By John Huggan
SYDNEY — He did it the hard way, but Matt Jones got it done. Just. Standing on the 18th tee at The Australian Club (where he is a member), the 39-year-old PGA Tour regular was 15 under par and a comfortable-looking three shots clear of Louis Oosthuizen, who was playing in the group ahead. No problem, right?

Wrong.

After a near-perfect tee shot found the narrow and elusive fairway, Oosthuizen ripped an equally impressive approach onto the green on the water-strewn, 535-yard par 5. The ball stopped no more than 15 feet from the cup, from where the 2010 Open champion calmly rolled in the eagle putt to cap a round of five-under 66. Suddenly, he was 14 under for the week and only one back.

Meanwhile, Jones was doing his best to make things even more exciting. In contrast to Oosthuizen’s beautifully flighted effort, Jones’ drive finished well left of his desired target. A diminutive punch shot was required under some tree limbs if the ball was to successfully make its way back to short grass. But it wasn’t even close. Striking a branch, Jones was faced with another tough play from some wood chips under said tree. Still short of the green in three, he was left with an awkward up-and-down over an intervening bunker if he was to put his name on the historic Stonehaven Cup for a second time after winning previously in 2015.

That was the reality at least. Unfortunately for Jones, he had reached that spot armed with false information. Until he saw the scoreboard at the 18th green, he had thought a bogey 6 was going to be enough to see him safely over the finishing line.

Anyway, despite that sudden shift in emphasis, the chip was struck purely as the checking spin indicated, the ball pulling up maybe four feet beyond the flagstick. And the pas putt was never missing. Cue much celebration as Aussie native was joined on the green by his wife and three young daughters.

“I was under the assumption that I had a two-shot lead,” he explained. “So I wasn’t playing for the green on my third shot, I would have been happy to hit it in the bunker. I’m happy I didn’t though. That bunker shot wouldn’t have been as comfortable. But then I realized what I had to do, and the chip wasn’t that difficult.”

Jason McCawley/Getty Images
Jones celebrates on the 18th green with his children after winning on Sunday.

As for Oosthuizen, the amiable South African was happy enough with his performance heading into next week’s Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne, where he will be making his fourth appearance on the International team.

“On the back nine, I just wanted to try and get some numbers up there so that Matt would be feeling a little bit of pressure,” Oosthuizen said. “But he did really well. Just about the whole day he was three shots ahead. So I had to do something. I went for it on the last, and it paid off. I’ll take a lot of confidence out of this though. And hopefully we can pull it off next week.”

As well as the A$237,500 first-place check, Jones, for the third time in five years, clinched one of the three British Open spots available in the first of 13 Open Qualifying Series (OQS) events that will identify as many as 46 players over the next few months. Joining Jones at Royal St. George’s next July are fellow Australian Aaron Pike and the world’s No. 1 amateur, Takumi Kanaya of Japan. Both shot nine under par to finish T-3.

“I’ve played in maybe five [four actually] Opens, and it’s the one major I would most like to win,” Jones said. “To qualify and be able to plan a schedule around it is brilliant. I love coming back here because it’s a great chance for me to make the Open. I’ve been lucky enough to do it a few times, and now I’ll be back there next year.”

Still, it is to be hoped that this latest batch of qualifiers fare better than their immediate predecessors. Last year’s Australian Open champion, Abraham Ancer of Mexico, and fellow qualifiers Dimitrios Papadatos and Jake McLeod all failed to qualify for the weekend at Royal Portrush in 2019. Indeed, since the OQS began in 2013, no player identified by the Australian Open has gone on to finish inside the top 25 at the following year’s Open. Eleven have failed to make it through 36 holes, with Aaron Baddeley’s T-27 finish at Royal Birkdale in 2016 the best result by any of the 18 previous qualifiers.

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By John Huggan
He may have been less than stellar during days two and three of the 102nd Australian Open at The Australian Club—four over par for the 36 holes—but Cameron Davis started and finished like a true champion. The 22-year-old Australian shot an opening 63, what turned out to be the low round of an endlessly exciting championship, then almost did it again in the final round. Six birdies, one eagle (where he holed out from 125 yards), a lone dropped shot and 10 pars added up to 64 and a one-stroke victory over Sweden’s Jonas Blixt and 2015 champion Matt Jones.

By way of consolation, the two runners up joined Davis in claiming spots into next July’s Open Championship at Carnoustie available to the top three finishers in the top 10 not otherwise exempt.

That, however, is for the future. The first professional win of Davis’ young life has come early. The New South Welshman left the amateur ranks only 13 months ago, after an unpaid career highlighted by victory in the 2015 Australian Amateur and membership of the Australian side at the 2016 World Amateur Team Championship, where he was the low individual. “I’m a little bit numb right now,” said Davis, who made 22 birdies and an eagle over the four days.

“I really didn’t expect to be here after staring six shots back. I didn’t think I was far enough up the leader board. I didn’t actually look at the board all day. Even when I hold for birdie on the last I didn’t know exactly where I was. When I got into the scorer’s hut, I was blown away by where I was at.

“All I was trying to do was not get too far ahead of myself,” Davis continued. “After the 63 on Day 1, that was hard to do. But today I stayed patient and concentrated on my routines. I actually felt more pressure when I won the Aussie Amateur. But this feeling is much better.”

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Blixt was perhaps the more deflated of the two runners up. After making four bogeys in his first six holes, Jones made seven birdies in the next 12 to sneak into an unlikely second place. Blixt had the better chance to win, despite his own double-bogey 6 at the par-4 ninth. Only when his 15-foot putt for birdie slipped by on the final green did he admit defeat.

“I haven’t been in this position in the last round [in a while], so it was kind of fun being in it,” said the 33-year-old, who tied for second in the 2014 Masters. “I felt really comfortable the last four holes, tried to make a run at it, but it didn’t quite happen. The putt on the last was actually quite simple, although maybe a little longer than I wanted.

“When I doubled the ninth, I thought I was out of it. But I bounced back really well and almost made a hole in one on 11. That got me going. I had a bunch of good looks in the end, but sometimes it works out, and today it didn’t for me.”

Even more frustrated on Sunday, however, was the tournament favouJasorite and overnight leader, former World No. 1 Jason Day. He started with a birdie on the first and made an eagle on the par-5 14th, but other than that, the 2015 PGA champion was strangely becalmed over the final 18 holes. Three bogeys and a double bogey on the par-4 ninth—where his approach found the water left of the putting surface—dotted a card that added up to 73 and left him in an ultimately disappointing fifth place as he aimed to win his country’s national title for the first time.

Photo: Brett Hemmings
Jason Day reacts after hitting his approach shot on the eighth hole during the final round of the 2017 Australian Golf Open. After starting Sunday in the lead, Day finished with a disappointing 73 and in fifth place.

“It’s obviously a little bit disappointing to come out and not finish it,” was his verdict. “But I’ve just got to look back on it and see what I need to do for next time. You can’t be perfect all the time, and I played three terrific rounds. I just didn’t put it together on Sunday.”

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