IG182 December 20

December 2020 www.insidegolf.com.au CLUB NEWS 6 YOUR FREE MONTHLY NEWSLETTER • Emailed to you every month • See what’s making golf news all around Australia and the world • WIN some fantastic prizes every month Visit: www.insidegolf.com.au to sign up for free Matt Sahquist and Don Macklyn show off their prizes after winning the Central Queensland men’s fourball stableford title. B ILOELA Golf Club’s Matt Sahquist and Don Macklyn have taken out the Central Queensland fourball stableford men’s championship at Capricorn Resort. The pair returned 47 points to win the event by one point from The Town of 1770 Golf Club’s Geoff Nash and Dale Cameron, who were declared runners-up on a countback from fellow 1770 members Neville Hughes and Craig MacNamara. Wowan Golf Club’s Kaylie Myles and Shai Pearce won the women’s event. The duo carded a winning score of 42 points – one point more than Nadine Battilana and Keri Wilson. The runners-up edged out Boyne Island’s Shirley Clark and Liz Prize; North Rockhampton’s Deb Carige and Joy Coombes on a countback. The annual teams’ event went to 1770’s Neville Hughes and Craig MacNamara (46 points), Geoff Nash and Dale Cameron (46) and Boyne Island’s Shirley Clark and Lize Prize (41). They combined for a winning score of 133 points. G old Coast golfer, Neil Herdegen has won this year’s Queensland Blind Golf Open, held over two spectacular days at RACV Royal Pines Resort. Neil led the 16-strong field with an impressive lead after the first nine holes on the first day, following it up with a strong finish on the final day. Neil’s win was also a big win for his coach and caddy, Todd Sleep, PGA, from TS Golf Academy who has been working with Neil for the past year at the new state-of-the-art facility at the Glades Golf Course and Driving Range at Robina. “His win is also confirmation – not that it’s needed, and it is something golf pros have always known, hard work and dedication to the sport eventually pays dividends” said Sleep. “It’s also a big win for our TS Golf team as it shows that our investment in the latest technology and commitment to best-practice training methodology works,” he said. For the first time in Queensland Blind Golf’s history, this year’s Open was played on the championship course at RACV Royal Pines. A stiff sea breeze on the final day added to the difficulty of the championship course and caused some of the bigger hitters to double-think their tee shots. Despite the wind, golfers enjoyed near-perfect conditions on both days. The annual Queensland Blind Golf Open is the highlight of the Queensland Blind Golf calendar and usually attracts talented blind and visually impaired players from around Australia. This year despite border restrictions, players from New South Wales and Canberra also competed in the event and for the first time, organisers permitted entry to any player with a visual condition. Normally, tournaments are restricted to members of the IGBA (International Blind Golf Association). In what is believed to be a world’s first, this year’s Qld open featured an “Academy” category for junior and less-experienced players who want to experience playing in a golf tournament. This year, 13-year-old Joshua Woods from Brisbane won the Academy Division with an impressive display in his first golf tournament with PGA IGI student Sean Bradfield from Canungra, teaming up to help Joshua as a caddy. According to Dr Brad Carver, the President of Blind Golf Queensland, the inclusion of the academy division may be a world first. “Blind Golf Queensland is making history in blind sport in Australia, if not the world, by including blind and visually-impaired younger players.” “This is the start of Blind Golf Queensland’s junior program which I’m sure will start attracting some big attention.” He said. “We’ll have some big announcements about this program in the new year”he said. Students from the PGA International Golf Institute were also on hand to assist in managing and delivering the tournament and assisted with scoring and course marshalling. According to Jamie Brew, program manager at PGA IGI, students enjoyed working closely with blind golfers with a range of conditions as it provides excellent experience in the rapidly- evolving disabled sports space. Dr Brad Carver from Virginia Golf Club, hung on narrowly to get the Runner-up trophy ahead of Canberra golfer Paul McKenzie, the lowest handicapped player in the event, who won the B3 division prize. The B1 division was won by first-time competitor David Saxberg and the B4 category was won by Logan golfer Steve Art. Herdegen and Sleep win 2020 Qld Blind Golf Open CQ 4BBB champs decided Start Planning Your Next Golf Trip NOW! With current international travel restrictions, Australia is set to have a HUGE domestic golf season with many popular destinations already filling up! 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