Tag:

Min Woo Lee

Other Sports

Joaquin Niemann’s outstanding show on the final day today has secured him the 2023 Australian Open victory via a two-hole Playoff shootout v Rikuya Hoshino

by Sports Benches

The 2023 Australian Golf Tournament is finally done and dusted just in time with rainy weather at the Royal Australian Golf Club in Sydney. First of all, we entered Championship day with our Aussie own Min Woo Lee and Japan’s Rikuya Hoshino as the joint leaders as they both battle it out upfront once again this time for the Stonehaven Cup. Now Hoshino has bounced back through the end to score a playoff shootout but not with Min Woo though as the 25-year-old from Perth did not have a great weekend out, even though he finished two strokes shy of third with a final score today at two over 72.

The same can be said with fellow Aussies Adam Scott & Lucas Herbert who sniffed around top spot earlier in the day for a while & they weren’t also bad too in the Top 10 alongside Min Woo, but both of them couldn’t keep up the consistency particularly at the back nine in Tied 4th & outright 7th respectively. Instead, Hoshino was met by a new challenger in none other than Joaquin Niemann Chile after he was simply outstanding today at five under 66.

So both Niemann & Hoshino were tied at -14 ahead of the two-hole Playoff shootout with Niemann keeping it straight, while Hoshino couldn’t get the ball land through the middle of the fairway as it ended up going wide either near the trees or the bunker. Yes, Hoshino is excellent at getting out of trouble, especially when he was lucky the first time around after Niemann missed that eagle put. However, Hoshino’s luck eventually ran out at the 2nd attempt when Niemann’s perfect eagle performance on Par 5 18 has all but confirmed the Chilean with the Stonehaven Cup trophy by just one stroke.

Great day by Niemann who had to wait for like two hours with some driving & putting practice before he had to play again at the 18th hole twice with Hoshino for the Playoff shootout. But his final day performance has been extraordinary with some sensational drives & shots along the way that saw him move his way up front as he deserves to win the 2023 Australian Open Golf tournament – well done!!

And on Hoshino, it’s hard to see him fall short once again like he was last weekend to Min Woo Lee at the Australian PGA Championship as no one likes to miss out the top prize in 2nd place. He has been an top player to watch though where Hoshino knows how to get into the game late during the final weekend rounds over the last two weeks & if he can keep the consistency all along from start to finish, then he’ll sure win sooner rather than later.

It was a fantastic two week show of major Australian Golf Tournaments this year as they’ve been brilliant hosts to all players both here & overseas across Brisbane for the Australian PGA Championship & Sydney over the last four days with the Australian Open. They will be back back bigger & better for the next one in 2024.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

It’s Min Woo Lee v Riyuka Hoshino Round 2 this time for the Stonehaven Cup trophy in 2023 Australian Open Golf ahead of Championship Day tomorrow in Sydney

by Sports Benches

While Min Woo Lee’s performances on Moving Day earlier today might not be as the same as Day 2 yesterday, but he’s still leading the 2023 Australian Open alongside Japan’s Rikuya Hoshino where they are both at -13 ahead of Championship day tomorrow to finish off the two weeks of major tournament golf here in Australia. But that’s not all as there’s couple of players going after them for the Stonehaven Cup such as Alex Fitzpatrick from England (-12) while American Patrick Rodgers (-12) never looked out of place so far right from the very start. Plus, don’t forget fellow Aussie Lucas Herbert who also done well today as he is just three strokes (-11) behind the Top 4 front runners over in outright 5th. Yes, it’s possible that we will see a strong Top 5-10 finish when it comes to our representation of Aussies in action. But it’s all about Min Woo v Hoshino again where his amazing final day performance last Sunday has saw him won the Australian PGA Championship at the Royal Queensland Golf Club in Brisbane. Will Min Woo get to pull off the same thing tomorrow and complete the double as the next Aussie to win this tournament since Matt Jones in 2019? Otherwise, will we see Hoshino get his revenge or a else different foreigner keeping the Stonehaven Cup away from the locals like Poland’s Adrian Meronk did last year come tomorrow arvo.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

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. 

