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2023 Australian Open Golf Day 1 & 2 Review: Cameron Davis off to a flying start but Min Woo Lee’s strong Back 9 yesterday has overtaken Connor Syme with a two-shot lead

by Sports Benches

The 2023 Australian Open Golf is back for another year this time in Sydney where the  first two days were held at two different golf venues (The Lakes Golf Club & Royal Australian Golf Club) since it’s a combined mixed event for the men’s, women’s and all abilities categories. It’s also good to see our Aussies lead the charge as well with Cameron Davis off to a great start as the opening day leader. Now he might have slipped away over the course of Day 2 yesterday, but there’s another Aussie who absolutely shines from difficult and extraordinary situations in none other than last weekend’s Australian PGA Championship winner Min Woo Lee. He too wowed majority leader of Day 2 Connor Syme from Scotland as he’s currently leading by two strokes at -12, especially when Min Woo got away with strong back nine performance from 14th to 1st that includes sharing the lead with Syme for a while before he became the outright leader after a birdie the Par 4 16th. And we also couldn’t forget a brilliant end to his shift off the back of a eagle on the Par 5 18th – what a player he is so far by our own Min Woo Lee.

It’s also great to see some Aussies moving up the leaderboard ahead of moving day today with Jason Scrivener & Jeffrey Guan. Plus, Lucas Herbert is in Tied 16th & Cameron Smith gets to play this weekend down in Tied 28th after he missed the cut last week during the Australian PGA Championship. Gotta say it’s Min Woo v the world for this one as he hopes to keep on staying up front by flying the flag for Australia with more of his individual brilliances coming his way later today in Sydney. 

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2023 Australian PGA Championship Round 1 & 2 Review: Unknown Spaniard Joel Moscatel Machshon surprises the field on Day 1 but it’s Min Woo Lee who leads right now in Brisbane

by Sports Benches

Yes, it’s moving today in Round 3 of the 2023 Australian PGA Championship but let’s look back over the last two days during Thursday & Friday at the Royal Queensland Golf Club in Brisbane. There was a little known Spaniard named Joel Moscatel Machshon, who is currently ranked World No.1162, has topped the opening round leaderboard with a few birdies on eight under 63. Although he might have been slipping away on Day 2, but he will be looking to bounce back soon enough right now at Tied 4th alongside Curtis Luck.

It’s good most of our Aussies lfilling up the Top 10 positions though where Min Woo Lee stayed ahead going into the next day after he overtook Moscatel as the current outright leader at 12 under, as well as Adam Scott just behind him by a single stroke in 2nd from 4th. Plus, you also got John Lyras & Lucas Herbert in 3rd & 4th respectively ahead of a bunch of other improved players in the mix such as Cameron John (6th) & David Micheluzzi (7th), whom they have been excellent all along with Min-Woo & Adam as of Day 2. Speaking of Cameron Smith, Smith unfortunately wasn’t the same player like he was last year after winning both the British Open & this tournament. He got away with just one birdie on two over 73 at Tied 109th before things went from bad to worse after scoring 78 on the second day, which means he has missed the cut-off bubble & he won’t be back to defend his crown this weekend.

And on the New Zealanders in action, Daniel Hillier has improved a couple of spots yesterday to Tied 21st alongside Josh Geary who fired not bad earlier from Day 1 in Tied 16th & so does Michael Hendry where he made some ground after a slow start. Things aren’t looking great right now when a few of them are languishing down the ladder, but you never know as there’s still time between now & the end of tomorrow afternoon.

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Adam Scott’s fantastic Day 3 performance puts him in the box seat towards the Australian Open Men’s title going into the final day

by Sports Benches

Adam Scott is such an amazing player to watch since his resurgence from Day 2 on Friday, as he will enter the fourth & final Day as the Australian Open Men’s leader on 11 under par. He was consistent through for most of the time bar the bogey on the Par 5 9th, but his back nine was superb especially when he sinked two birdies plus an unreal end to his shift with an eagle on the Par 5 18th of 3 under 67. 

Look out behind Scott by one stroke in 2nd at -10 when it comes to the towering 6 ft 6 in Adrian Meronk from Poland. He too also continued his resurgence like Adam with an extraordinary front nine of six birdies alone before he capped off a brilliant spell including an additional three birdies of the last 4 holes on 7 under 63.

It’s also good to see another pair of Aussies such as Haydn Barron & Min-Woo Lee in Tied 3rd – who are both ready to challenge Scott & also Meronk for the trophy – as they’re just four strokes behind Scott at -7. Bannon never looked out of place after he got away comfortably on two under 66, while Min-Woo Lee continued his progress further through the field but he would need a perfect Sunday finish & pray for the best if a breakthrough win ends up on his way. The same goes with Jason Scrivener when he moved way up from T32 to T12 at -4 after a brilliant run today of two under 66, but he doesn’t want another repeat of what happened last Sunday when a mix of errors on the Par 3 17th at the Australian PGA Championship ultimately cost him the title. 

