The August issue of Inside Golf is online for your viewing pleasure.

This month:

XANDER COMPLETES A “MAJOR” US DOMINANCE
Schauffele, Scheffler and Dechambeau sweep the 2024 Majors

10 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT JACK

AUSTRALASIAN PGA TOUR
Summer schedule announced

TRAVEL SPECIAL
Hunter Valley, Newcastle, Port Stephens and Forster-Tuncurry

CLUB OF THE MONTH
Southport Golf Club celebrates a centenary

BUSINESS OF THE MONTH
R & J Batteries

EQUIPMENT WE TRIED IT
MGI Zip Navigator and Bridgestone Balls

… and much more!

READ ONLINE HERE

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TOURISM Malaysia is giving away one lucky Inside Golf reader a chance to win a trip for two to the vibrant destination of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

This incredible trip for two includes:

• Economy round-trip flights on Malaysia Airlines, departing from Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, or Perth.
• One room for four nights’ accommodation at a four-or-five- star equivalent hotel with daily breakfast.
• Return airport transfers.
• Golf rounds at Kuala Lumpur’s premier courses: Palm Garden Golf Course and The Mines Golf Resort.

To win, write in 25 words or less why you’d love to WIN a golfing holiday to Malaysia.

Entries close September 30.

Conditions apply

GOOD LUCK!

CLICK HERE TO ENTER THE COMPETITION
(a new window will open where you can fill in the competition form)

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By Rob Willis

The recent announcements of a major sponsor for the Australian PGA Championship, the two courses set to host the Australian Open, the increased purse for the NSW Open and the summer tournament schedule, had my thoughts drifting back to days gone by. 

Back to a time before the US PGA Tour extended their schedule to run year-round, overlapping a period traditionally reserved for international tournaments in Australia, South Africa and to a lesser extent Asia, a time when LIV was a long way from being a thing, and when there was enough money in the kitty to attract the biggest names in golf to visit our shores and compete in our signature events. 

My first memories of watching big time golf was at the 1982 Australian Open at The Australian Golf Club in Sydney when the late, great, Bob Shearer took down Jack Nicklaus and Payne Stewart in a final day shootout.

It was way back when the ball didn’t travel obscene distances and when drivers were made of wood, requiring golfers to strike the ball in the middle of the face to make it go long and straight, Shearer clinching victory by striping a long iron over the water and into the middle of the green on the par-five 18th hole.  

Amongst the crowd adjacent to the green, while excited to see Shearer win, I was mesmerized by the power, skill and nerve of Nicklaus, who was still good enough to win a US Masters some four years later, along with Stewart, a young up-and-comer who would later become a major champion. 

A year prior I watched the TV coverage when reigning British Open champion Bill Rogers won our national Open at the Victoria Golf Club, while going further back in time, Nicklaus, Gary Player, Arnold Palmer, would make regular visits to our shores. Player was a seven-time Australian Open champion, Nicklaus a winner on six occasions and going even further back the great Bobby Locke battled the likes of Norman Von Nida, Kel Nagle and Peter Thomson in our local tournaments. 

Those greats of the past, plus a few to come after them, declined to use the excuse of the distance to travel, when planes were less comfortable and flying times in excess of what they are now. They recognised the quality of our courses and the importance of making golf a truly international game. 

Playing nine holes in the company of Australian PGA CEO Gavin Kirkman at the NSW Golf Club, on the day the 2024 pre-Christmas tournament schedule was released, the conversation topic shifted to the challenge of attracting world class players to compete in our highest profile events. 

Looking through the records to jog the memory, and the very best of their day would find a way to play Australian events, names such as Ballesteros, Watson, Irwin, Montgomerie, Langer and Faldo, Bubba Watson, Mark Calcavecchia, Lee Westwood, Brad Faxon and Justin Rose, just to name a few. 

In more recent times Jordan Speith came and conquered, victorious in two Australian Opens, Rory McIlroy was a winner at Royal Sydney. 

