of challenging for the title in what promises to be yet another Sunday shootout at Augusta National.
Davis finds himself in a share of 6th place and five shots from the lead held by 2022 champion Scottie Scheffler after a round that saw him 2 under through nine before four dropped shots in the next four holes.
Davis would however birdie the 14th from 20 feet and produced an impressive par save at the 15th after finding the water. He would miss makeable birdie opportunities at 16 and 17 before a par at the last gave him a round of 73.
Given the rollercoaster today’s third round at the top of the leaderboard produced and the typical shootout that is so often tournament Sunday, then Davis is still very much up to his neck in contention.
“Scottie just birdied 18,” said Davis after his round. “We’re a little farther back than we were a few minutes ago. I hung in there quite well. Quite a few risky shots not panning out for me.
“It was playing tough, but I feel pretty proud walking away with 1-over after a few, it felt like, disasters while I was out there.
“I’m trying my hardest. “It’s hard out there, but I’m giving it everything I’ve got. I feel like today I wasn’t laying up, and I was giving it a good crack. Tomorrow hopefully we’ll make the right decisions in the moments and come away with a round that’s as good as we can make it.
“I’m trying, but it would be awesome to have a great day tomorrow.”
Just one shot behind Davis is Cam Smith who at 1 under is just five from the lead and still a potential challenger. Smith’s round of 72 consisted of one bogey and one par with many missed opportunities
“I couldn’t have done much more, I don’t think, with the irons today,” said Smith. “I think you had to struggle to get the ball in the hole. I think there were so many times out there where as close as you can hit it is kind of five or ten foot, and it’s breaking a foot or two down the hill.
“It was just one of those days I couldn’t quite match up the speed and the line. Yeah, I feel like it could have been probably a lot better today.
“I think I’m still in the golf tournament. The way that the golf course is playing, I feel really confident with my ball striking, probably the best I’ve felt in a while. Yeah, I feel like I’m in the golf tournament. It’s only one or two their way and one or two my way, and it’s really close.”
Adam Scott’s round of 70 was the equal second-best of the day improving him from the cutline to a share of 26th. His round was made even more impressive given the triple bogey he recorded when missing the green left at the 10th. His six birdies told the story of day of considerable improvement on the opening two rounds and further progress can be expected tomorrow.
Ryan Fox again began well with two early birdies to get within three of the lead and held his ground until struggling through Amen Corner where he dropped four shots in four holes. He appeared to be holding his ground until a horror triple bogey at the 17th after his approach missed carrying the front bunker by a yard and he would then four-putt for a triple bogey. He would then add salt to the wound with a bogey at the last for a round of 77 and at 3 over he now finds himself in 26th place after beginning the day in a share of 6th.
“Probably everyone saw what happened on 17,” said Fox. “That’s one of the more unlucky breaks I’ve had on a golf course. It rolled in a crap lie and had no way of getting near it. Had a bit of a brain explosion on that putt and kind of ruined what was a really good round.
“I think if I had not had that flag on 17 and probably not making worse than 4, maybe had a good chance at 3 and I’m still in the golf tournament. That kind of screwed my head a little bit.
“Made a good bogey in the end up the last. I kind of don’t know what to think. I felt like I played really good and shot 77.
“It was nice to feel comfortable out there in that scenario, and just the golfing gods weren’t overly kind to me today. I had a lot of good shots that didn’t get rewarded. Looking at the scoring, it’s pretty damn tough out there. It’s beating everyone up this afternoon.
“Hopefully I can go a little earlier tomorrow. The golf course might be a little softer, and I can put a score together.”
Min Woo Lee and Jason Day are 41st and 45th respectively after rounds of 75 and 76.
Leaderboard
Cam Davis three from Masters lead
Cam Davis – image Masters tournament
Cameron Davis leads the Australasians through 36 holes of The Masters, adding a second round of even par 72 to his opening 69 to not only be the best of the seven-strong Australasian contingent but as he heads into the weekend he finds himself just three from the lead held by Scottie Scheffler, Max Homa and first-round leader Bryson De Chambeau.
Davis is in a share of 5th place following a round which included four birdies two bogeys and a double bogey at the 7th hole but in the gusty winds that buffeted Augusta National throughout the day it was an impressive display for someone playing who is playing in just his second Masters.
When asked how conditions were during his round Davis responded;
“Very similar to yesterday. It’s a different direction for the wind, so the holes play completely differently. Completely different plan for each hole when it’s like that.
“Definitely, teeing off early today, the temperature being a lot colder, it was some different clubs even in some similar conditions. It was same but colder, which probably makes it a little bit more difficult. By the time it’s warmed up, it feels very similar to yesterday.
“I had a couple of stumbles, I felt like I battled well and made some nice putts to keep the momentum.
“I feel like I put in my hard work. I’m happy to put my feet up this afternoon.”
The one stumble of any proportion for Davis came when he double-bogeyed the 7th hole after a wild drive followed by a pitch back onto the fairway from where he hit a poor pitch and failed to get up and down. That came on top of two early birdies to get to 5 under.