Although David Micheluzzi‘ strong first-half start went downhill from top spot to Tied 12th following a rough score of -7 73, but again he would need a mix of consistency & luck if he wants the Australian Open title so bad by the end of tomorrow afternoon. But there’s one player for sure who can’t be present on Day 4 after he missed the 2nd cut-off bubble; Sadly, it’s current Australian PGA Championship winner Cameron Smith – even though he slightly improved a bit on Day 3 but a poor first half ruined his chances of collecting the double here in Victoria.

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Main Event Cameron Smith is your Australian PGA Championship winner for the third time after a long day today through two rain delay hold-ups at the Royal Queensland Golf Club

by Sports Benches

Here it is…Cameron Smith is your main man this year in the Australian PGA Championship for the third time (2017, 2018 & 2022) after an stellar Day 4 shift of three under 68, even though there were two rain delays in between throughout today at the RQGC in Brisbane. 

Love the way how Cam responded after that bogey on the Par 3 11 when he executed his 2nd out of nowhere that led into a birdie on the Par 4 12th – before he made a few more including a consecutive birdie on the 13th – and kept himself at bay right until the very end in which was enough to take home the Joe Kirkwood Cup. 

Then we go a bit further down the leaderboard where Jason Scrivener was back in the hunt at one point earlier today, but then his unfortunate hit & misses on the Par 3 17th when he was a shot away from Smith beforehand on the tee at ultimately saw him settle for 2nd best at four under 67. The same goes with Min-Woo Lee who just couldn’t find something special on the back nine after a good start with back-to-back birdies, as Min-Woo finished in Tied 4th alongside John Parry (England). 

Looking further on Parry, he started Day 4 on Tied 20th before he made a huge turnaround, especially when he wrapped things up well on the back nine that saw him left the RQGC by only five shots behind Smith at six under 65 today.

It’s also good to see a trio of Japanese competitors finish within the Top 10-11 mark. Although Masahiro Kawamura slipped away from the Top 3 thanks to his struggles on the back nine that eaten up more shots at of over one 72, but he‘s not a bad player nonetheless when he was a decent threat back on Day 2 & 3. We also covered briefly about another two players to watch from Tied 11th in Ryo Hisatune & Takumi Kanaya; they too ended up on a high with Ryo as joint runner-up alongside Scrivener, as well as Kanaya who capped off a consistent weekend run of 69 strokes in Tied 7th. 

And shoutout to the ever-consistent David Micheluzzi who stayed in the Top 10 all along from around 8-10th to 6th; he’s now ready to do some damage at the Australian Open in a few days time at Kingston Heath in Cheltenham, Victoria.

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Day 3 of this year’s Australian PGA Championship changed everything with Cameron Smith now as leader despite a mixed day today

by Sports Benches

Well, moving day of this year’s Australian PGA Championship has dramatically shaken up the leaderboard going into the final Day tomorrow at the Royal Queensland Golf Club in Brisbane. Cam Smith is your leader right now at -11 despite four bogeys on the 9th & back nine; plus a couple of visits outside the putting green today alongside six birdies sandwiched in between on two under 69.

Just behind Cam by three shots is a pair of Internationals in China’s Yan Wei Liu who nearly sinked a hole-in-one Par 3 11th & Masahiro Kawamura from Japan as they’re both currently in Tied 2nd (-8), while Min Woo Lee & Brad Kennedy are back in the hunt in Tied 4th (-7) following their respective inconsistent Day 2 scores yesterday, especially when Min-Woo was extremely good on the front nine with four birdies.

Joining Min-Woo & Brad is Jake McLeod where he was exceptional as always since his rapid rise from T40 to the Top 3-5 yesterday. Although Day 1 & 2 leader Jason Scrivener may have endured a tough day in the office today with only back-to-back birdies on the 17th & 18th on top of five bogeys, but he’s out of the race just yet alongside Min-Woo, Brad & Jake. The same can be said for Cameron John when his score today of three over 74 saw him slip down from Top 3 to Tied 11th.

There’s also a couple players who emerged as of late starting with Spaniard Alfredo Garcia-Heredia in Tied 8th (-6) following his Day 3 rebound at four under 67; So does Scott Hend and David Micheluzzi where they both never looked out of place going into the final day inside the Top 10 alongside Garcia-Heredia, as they hope to wrap up on a high note.

And if that’s not enough, look out for Sam Brazel (T11), Scott Strange & Cameron Davis (both T15) as outsiders not far away from the Top 10, as well as another Japanese pair of Takumi Kanaya & Ryo Hisatsune (both T11).