Then there was Tiger. I was in the field when he played at The Australian as an amateur. He returned a number of times after that. The tournaments he played likely had to sell the farm to get him here, however nobody who saw him play will likely ever forget it. 

And as good as they were, more often than not international visitors of note were sent on their way after receiving a beating from our talented locals of the 1980’s, ‘90’s and into the early 2000’s.  Greg Norman, Shark pun intended, was the biggest fish of them all, add in Peter Senior, Robert Allenby, Stuart Appleby, Craig Parry, Geoff Ogilvy, Aaron Baddeley, Peter Lonard or Greg Chalmers, I’ve probably missed a few more. They were always hard to beat, the major TV networks covered the tournaments, and it was often compelling sporting theatre. 

More recently Adam Scott, Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman have given back and returned home for the summer, Matt Jones is a two-time Aussie open champ, while Min Woo Lee is now a headline act whenever he tees it up. 

But the above is 700-odd words getting to the question of who you might like to see strutting their stuff during the Australian golfing summer. Gavin, the PGA and Golf Australia would be interested to hear. 

We are somewhat spoiled by LIV Adelaide when it comes to big names, despite their being an argument some of their contingent may be past their prime, however having the leading players competing for our biggest and most prestigious trophies would be the preference. 

Rory talked a big game, saying the status of national championships such as ours should be elevated. It will be interesting if he now walks the walk or if others were listening and agreed with his sentiment. 

So, the hope is that all the jet-setting Australians return, but that they are joined by their international counterparts. That being the case, who else would you like to see at Royal Queensland for the PGA, down in Melbourne for the Open, perhaps even in regional NSW for the state open?  

I have my thoughts, would be interesting to hear yours. I’m not sure how fat the cheque books of the respective tournaments are, which unfortunately these days can dictate who they can attract, but I’m keen to hear what you think.

Get in touch – If you have an opinion on this or any other topic in the magazine, send your letter to the editor to rob@insidegolf.com.au and you’ll be in the running to win a gripping prize. 

The post Will the ‘stars’ show for the Australian golfing summer?  first appeared on Inside Golf. Australia's Most-Read Golf Magazine as named by Australian Golfers - FREE.

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A remarkable 50-year career on the European Tour has come to an end for German Bernhard Langer.

By Rob Willis

The curtain came down on a European Tour career spanning 50 years and 513 tournaments when Bernhard Langer played his final DP World Tour event at the BMW International Open in his native Germany. 

Langer, who began his professional journey as a teenager before evolving into one of the premier players in world golf and was twice a winner of the US Masters, announced his retirement from the DP World Tour (European Tour) after missing the 36-hole cut at the BMW event played in Munich. 

At 66 years of age, Langer teed it up in his 513th tournament in Europe, fittingly at a Golfclub München Eichenried venue which was just a 60-mile drive from his hometown of Anhausen.

In a celebrated career, Langer claimed 42 victories in those 513 tournaments, two European Order of Merit titles and played on 10 Ryder Cup teams, to go along with his two wins at Augusta National. 

Langer became golf’s first World Number One when the Official World Golf Ranking was launched in 1986, while his 42 wins makes him the second most successful in the history of the European Tour, behind only Spaniard Seve Ballesteros who won on 50 occasions. 

Outside of Europe, Langer won three times on the PGA TOUR and is one of just five golfers to have won professional events on all six continents where golf is played. 

Since turning 50 and joining the senior ranks, Langer’s dominance is unparalleled, the German winning a record 12 Senior Major Championships and 50 titles in total, including a record-setting 46 victories on the PGA TOUR Champions.

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A victory for Xander Schauffele at Royal Troon made it a clean sweep of the major championships for American golfers in 2024, somewhat remarkably the first time US professionals have managed to claim all four titles since 1982. 

Following on from Scottie Scheffler’s victory at the Masters, Bryson DeChambeau taking out the US Open, and Schauffele winning the PGA Championship, it was four from four for the red, white and blue when the Californian blew the field away in the final round of the Open Championship.