He would three-putt the 13th for bogey but managed to birdie the par 5 15th and finish at even par for the day and very much in the thick of things.
Davis is a former Australian Amateur and Australian Open Champion and PGA Tour winner with credentials at near the top level with a 4th place finish in last year’s US PGA Championship so this level of contention is not new to him and it will be interesting to see how the 28 year old negotiates the weekend.
Ryan Fox’s first round of 69 had him tied with Davis in 6th place and he moved closer with a birdie at his 8th hole and made the turn in 4 under for the championship.
Fox would falter through Amen Corner with bogeys at the 11th and 12th holes and then added another when he failed to get up and down from behind the 14th green after what had been the perfect drive.
Fox would make impressive par saves at the 17th and 18th holes and now just five from the lead he is well enough placed to potentially contend and eclipse his previous best finish in a major when 16th at the Royal Portrush Open of 2019.
Cam Smith was out in the second to last group of the day and moved to 2 under for the tournament when he birdied the 12th but a three-putt bogey at the 13th followed by a missed 7-footer for birdie at the 15th would prove costly.
Smith though would make a miracle par save at the par 3 16th and finished with two pars for his round of 72 and at 1 under and, just five from the lead, his great record at Augusta National appears as if it might be added to.
Of the other Australians in the field, Jason Day and Min Woo Lee are at 4 over, Adam Scott waited all day to get the news that his 6 over total made it through to the weekend and amateur Jasper Stubbs improved on his opening round of 80 with a round of 76 but missed the cut by several.
Leaderboard
Barbiera Ieremia and Charles head Australasian Q School
Denzel Ieremia – one of three who topped the Tour School
While the focus of world golf is on Augusta National this week, at the other end of the scale is a field of golfers just trying to gain access to the PGA Tour of Australasia to either reboot their careers or begin the journey that is professional golf.
Played over 72 holes at Moonah Links on the Mornington Peninsula, a field of 66 players were competing for full exemption on the PGA Tour of Australasia available to the leading 30 and ties with lesser categories available beyond that milestone.
The eventual leading three players after 72 holes were Nathan Barbiera, New Zealand’s Denzel Ieremia and Victorian Max Charles who tied at 16 under, five shots ahead of the fourth place Adam Brady of West Australia.
27-year-old Barbiera, a former NSW Amateur Champion, had a bad finish to his 2023/2024 season and finished 54th on the Order of Merit necessitating his return to Q School.
Ieremia, a former student at Iowa State University, has been a professional for several years, perhaps the highlight of his career to date when finishing 5th at the 2019 Australian Open and 4th in a Japan Tour event that same year but he too had a tough season last year but now regains full status.
Charles played collegiate golf in the US until last year but in just a few events on the Australasian Tour he failed to flatter but now gets the all-important right to play the tour starting with events over the next few months.
Final Results
Fox and Davis lead Australasians at Augusta
Ryan Fox led through 12 holes – image courtesy of Masters Tournament
Ryan Fox and Cameron Davis led the Australasians when play was suspended for darkness on day one of the Masters, both players at 3 under and tied for 6th. Cam Smith, Jason Day and Adam Scott will complete their opening rounds on Friday morning US time.
Playing with Chris Kirk and Sergo Garcia, Fox got off to the perfect start with birdies at each of the first three holes and when he hit his second to the par 5 8th to 25 feet and holed for eagle he was at 5 under and 2 ahead of the field.
Fox’s first mistake came when he found the trees at the par 5 13th, laid up with his second then chunked his 3rd off a downhill lie into Rae’s Creek. The ensuing bogey was followed three holes later by a 3 putt bogey at the 16th but he held on to finish with an opening round of 69.
Arriving at Augusta National for his second Masters appearance after a struggle in the early stages of his PGA Tour career, Fox had limited expectations and, despite the dropped shots over the closing six holes, was happy with his start.
“If you’d have given me 3-under without teeing off today, I certainly would have taken it,” said Fox.
“To be honest, everything worked really well today. I drove it great, which is pretty important around here. Had a lot of decent iron shots and holed some putts. Made a couple of nice up-and-downs towards the end of the round.
“I felt like it got really hard to pick the wind the last few holes, and I did pretty well to hang on to 3-under when I didn’t really feel like I did a whole lot wrong.”
Davis is playing the Masters for the second occasion having made the cut and finished 46th in 2022.
Like Fox, a strong start to his round was a feature being 3 under through 8 holes before consecutive bogeys at the 10th and 11th holes threatened to bring things undone but the US based Sydneysider birdied the two par 5’s on the back 9 to finish at 3 under.
“I battled pretty hard for it, but I felt honestly pretty tidy around the golf course today with the winds like this. It was gusty. It swirled. It did all the things it normally does, but add another 30 miles an hour to it.”
When asked how it felt to be just four back in these conditions Davis responded;
“I’m not even paying attention to the leaderboard right now. These are the sort of conditions where if you’ve got to get nine holes where there’s not much and you can go and score, that’s great. I might not have that same opportunity, so I’m just really going one shot, one hole at a time.