Who will take home the Joe Kirkwood Cup & the $2 million prize money tomorrow? Will it be one of the local boys, another Aussie from another State or will it be an International player this time since Harold Varner III (USA) in 2016? We’ll wait & see.

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Jason Scrivener stays on top after Day 2 of the 2022 Australian PGA Championship with a pair of Camerons in Smith & John, as well as few International competitors sniffing around his radar

by Sports Benches

Jason Scrivener is still your leader by himself this time at -10 following Day 2 of this year’s Australian PGA Championship at the Royal Queensland Golf Club in Brisbane. He too never looked out of place of four under 67 today when Scrivener kept it up with plenty of pars, as well as four birdies on the front nine & Hole 12 with no bogeys at all.

But he will need to be aware of current British Open champion Cam Smith right behind him in 2nd at -9. Cam not only continued to be consistent on the front nine, but his improved progress of a whopping eight birdies including another the back nine that helped him work his way through the field of six under 65.

There is not only one Cameron fighting for the title, but there’s also another in Cameron John who is currently in Tied 3rd at -8. He may have fired off slow on Day 1 yesterday before he turned around with seven birdies including three on the back nine also with today’s score of six under 65.

Then we have a mix of International players looking to split Smith & Scrivener up top. We’ll start off with Japan’s Masahiro Kawamura where he played really well after an improved Friday run of five under 66 that helped him soar in Tied 3rd alongside Cam John. So does the likes of Adrian Meronk from Poland, China’s Yan Wei Lou & Spaniard Alejandro Canizares who are all currently in Tied 5th at -7.

Plus, don’t write off a some domestic stars such as Anthony Quayle and NZ’s Denzel Ieremia also in Tied 5th despite their respective scores today of 69 from 66 and 68 from 67. The same goes with Min Woo Lee & Adam Scott when both players may have came off their disappointing spells today; Although Scott sinked a nice long range putt birdie on the Par 3 17, but there’s still two days left for both players to rebound.

And we won’t see Jed Morgan defend his title in T78 following another sub-par score of three over 74 that saw him miss the cut, as well Lucas Herbert – who pulled out prior to Day 2 due to a sore back – as he looks to recover in time for next week’s Australian Open. 

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A three-way tie for the lead between Min-Woo Lee, Jason Scrivener & John Lyras after Day 1 of the 2022 Australian PGA Championship in Brisbane

by Sports Benches

Well, it was such a competitive first day of this year’s Australian PGA Championship where there were plenty of contenders in the mix at the Royal Queensland Golf Club in Eagle Farm, Brisbane. 

The likes of Min Woo Lee, Jason Scrivener and John Lyras are all sharing top spot right now at six under 65. All three players kept up the consistency, especially on the front nine with plenty of pars, seven birdies and just one bogey.

Looking at outside the Top 3, Adam Scott may have been a bit inconsistent with back-to-back bogeys on Holes 4-5 on the front nine – but he wrapped his shift really well in Tied 4th right now even though the early wake-up alarm was stressful just like how Min-Woo flew straight here to Brisbane from Dubai two days ago – with three straight birdies between holes 16-18 at five under 66. 

Joining Scott is Anthony Quayle – who made some sensational shots here & there – especially when he nearly sinked a hole in one on the Par 3 at Hole 4 before Quayle scored an eagle from the bunker on a Par 5 at the 7th hole. Now he hopes to improve on the back nine going into Day 2 tomorrow; The same goes with Brad Kennedy and South Korea’s Jeungjun Wang.

Meanwhile, World No.3 Cam Smith is back following his breakthrough major win at the British Open in St. Andrews, Scotland a few months ago. He got away well with a 1st hole birdie followed by a couple more on Holes 6-7 & 9, but again Cam needs to bridge the consistency towards the back nine as he’s currently Tied 14th at three under 68.

And World No.55 Lucas Herbert endured a tough Day 1 on T91 at plus one 72. He may have fixed the 6th hole on Par 4 from just outside the putting green with a birdie  – but there’s still lots of work to do if he wants to continue his title hunt here going into this weekend’s final two rounds that could hopefully see him return to The Masters in Augusta, Georgia early next year. 

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A look back from the final round of the 2022 British Open Golf as Cameron Smith ends a 29-year wait for an Australian to lift the claret jug trophy since Greg Norman in 1993

by Admin

The 150th edition of the British Open returned to the home of golf at St. Andrews, Scotland. Sixth-ranked player in the world and Australian native Cameron Smith entered the final round with a shot at winning the championship, but clearly it was Rory McIlroy who was the favorite, entering Sunday with the lead.

After two birdies on the front nine, Smith was still in the mix, while McIlroy was merely average as his putter failed him. Smith went on a run starting the back nine with five straight birdies, and by the late in the round pulled ahead. A birdie on the 18th sealed the deal for Smith, who at –20 took down Cameron Young by a stroke and McIlroy by two.