Not even during the year in which Tiger Woods won three of the big four tournaments in the year 2000, only for Fijian Vijay Singh to deny him a Grand Slam with his victory at Augusta, had the Americans asserted a total major’s dominance until Schauffele’s Sunday 65 left the Open Championship field in his wake. 

Xander Schauffele claimed a second major title in 2024 with his win in the Open Championship at Royal Troon. 

Starting the final day just one shot behind leader Billy Horschel, the 30-year-old Schauffele’s six-under par round, which included six birdies and no bogies, saw him finish three shots clear of Horschel and Englishman Justin Rose. 

Following on from his first major title in Kentucky at the Valhalla course, Schauffele achieved a long-held dream by becoming the ‘Champion Golfer of the Year’.  

“I’ve always dreamt of doing it. That walk up 18 truly is the coolest with the yellow leaderboards and the fans and the standing ovation,” Schauffele said. 

Locked in a back-nine battle with South African Thriston Lawrence, Rose and to a lesser extent Horschel, Schauffele birdied 11, 13 and the par three 14th after a subline six-iron to within two-metres, before extending his advantage with a four at the par five 16th. 

From the time he managed to avoid the pot bunkers off the tee, then deliver a perfectly struck eight-iron into the heart of the 18th green, and a second major championship victory in 2024 was confirmed. 

Billy Horschel led into the final round, only to be run down by the eventual winner. 

The 152nd Open Championship was a tournament which tested not only the skills of the best players, but also their resilience and mental fortitude, with extremely challenging weather conditions during Friday’s second round and for the leaders over the back nine holes on Saturday. 

The wind calmed down on Sunday, with Schauffele’s Sunday 65 the best of the final day. 

Of the Australians at The Open, Adam Scott led the way, finishing in a tie for 10th, Jason Day was tied for 13th, with the other Australians in the field failing to make the weekend, with Min Woo Lee (9-over), Elvis Smylie (9-over), Jasper Stubbs (10-over) and Cameron Smith (12-over) missing the 36-hole cut. 

The Open Championship winner was set to go from Scotland to Paris, France where Schauffele would attempt to defend the Olympic Gold Medal won in Tokyo four years ago. 

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A 10th place finish at the Open Championship, backing up his runners-up placing at the Scottish Open the previous week has moved Adam Scott into position to be one of six automatic qualifiers for the upcoming President’s Cup. 

Scott, who would be making his 11th appearance in the bi-annual matches against the US, moved from 16th on the official rankings to sixth with his two outstanding results in Scotland. 

He joins Jason Day, the Queenslander now fourth on the list, in a prime position to be on Captain Mike Weir’s International Team for the matches to be played at the Royal Montreal Golf Club in Canada from September 26. 

On the outside of the top six automatic qualifiers, while hoping to be one of Weir’s six captain’s picks are Lee (currently 7th) and Cameron Davis (9th). 

Others in line for automatic International Team selection include Hideki Matsuyama, Sungjae Im, Tom Kim and Byeong Hun (Ben) An. 

The International Team qualifying period comes to an end on August 25 at the conclusion of the BMW Championship on the US PGA Tour.  

The post Scott and Day in prime President’s Cup positions  first appeared on Inside Golf. Australia's Most-Read Golf Magazine as named by Australian Golfers - FREE.

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By Peter Owen

HE’S been in the golf industry since he was 12, played in Arnold Palmer’s Australian Open in 1966 and is closing in on 60 years as a member of the PGA of Australia, so it’s no surprise that Denis Brosnan should confess his love of the game.

“It’s all I’ve ever done, all my life,” he said after yet another day plying his trade on the central Queensland coast in a Legends Tour pro-am, where he continually surprises himself with his ability to compete with players a quarter century younger than him.

And using the phrase ‘all I’ve ever done’ is selling short the amazing contribution he’s made to Australian golf – not just on the golf course, but in the mentoring of players of all ages and, notably, in the design, manufacture and sales of golf equipment.

Fittingly, the Australian PGA last month made Brosnan a life member, a recognition, he says, that left him humbled, honoured and immensely pleased.

“There are only 20 life members still living,” he said. “And in the 105 years of the PGA there have only ever been about 50 named.

“It’s such an honour to be recognised by my fellow PGA pros in such a way,” he said. “They all had to vote, you know, and they voted for me.”

Brosnan’s name is legendary in Australian golf, more so for the golf equipment that he’s designed and marketed for the past 45 years, and the 16 Golf World retail stores he’s established throughout the country, than for his success in big-time golf tournaments.

He began his career in golf at the age of 12, helping Ted Cates in the pro shop at Virginia Golf Club, in Brisbane’s northern suburbs. That led to a traineeship with Fred Anderson at Oxley Golf Club and, later, under Frank McCarthy at Jindalee.

Out of his time, he spent a few years as the professional at Caboolture, before landing the role of head pro at Redcliffe in 1967. He remained there for 27 years, and made so many friendships at the bayside club that he still returns regularly to play the course with his mates.

Brosnan has always been fascinated with the technical properties of golf equipment, particularly clubs, and he’s been designing, grinding, assembling and polishing golf clubs since he was a teenager.

He launched Brosnan Golf in 1977. When the operation began, there were few companies designing and manufacturing golf clubs in Australia, the market dominated by overseas brands like Dunlop, Slazenger and Spalding.

But Brosnan was undaunted. “I had the right product, it was priced right and I was able to get the support of a lot of the golf pros in golf shops around the country.

“I’m very proud of what we’ve been able to do – take on the best in the world and succeed. We sold a lot of equipment, and I just kept on doing it.”

Though he now employs a general manager, Brosnan remains heavily involved in the operation, which includes Golf World outlets in Queensland, NSW, South Australia and Victoria. 

“I’m the managing director and I run the business,” he says with pride.
“I go to the office every morning, and I order all the stock.
I’m very involved.”

And he still designs equipment. “Every product you see with the Brosnan name is something that I’ve designed – clubs, bags, everything with our name on it.”

He’s 78 now, but Brosnan has no plans to retire. “I sometimes think about it,” he said. “A lot of my friends have retired but here I am, still working and running a business.

Denis Brosnan (right) and Kyle Francis after being made PGA Australia life members.

“I had an offer to sell recently and I considered it,” he said. “But in the end I decided to keep it.”

Brosnan doesn’t let business keep him from the golf course, though. 

“I like to play regularly,” he said, outlining a routine that includes Wednesdays at Redcliffe or Royal Queensland, and Sundays on the Gold Coast. Often he’ll join a group of friends for nine holes at Royal Queensland late in the afternoon.

And he’s still a regular on the Legends Tour, where he enjoys the camaraderie of his mates, as much as the thrill of competition.

He visited the United Kingdom in 2022 and tried to pre-qualify for the Senior British Open, which was being played at Gleneagles in Scotland.

The qualifier was at Glenbervie Golf Club, midway between Edinburgh and Glasgow. Armed with a new driver he’d designed, Brosnan shot 74 – not quite enough to get him into the Senior Open field.

But, after his round, when an official announced his score and commented that Brosnan had bettered his age, the audience spontaneously began clapping – a simple gesture of respect and appreciation that almost moved Brosnan to tears.

Back home, Brosnan says he’s happy doing what he’s doing – running his business and playing as much golf as he can.

“For me, golf is something that I’ve enjoyed all my life. I love playing. I love the people. I love the friends I’ve made. Golf isn’t just a sport – it’s a way of life.”

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Watching Bryson DeChambeau win the US Open came at quite the cost.

HAVE you ever wondered what it costs to attend one of the four major championships including the course entry fee, food and beverages?

Recently, data analysts at Sports Talk Philly calculated the cost of attending all four golf majors, including the average price of food, snacks, drinks and alcohol at each tournament. 

Key highlights:

• PGA Championship concessions are the most expensive of all four majors;

• The US Open has the highest drink and alcohol costs; alcohol costs 2.6 times more than The Masters; 

• The cheapest ticket price for The Masters is more than treble the cost of the most expensive tickets for the three other golf majors. 