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

Min Woo Lee’s brilliance has defeated Japan’s Riyuka Hoshino on the final day that saw him take home the 2023 Australian PGA Championship in Brisbane

by Sports Benches

What an amazing end to the 2023 Australian PGA Championship at the Royal Queensland Golf Club in Brisbane where we saw two excellent challengers vying to take home the Joe Kirkwood Cup – Aussie’s own Min Woo Lee & Riyuka Hoshino from Japan. Now Min Woo fired off with some early disappointing scores where Hoshino stole the lead for a while, but a few of his extraordinary shots out of nowhere from difficult areas including a eagle on the Par 5 9th have all but confirmed his championship win at -20.

Fair play to have a Japanese player finish well in 2nd for another year this time in Hoshino after Ryo Histasune last year to Cameron Smith, even though it can be a bit hard to watch seeing someone win that tournament. As said, he was an early threat on Championship day but a series of Min Woo’s masterclasses saw him fall short by 3 strokes (-17) towards the end.

Plus, great to see a few more Aussies wrap it up at their best with Todd Sinnott finishing comfortably inside the Top 10 in Tied 7th & Marc Leishman being the best scorer for the final round alone (7 under 64) in outright 3rd ahead of 4th placed Curtis Luck, who always kept the front-runners in check from Day 2. And shoutout to a few Spanish-speaking trio also rounding out the Top 10 including Chile’s Joaquin Niemann (5th) as well as both Spaniards down in Tied 7th Rafa Cabrera Bello & Opening Day leader Joel Moscatel.

The first of the two big Australian PGA tournaments is done now where they will be back at the same place, same time in late November next year. For now, there’s still the Australian Open to come this Thursday through to next Sunday at The Australian Golf Club in Rosebery, Sydney.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

Min Woo Lee still holds on top spot after Day 3 as he hopes to go one better with the Joe Kirkwood Cup on the Final Round tomorrow of the 2023 Australian PGA Championship

by Sports Benches

So there we have it, Moving day is done where some hold on top while some have gone up and down the leaderboard ahead of Championship Day tomorrow in the 2023 Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland Golf Club in Brisbane.

We’ll start off with Min Woo Lee who continued to stay on top after a great show over the last two days at -17. The same goes to Curtis Luck where he too has also turned things around from Round 2 yesterday like Min Woo as he’s four strokes behind him. They are both sandwiched in between Japan’s Rikuya Hoshino – currently in 2nd place by just three strokes shy of the leader. There’s also another Japanese player to look for in Ryo Hisatsune following a great run today at five under 66. Now he fired well into Tied 4th on Day 1 before Ryo slipped away down the middle of the field prior to the weekend. He’s currently just outside the Top 10 in Tied 11th where Ryo is nine strokes behind Min Woo, but he has been so close last year to Cameron Smith alongside Jason Scrivener in joint 2nd as anything can be possible on the final day tomorrow.

Adam Scott has some work to do if he wants to win the Joe Kirkwood Cup tomorrow in 4th for the first time since 2013 ahead of two Tied 5th players in Lucas Herbert & Scotland’s Cameron Syme. Meanwhile, Cameron Davis & Marc Leishman wasn’t bad all along within the Top 16 so far as they both leads a quarter of players at Tied 7th alongside Round 1 leader Joel Moscatel from Spain & Chilean Joaquin Niemann. And speaking of the NZers on show, Michael Hendry is in Tied 14th at -7 after he was brilliant today with 7 birdies at a score of 64 strokes. He too has been improving over time off the back of a slow start as Hendry hopes to post a strong finish inside the Top 10 on the final day tomorrow. Plus, Josh Geary hasn’t moved much today in Tied 21st & Daniel Hillier has slipped away a lot down in T53 following a poor Day 3 score of 2 over 73.

We will see a new champion replacing Cameron Smith as will it be an Aussie again this time in Min Woo Lee? Or will someone else other than an Aussie become the first player to win this tournament since American Harold Varner III back in 2016? It all plays out when the first of the two major Australian golf tournaments will conclude by 5pm AEDT tomorrow afternoon.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

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.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

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.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

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. 

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

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. 

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Other Sports

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.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail