MasterCard Masters - The beginning of the end of the 2003 Australasian Tour
IN: News | Australasian PGA | MasterCard Masters (2003) | Preview | by Bruce Young | 02 Dec 2003
Almost nine months to the day since the previous event on the 2003 Australasian PGA Tour season was held, the first of the three season-ending events gets under way this Thursday in Melbourne when the MasterCard Australian Masters is staged for the 25th time.
Initially played in 1979, when New Zealander Barry Vivian claimed the title, the Australian Masters has grown to be one of our most significant and recognised events with the winners list over the years providing a veritable who's who of modern day Australian golf.
Greg Norman has won the event on six occasions but there have been several other multiple winners including Craig Parry (3), Bradley Hughes (2), Peter Lonard (2), Peter Senior (2) and therefore in the 24 stagings of the event to date, five golfers have won a combined fifteen gold jackets. This reflects a golf course that tends to favour those who know it and its subtleties.
The Huntingdale course has undergone constant change in recent years. Originally built in the early 1940's when designed by the renowned C.H. Alison, the course underwent its biggest change in the late nineties when the Australian team of Newton, Grant and Spencer rebuilt many of the greens and redid much of the fairway bunkering. Alison was the partner of the great H.S. Colt and together they proved a formidable design team stamping their mark internationally as well as in Britain.
The changes made in 1999 were initially to improve winter drainage but there was also a desire to strengthen the layout to counter some very low scoring through the nineties, more especially by Brad Hughes who in 1998 had ripped the golf course apart in producing a 24 under par total of 268.
The changes were not exactly endorsed initially by the professionals who played in 1999, but with further changes made, the contrast between the finishing five holes, which were the first altered, and the balance of the course was lessened. The greens at Huntingdale have always offered some of the quickest surfaces in the sandbelt area and with the introduction of contouring some were concerned that the original character of the course had been altered. Much of that controversy seems to have died and the golf course will surely provide a fine test for the field.
This week's field brings together many of Australia's best. Robert Allenby, Adam Scott, Peter Lonard, Steve Elkington, Geoff Ogilvy, Craig Parry, Aaron Baddeley, Peter O'Malley, Rod Pampling, Stephen Allan, Andre Stolz and John Senden will be joined by 2002 USPGA Champion, Rich Beem. Beem has had a disappointing year in 2003 on the course but off course he is now the proud father of Michael who was born in July.
Joining those will be many of Australia's bright young stars including the very impressive Marcus Fraser who in just twelve months as a professional has won four times and secured his full playing privileges for Europe in 2004.
Several other young Australians are at the PGA Tour School final stage and will be back for either next week's PGA or the Australian Open.
It is hard to go past the leading players mentioned earlier as the most likely to win. Lonard is coming off a confidence boosting last couple of events including his Presidents Cup singles win over Fred Funk and his 9th placing in the Chrysler Championship in Tampa. As someone who knows his way around here, he must be a serious chance to do well. A win here for Lonard will see him take the lead in the 2003 Australasian Order of Merit advancing him to $573,000
Allenby has not played a lot here of late and may well suffer from an arduous campaign in recent weeks.
Adam Scott was a good seventh last week at the Nedbank Challenge but he too has two hard weeks in Africa and the long trip home to recover from perhaps before he is ready to challenge.
Craig Parry had a reasonable finish in Japan at the his last start but it has not been a good year for him in the US making just $US257,000 in 16 events but he always plays well at home, loves this course and it may be just the inspiration he needs to get things back on track.
Despite Elkington's class it is hard to see him doing well give another ordinary year in the US, playing just one event since the British Open where he withdrew after an opening 86.
O'Malley has always played well here and his recent third placing at the NSW Open suggests his game is close to good enough to again do well here. He has not won the Australian Masters but he is regularly in the top ten finishing third in 2001 and 12th in 2000 and 7th in the previous event.
Andre Stolz has not played a lot in recent weeks but he is the leader of the Australasian Tour Order of Merit and is now a holder of a USPGA Tour card via his very good year on the Nationwide Tour. He comes to this event as a much more credentialed and experienced player than ever before.
Rod Pampling is coming off a couple of months break following minor surgery and although he has played well here in the past, it may take a couple of weeks before he is tournament sharp again. He has had a great year in the US winning well over $US1 million.
The event has often provided a stepping stone for amateurs and this year US Amateur Champion Nick Flanagan is in the field.
A win here by a relative unknown would also see him with a chance to play a USPGA Tour event in 2004 namely the Bay Hill Invitational. An invitation to hat event is to be extended to the winner.
Who ever is the winner this week, the event is a fine start to three end of season events that will see the completion of the first year where a calendar year, in this case 2003, is used to complete the Australasian PGA Tour.