To analyse which golf major was the most expensive to attend, we calculated the cost of buying one food item, one snack, one drink, and two alcoholic beverages. 

The PGA Championship proved to be the most expensive tournament to attend in terms of buying food, drinks, and alcohol. Patrons can expect to pay around $49.19 for food and drinks on the day of the event. 

On the other hand, patrons at The Masters will only pay around $18.24 for food and drinks in a single day.

The US Open has the most expensive drink and alcohol prices of any golf major. 

Non-alcoholic drinks cost an average of $7.17, while alcoholic beverages cost an average of $15.44, which is 257 per cent more than the Masters.

The PGA Championship isn’t far behind, with the average cost of non-alcoholic drinks coming in at $6.00 and alcoholic beverages costing $14.75.

NOTE: Prices are in US dollars.

 

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2023/2024 Australasian PGA Tour Order of Merit winner Kazuma Kobori.

Following the confirmation of venues for the Australian Open and the signing of a naming rights partner for the PGA Championship, the PGA Tour of Australasia has released their pre-Christmas tournament schedule. 

 “The Chase Is On” as they say for the professionals on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, with 10 tournaments confirmed for the first half of the upcoming 2024/25 season.

The PNG Open in August is set to be the first event of the golfing summer, the opening event of a schedule highlighted by the national Open at Kingston Heath and Victoria Golf Club and the BMW PGA at Royal Queensland, the two Australian major championships co-sanctioned by the DP World Tour.

Following the trip north to Port Moresby, the first Australian events on the 2024/25 calendar will be the Western Australia double in October, beginning in Kalgoorlie at the CKB WA PGA Championship presented by TX Civil & Logistics.

It’s then on to the Mandurah Country Club, the new home for the Bowra & O’Dea Nexus Advisernet WA Open, on October 17 in celebrating the tournament’s 100th anniversary.

The ground-breaking Webex Players Series, featuring its format of men and women on the same course, vying for the same title, will have one event prior to the New Year with the McLaren Vale wine region once again the home of Webex Players Series South Australia hosted by Greg Blewett, while there will be another five Webex events to come in 2025, including the debut of Webex Players Series Perth hosted by Minjee and Min Woo Lee at Royal Fremantle GC in January.

The Tour then heads east to the Queensland PGA Championship, to once again be played at Nudgee Golf Club in Brisbane, before the NSW Open, offering a boosted purse of $800,000, returns to the schedule with the 2024 edition to be hosted for the first time by the Murray Downs Golf Resort as the lead-in to the majors.

The BMW Australian PGA Championship will make its fourth consecutive appearance at Royal Queensland in Brisbane (November 21-24) while the ISPS HANDA Australian Open tees off at two of Melbourne’s world renowned Sandbelt gems, Kingston Heath and Victoria (November 28-December 1).

The schedule also features a date shift for the Victorian PGA Championship and Gippsland Super 6, now to be played following the Australian Open in December.

“The Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia is gaining in momentum, mirroring what is occurring with the game of golf in all metrics across Australia,” PGA of Australia CEO Gavin Kirkman said.

“When ‘The Chase’ resumes in August, our next generation of stars will have their sights on the great opportunities and pathways that exist by being one of the leading players on our Tour.

“We experienced a fantastic 2023/24 season highlighted by Kazuma Kobori’s three victories which led him to our Order of Merit title, the return of some established names to the winner’s circle and the emergence of first-time tournament winners.

“The new season is sure to bring more spectacular golf when we kick off in PNG and then travel into five states including the return of NSW Open with a significant prizemoney boost at a new Tour venue we’re excited to visit.”

Fox Sports and Kayo will be home of the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, with the two majors, the PGA and Open, to also be simulcast on Nine and 9Now. The NSW Open will appear on 7plus.

The post-Christmas/New Year schedule of Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia events has yet to be announced. 

– Courtesy Golf Australia 

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