“It’s cliche, but it’s the only way to really play a golf course like this. You can’t get ahead of yourself and start chasing people. I think the back nine on Sunday is the only time you can start thinking about that, but you’ve got a lot of work to do to get there.”
Of the other Australians, Cameron Smith finished his round at 1 under, Jason Day is through 13 holes at even par, Adam Scott is through 13 holes at 1 over, Min Woo Lee is finished at 2 over and amateur, Jasper Stubbs, finished with a round of 80.
Leaderboard
Seven Australasians tackle Augusta National
The 18th at Ausguta National – image Augusta National
Its early April and the attention of the golfing world once again turns to Augusta National for the staging of the Masters, an event which has so much familiarity and intrigue.
The familiarity is brought about through years of exposure to the same golf course and the intrigue due to that same golf course providing such a fine line between pleasure and pain throughout the week but perhaps more so over the closing nine holes on Sunday where so much can go right and so much can go wrong.
Australia will be represented by six and New Zealand by one what must be the most sought after ticket in professional golf and the most watched of the four majors.
Jason Day heads the Australians in terms of world rankings and the 34 year old is back for the 13th occasion having recorded three top five and four top tens including an amazing runner-up finish on debut in 2011.
Day missed the cut at his last start in Houston two weeks ago but there has been several good performances this season to suggest he is a genuine hope of leading the Australians. He led with three holes to go in Adam Scott’s win in 2013 and in 2011 led before being run down by a whirlwind finish by Charl Schwartzel.
Adam Scott has 22 appearances at the Masters including that historic win in 2013. That aside however there have been only four other top tens.
Scott played well enough last week in San Antonio when 14th and with his ongoing improvement on the greens he may well be a chance to challenge as the leading Australian but as to him being in contention on Sunday it appears unlikely.
Cam Smith has a fine record at Augusta National with three top five finishes in seven starts including a runner-up behind Dustin Johnson in 2020 and a 3rd place behind Scottie Scheffler in 2022.
There is little argument that Smith and his imaginative short game handle Augusta National better than most, but it is hard to get a line on just where his game is at right now.
He was forced to withdraw from Miami last week with food poisoning after a horror opening round and has two top tens in LIV Golf events this season but it might be that he is not at the height of form he has been previously when arriving at Augusta National.
If Smith does bring his A game then his love of and form on the golf course will carry him a long way but there is question mark over whether he can.
Min Woo Lee produced a very impressive 14th place on debut two years ago but then missed the cut by a few last year.
Since his runner-up finish a few starts ago at the Cognizant event on the PGA Tour, his form has dropped away again including when missing the cut at his last start in Tampa but there is little doubting the West Australian’s brilliance and a performance like that of his debut would not surprise.
Cam Davis makes his second Masters appearance having finished 46th on debut two years ago. Davis warmed up nicely for this week with 21st place in Houston two weeks ago.
The US based Sydneysider displayed a capacity to handle the biggest of stages when 4th at the PGA Championship last year and has plenty of ability but whether he can challenge to be the leading Australian is debatable.
Victorian amateur Jasper Stubbs gets his place in the field courtesy of his win at the Asia Pacific Amateur Championship last year and just being there is reward enough for the young man who will gain so much in terms of his future in the game.
New Zealand’s Ryan Fox has struggled in his first season as a card-holder on the PGA Tour having missed five of his first eight cuts and recorded a best of 41st. As a result, his confidence will not be great for his second attempt at Augusta National but he can look back on an impressive debut when 26th last year to perhaps help his cause.
Australian Ladies Classic final showdown cancelled
Declared the winners – Nicole Brosch Estrup (Den) Jess Whiting (Aust) Peiying Tsai (Taiwan)
Amidst great disappointment, the final round of the already weather-shortened Australian Women’s Classic at the Bonville Resort in Coffs Harbour has been canceled and the event decided on the opening 18 holes played over a total of 35 hours on Friday and Saturday.
Rain stopped play early on Friday and it took until 6.30 on Saturday to complete round one at which time a cut was made and a decision made to play the event as (hopefully) a 36-hole contest provided today’s final round could be played.
But the weather system that has been lingering around the north coast of NSW unleashed another 80 mm of rain overnight and although hopes were still held to get play underway this afternoon the impact on the Bonville layout had been such that no play was possible.
According to a statement on the Golf NSW website “player representatives inspected the course alongside the Bonville superintendent, and with no realistic chance of the course being prepared in a condition commensurate with the tournament ideals, the decision was academic.”
Therefore, the three first and only round leaders, Nicole Broch Estrup of Denmark, Peiying Tsai of Chinese Taipei and Western Australian Jess Whitting were declared the winners.
Such a shame for the field of Australian and International golfers, many of whom had traveled widely to get to play the two consecutive Ladies European Tour events held in NSW.
As a show of goodwill, tournament promoters, Golf NSW, will issue a $500 payment to every player in the field to assist in travel costs incurred during the week.
Last week’s Women’s NSW Open was a considerable success but this week’s events have put a real dampener (literally) on the two-week Australian swing for the LET.
Final Scores