20 Feb 2023 | Professional golf |

Aussies on Tour: Day and Smyth chalk up top 10s

by Dane Heverin

Travis Smyth (left) and Jason Day (right) have made hot starts to 2023.
Travis Smyth (left) and Jason Day (right) have made hot starts to 2023.

Jason Day has continued his recent good form with a third straight top 10 finish on the PGA Tour, while Travis Smyth secured a top 10 finish for the second time this year on the Asian Tour.

Former world number one Day surged up the leaderboard on Sunday at The Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles with a six-under par final round of 65 that included seven birdies as Jon Rahm claimed victory by two shots from Max Homa.

Day finished nine-under for the tournament to register is his fourth consecutive top 20 finish, and his fifth in his six most recent starts.

The 2015 PGA Championship winner has made a resurgence after battling with debilitating back injuries and having to remodel his swing in recent years to ease the strain on his back, and finding his groove again has lifted him to 46 in the world rankings and he is now projected to rise to 21st in the FedEx Cup rankings.

Smyth has also enjoyed a promising start to 2023 and he came seventh at the International Series Qatar event at Doha Golf Club.

The New South Welshman called on his experience of the blustery conditions at his home club of St Michael’s in Sydney to control his ball and finish even par for the windswept week after opening the tournament with a two-under round of 70.

Smyth has now moved into sixth position on the Asian Tour Order of Merit after three events – he came tied sixth at the PIF Saudi International and T30 at last week’s International Series Oman.

Zach Murray, Andrew Dodt and New Zealander Ben Campbell all cracked the top 20 in Qatar with the trio finishing in a share of 13th place.

Meanwhile it was another fantastic week for New Zealand golf with world number one Lydia Ko triumphing in her first start of the year at the Ladies European Tour’s Aramco Saudi Ladies International at Royal Greens.

Ko has two wins from two starts in the event having also lifted the trophy in 2021, while Steph Kyriacou was the only Australian to make the cut. Hannah Green made her first start for the year, but she was unable to reach the weekend action after rounds of 73 and 74.

New Zealander Steven Alker secured yet another top 10 finish on the PGA Tour Champions with a tied eighth result at the Chubb Classic, and Mark Hensby, Rod Pampling and David McKenzie all finished inside the top 20.

Aaron Pike was the best of the Australian contingent at the DP World Tour’s Thailand Classic by coming in a tie for 46th.

Results

PGA TOUR

The Genesis Invitational

The Riviera Country Club, Pacific Palisades, California

  • 1 Jon Rahm (ESP) 65-68-65-69-267 US$ 3,600,000

  • T9 Jason Day 72-67-71-65-275 US$545,000

  • T58 Lucas Herbert 70-71-68-77-286 US$45,400

  • 65 Adam Scott 69-73-75-72-289 US$43,600

  • MC Danny Lee (NZ) 76-69-145

  • MC Cam Davis 77-71-148

DP World Tour

Thailand Classic

Amata Spring CC, Chon Buri, Bangkok, Thailand

  • 1 Thorbjørn Olesen (DNK) 67-67-64-66-264 €319,738,38

  • T46 Aaron Pike 69-71-72-69-281 €9,215.99

  • T51 Daniel Hillier (NZ) 72-68-68-74-282 €7,178.44

  • T62 Blake Windred 69-72-72-71-284 €4,984.16

  • 73 Louis Dobbelaar 70-70-75-74-289 €2,818.22

  • MC Dimitrios Papadatos 70-72-142

  • MC Anthony Quayle 75-71-146

  • MC Jason Scrivener 74-72-146

Asian Tour

International Series Qatar

Doha Golf Club, Qatar

  • 1 Andy Ogletree (USA) 71-71-66-73-281 US$450,000

  • 7 Travis Smyth 70-72-74-72-288 US$71,250

  • T13 Ben Campbell (NZ) 73-73-73-72-291 US$31,944.44

  • T13 Zach Murray 74-74-70-73-291 US$31,944.44

  • T13 Andrew Dodt 74-76-67-74-291 US$31,944.44

  • T26 Todd Sinnott 71-76-74-72-293 US$20,805.56

  • T26 John Lyras 71-73-75-74-293 US$20,805.56

  • T35 Kevin Yuan 75-72-77-70-294 US$15,800

  • MC Terry Pilkadaris 76-75-151

  • MC Jack Thompson 76-77-153

  • MC Wade Ormsby 74-80-154

  • MC Scott Hend 74-82-156

  • MC Marcus Fraser 83-75-158

Ladies European Tour

Aramco Saudi Ladies International

Royal Greens Golf and Country Club, Saudi Arabia

  • 1 Lydia Ko (NZ) 64-69-66-68-267 €701,385

  • 50 Steph Kyriacou 74-67-71-74 €21,509.14

  • MC Hannah Green 74-73-147

  • MC Gabi Ruffels 76-73-149

  • MC Whitney Hillier 75-77-152

PGA TOUR Champions

Chubb Classic

Tiburon Golf Club, Naples, Florida

  • 1 Bernhard Langer (GER) 64-70-65-199 US$270,000

  • T8 Steven Alker (NZ) 70-65-71-206 US$57,600

  • T18 Mark Hensby 68-72-70-210 US$27,000

  • T18 David McKenzie 74-66-70-210 US$27,000

  • T18 Rod Pampling 71-69-70-210 US$27,000

  • T32 Richard Green 71-70-71-212 US$12,960

  • T57 Stuart Appleby 76-77-67-220 US$3,780

  • T57 Robert Allenby 69-82-69-220 US$3,780

  • T70 John Senden 77-73-78-228 US$1,584

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