When Michael Hendry failed to get up and down from a bunker on the last hole at Natadola Bay in the Fiji International, he would have known that the two metre putt he missed was likely to be costly, but probably didn’t realise exactly how much could be on the line....
Fiji International 2016
Brandt Snedeker was in a class his own this week, with no hint of any let down after the Ryder Cup. Once the wind started to blow at the weekend, the men were literally sorted out from the boys and Snedeker’s precision ball control, smart course management and solid putting game all came to the fore. He finally won by 9 shots, and it could easily have been five or six more.
Michael Hendry looked to be similarly in control of second place throughout most of the final round, especially when he drilled his 2nd shot to around 3 metres on the treacherous 16th hole. He failed to convert that opportunity, which would have put him three shots clear of 3rd place. He then made only par on the Par 5 17th, when most of the field were making birdie or better. As a result, Hendry’s bogey on the last dropped him into a three way tie for 2nd with Matthew Giles and Anthony Houston, who were both playing in the final group with Snedeker. Giles pulled his 2nd into a greenside bunker, and Houston went through the back of the green, leaving a relatively easy up and down. The pressure clearly showed: neither player could get their 3rds within 3 metres, and both missed their putts leaving Hendry in sole possession of 2nd on -7.
That left four players, including NZ PGA Board member Brad Shilton, sharing 3rd on -6 which was worth around $NZ 73,500. However, Hendry will be banking $172,000 and change, meaning each of the missed putts on the 18th hole was potentially worth $100,000.
Several New Zealand players took advantage of the opportunity to have a decent payday, particularly Shilton who improved on his excellent result in 2015 to earn the biggest cheque of his career to date. Others banking five figure cheques included Josh Geary, Ben Campbell, Gareth Paddison (with a course record 64 in Round Two), and rookie pro Lachie McDonald. David Klein, Michael Long, Mark Brown, Nick Gillespie and Josh Munn all made the cut as well.
Hendry’s result puts him well within range of a $1.0 million plus season, and also sees him leading the PGA Tour of Australasia’s Order of Merit.
Three New Zealanders on the 2017 PGA Tour
Hurricane Matthew has left a path of destruction in recent days, resulting in the cancellation of the Web.Com Tour Championship at Atlantic Beach Country Club. As a result, Steven Alker and Tim Wilkinson retained their playoff series rankings from the first three tournaments, qualifying both for a 2017 PGA Tour Card. Alker would probably have been safe anyway, but Wilkinson was sitting right on the cusp, less than $400 ahead of the 26th ranked player, and secured the 50th and last card on offer from the regular Web.Com season, and the playoff events.
The PGA congratulates both Steven and Tim on their hard work and consistent play to get to this point, which sees them joining Danny Lee as our representatives on the main Tour. Steven in particular has been a long standing loyal member of the PGA of New Zealand and is a former NZ PGA Champion. He has regularly travelled back to his home country to support our major events here, including the 2016 NZ PGA Championship, and NZ Open.
Best of luck to all three for the 2017 season, which starts with the Safeway Championship in California this week, where all eyes will be on Tiger Woods in his long awaited return to the Tour.
NZ PGA Professional Championship /Heller & Friends Kaikoura Pro-Am
The weather gods intervened on Sunday to reduce this tournament (incorporating the NZ PGA Professional Championship for club and coaching pros) to one round. The overall winner was Hamish Campbell of Nelson, with a seven under round of 65, by a single shot from Kieran Muir and Brad Hayward. The Rodway Stephens Trophy for the Professional Championship was however won for a staggering 8th time by Christchurch GC professional Anthony Doyle, and no doubt he will be back again next year……
The Kaikoura Golf Club very generously agreed to pay out the full prize purse of $22,000 despite the shortened tournament, a gesture much appreciated by the PGA and the players alike.
Fubon LPGA Taiwan Championship
Lydia Ko was unable to defend her title over the weekend, eventually finishing T20 on -3. The result was enough to keep her just ahead of Ariya Jutanugarn (who did not play), as the LPGA season reaches its lucrative climax over the next few weeks.
Alfred Dunhill Links Championship
Tyrrell Hatton of England chose a good week to record his first European Tour victory, which was achieved in emphatic fashion with a four round total of -23, the lowest for the year so far. He set this up with a 3rd round course record equalling 62 at St Andrews, and had four shots to spare over Richard Sterne (South Africa) and Ross Fisher (England). Further down the field 2015 NZ Open champion Jordan Zunic recorded his best result for a long time, finishing T18 on -10 for a cheque of around $NZ 75,000.
Solid Result for Grant Waite
After some weeks of indifferent form, Grant Waite achieved his best result in 2016 in the Toshiba Classic in Los Angeles, finishing T10 on -11to earn nearly $NZ 60,000 for his 3 rounds of 68, 65 & 69. He moves up to 66# on the Charles Schwab Cup OOM, which should see him qualify for the first tournament in the playoff series in two weeks time.
The Toshiba Classic itself was won by the evergreen Jay Haas from Bart Bryant, on the first playoff hole. At 62, Haas is the 2nd older winner ever on the Champions Tour.