Smith became just the fifth Australian to win the British Open, joining Peter Thomson, Kel Nagle, Greg Norman and Ian Baker-Finch and the third to win it at St. Andrews. Now ranked second in the world, the 28-year-old Smith has six PGA Tour wins and his third this season, including the Sentry Tournament of Champions and the Players Championship. While Smith is the cream of the crop from Australia, there were several others that made their mark at the British Open.

Lucas Herbert, Anthony Quayle and Adam Scott all finished tied for 15th at 10-under par. Min Woo Lee finished tied for 21st at 9-under, while Brad Kennedy and Jason Scrivener both performed admirably and finished at 4-under. Scott, at age 42, has 31 professional wins and 14 on the PGA Tour.

Herbert, Quayle, and Lee are all in their 20s and have some professional wins. It’s just a matter of time before they win some events on the PGA Tour.

Although the majors are over for 2022, there is still some great golf left on the season schedule. The 3M Open is this week, followed by the Rocket Mortgage Classic, the Wyndham Championship.

The season conclude with the FedEx Cup Playoffs, which features three events: FedEx St. Jude Classic, the BMW Championship and the Tour Championship which will be held at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Georgia August 25-28.

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Scottie Scheffler holds on to Masters lead to secure his first Major championship

by Admin

Scottie Scheffler holds on to Masters lead to secure his first Major championship

Scottie Scheffler showed ice cold consistency on the final day of The Masters to win his first green jacket – proving just why he’s world No.1.

The American started the day on 10- under, three shots ahead of Australia’s Cameron Smith. It was the Queenslander who got off to a promising start with a pair of birdies on the first two holes. But after sinking a spectacular chip on the third, Scheffler never really looked back.

There was a hint of a rally when Smith birdied the 11th. But a score of six on the par three 12th effectively ended his chances. In the end he was overtaken by Rory McIlroy, himself chasing a Grand Slam of Major victories. The Northern Irishman hit an astonishing round of 64, his magical bunker shot on the 18th one of the day’s highlights.

The day, though, belonged to Scheffler, whose final round of 71 – including four birdies – was pure class.

Smith finished third on 5- under, tied with Ireland’s Shane Lowry. America’s Colin Morikawa finished fourth on 4- under.

Elsewhere, Australia’s Min Woo Lee ended the weekend 14th; Marc Leishman finished 31; Cameron Davis 46th. Adam Scott, the 2013 Masters champion, tied 48th.

Tiger Woods, who dominated so many of this week’s headlines, finished on 13- over. Not quite the fairytale comeback fans hoped for, but the fact the five-time champion completed 72 holes was remarkable; just 14 months ago he underwent extensive emergency surgery to save his right leg following a car accident.

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Golf News, Cameron Smith closing on leader Scottie Scheffler ahead of the final round tomorrow after Day 3 of the 2022 US Masters

by Sports Benches

Scottie Scheffler is still your leader after Round 3 (-9) when he may have been a bit off the pace today at -1, 71 shots. However, his improved 1st half spell from Thursday & Friday shows that Scheffler’s got it all to stay consistent & pull off in a bid to wear the green jacket tomorrow. His best finish here in Augusta was tied 18th last year, but he did improve in the other majors (8th in 2021 & 4th in 2020 at the PGA Championship, 8th in 2021 at the British Open & 7th at the 2021 US Open) as this could be Scheffler’s first major title.

When it comes to competitors who are also chasing the green jacket for the first time, it’s good to see Australia’s Cameron Smith rebound today like it was from Round 1 on Thursday with five birdies at -4, 68 shots. He’s only three shots behind Scheffler now in 2nd at -6, as all Smith can pray now is for the leader to be inconsistent before he can potentially be the 2nd Aussie after Adam Scott to win The Masters.

The same goes with South Korean Sungjae-Im in 3rd, who isn’t far behind Smith and Scheffler. Now he still needs to work on the first nine holes that would help him bridge the gap between 3rd and the Top 2. However, Im still has that strong edge when it comes to the back nine holes after he finished his Round 3 spell with five birdies at -1, 71 shots.

Ireland’s Shane Lowry is still in a position at tied 4th despite only collecting two birdies during the 1st half. South African Charl Schwartzel also endured the same consistency as Lowry, but we can’t forget his terrific brace with the eagle in the 10th hole. Both players credited Round 2 yesterday with the improved leaderboard positions as their turning point, as they hope to split Smith & Im before it’s a race against time to catch Scheffler.

Will we see another first-time winner tomorrow from either Scheffler or someone else like Smith, Im, or Lowry? Otherwise, can Schwartzel secure a fairytale 11-year reunion with the green jacket?

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