The 2016 Port Macquarie Pro Am went right down to the wire with Geelong’s Deyen Lawson sinking a four metre birdie putt at the last hole to tie with former Port Macquarie golfer Steve Jeffress.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Four players shot three under par 68’s in the opening round to set up a great finish.
Jeffress admitted it would have been pleasing to win it outright, but any win was a success.
“Any win is a good win,” he said.
“I pretty much only hit one drive into the trees over the two days; I hardly missed a shot.”
After spending time away on the professional circuit, Jeffress said he enjoyed returning home.
“It’s always nice to come back home,” he said.
“You’ve got to have all the pieces to the puzzle and the score I ended up with couldn’t have been any better.”
At the start of the second round Jeffress, Lawson, Matt Stieger and Dale Brandt-Richards had a one shot lead over Mitch Brown and David Hando.
I pretty much hit one drive into the trees over two days; I hardly missed a shot.
- Steve Jeffress
Lawson looked to have made a winning break on the field when he made five birdies in a row in the middle of his second round.
Having started from the tenth tee he made birdies at the 17th and 18th holes before birdying the first three holes on the front nine.
With four holes left to play, Jeffress was two shots behind Lawson.
When Jeffress birdied the sixth and seventh holes and Lawson bogeyed the eighth, the game had swung and Jeffress went to the last tee with a one shot lead.
Jeffress was in the group in front of Lawson and he made par at the last hole, with his birdie putt shaving the hole.
Lawson made his birdie to force the tie.
Dale Brandt- Richards, who won the Port Macquarie Golf Club’s major amateur event, the Seaside Classic, in 2012 and 2013, finished third, one shot back at six under par for the 36 holes.
Jamie Hook, who like Brandt – Richards hails from South West Rocks, shot the best round of the tournament with his 66 to follow his first round 71.
He picked up the cheque for fourth place. The 2013 Better Homes Pro Am winner Dimi Papadatos finished at four under par to be fifth.
Both Jeffress and Lawson are now heading for Fiji for next week’s Fiji International, a tournament that Jeffress won two years ago.
“I know the Fiji course like the back of my hand and it’s a good time to be heading over there,” Jeffress said.
“But golfers know your form can disappear as quickly as it arrives.”
After Fiji, Jeffress returns home, then heads to Queensland and then to Japan.
