Competing in high-profile national WPGA Tour tournaments this summer may not have been a life-changing experience for Peregian’s Katelyn Must, but it certainly reminded her why she’d become a professional golfer.
And it rekindled her interest in playing more competitive golf.
“It was great fun,” Katelyn said.
“I hadn’t competed at that level for more than two years and I really enjoyed it.”
Katelyn, a former outstanding junior who completed her traineeship at Horton Park and then based herself in Western Australia until Covid struck, is the resident teaching professional at Peregian – a role she loves.
But with the pandemic discouraging overseas-based golfers from competing on this year’s WPGA circuit, Katelyn has relished the opportunity to step up.
In mid-January she lined up in the women’s Australian PGA at Royal Queensland, shooting rounds of 77, 75, 74 and 74 to finish tied 20th. She followed that with 19th in the Melbourne International at LaTrobe and, despite being ill, a solid 23rd in the Victoria Open, where she scored 72, 81, 75 and 71.
“I had a really bad cold,” she said. “I was tested but it wasn’t Covid, and I was proud of the way I played through it.”
Katelyn says she’s enjoyed playing 72-hole tournaments, and believes her game has benefited from the intense competition.
“It’s been a great opportunity for me,” she said. “I’ve played in several pro-ams recently, but it’s not the same as competing in four-round tournaments.”
She says she also enjoys competing alongside the men, and feels it has improved the quality of her play.
Following the Victoria Open, Katelyn returned to the Sunshine Coast and resumed teaching at Peregian, at least until the rain started falling. Then she flew back to Melbourne, with a plan to retrieve her car and drive home – a tricky exercise with so many roads flooded in NSW and southern Queensland.
Though she’s committed to her teaching role, she’s looking forward to playing in more WPGA tournaments next month, possibly the Australian Women’s Classic at Bonville and the Women’s NSW Open at Coolangatta Tweed Heads.
“Teaching at Peregian and playing in these big tournaments – it’s a great balance for me,” Katelyn said.
Cooroy volunteers answer the call
After the Cooroy golf course disappeared under the weekend floods, the club’s enthusiastic volunteers were quick to rally to the call to clean up the mess.
“We were overwhelmed with offers to help,” said Peter Piggott, the volunteer coordinator.
When the water cleared, however, there wasn’t much for the willing workers to do.
“We were astounded at how little damage was caused,” Peter said.
“There is debris around the course and the paths have lost gravel but there has been no obvious damage to the greens or tees,” he said.
A bridge on the sixth hole was destroyed, and the sand was washed from bunkers.
Peter said volunteers on Monday collected debris into piles, but the course was still too wet to accommodate vehicles to pick up the rubbish.
He said it was unlikely play would resume at Cooroy until next week.
Despite almost the entire course going under on Saturday, Noosa Springs was remarkably ready for play on Monday.
Executive general manager Mark Brady said there was no sand in the bunkers and no competition play, but 60 or 70 social golfers were out on the course on Monday morning.
Noosa escaped largely unscathed, too, with play allowed on Monday, but without electric carts, which were not allowed on the course.
George’s strong northern NSW showing
Noosa’s George Giblett, dodging the rain that devastated parts of eastern Australia over the past fortnight, played two solid rounds to finish tied 11th in the North Coast Open at Coffs Harbour last week.
Giblett’s rounds of 67 and 71 – two-under-par for the 36-hole tournament played on a soaked course – made him the second highest ranked amateur in the field.
He’d tackled the event because, had he finished among the top three, he would have been guaranteed a start in the upcoming New South Wales Open.
Nevertheless it was welcome experience for the talented young golfer, and indicated his game was competitive with the professionals.
Giblett and his colleagues weren’t so fortunate when they moved on to the Tweed Coast Open at Coolangatta-Tweed Heads at the weekend.
Players were able to get the first 18 holes in before the really heavy rain hit on Saturday. The second day was abandoned and the event shortened to 18 holes.
Brisbane amateur Will Florimo won with an outstanding 10-under 62, while Giblett’s par round was good enough for tied 35th in the 115-strong field.
Cassie bows to the champ
Peregian’s Cassie Porter bowed out in the quarter-finals of the nationally televised The Athena in Melbourne at the weekend – but it took a champion to beat her.
An invited field of 12 professionals and amateurs lined up in the innovative event which began on Saturday with a series of skills tests. The leading eight golfers qualified to play in Sunday’s series of match play eliminations.
Cassie, 19, a professional since just before Christmas, drew leading amateur Kirsten Rudgeley in her three-hole knockout. Her score of even par was not good enough to take down the Western Australian, who scored one-under.
At the end of the day Rudgeley, 20, prevailed – beating rookie pro Grace Kim in a playoff to take the title, which was decided at Melbourne’s Sandy Links course.
So close for Cooper
Noosa’s Cooper Clarke shot rounds of 75 and 74 to miss the 36-hole cut by a single stroke in last week’s Tasmanian Open at Hobart’s Kingston Beach Golf Club.
Cooper was one of a host of Queenslanders competing in one of Tasmania’s most significant amateur events.
Brisbane’s Sam Slater (65, 73, 65, 66) won by a stroke. Five of the top 10 were Queenslanders, including Pelican Waters’ Joel Stahlhut, who was 8th with rounds of 70, 70, 73 and 68.
Club competitions
NOOSA
Monday 21 February
Women’s stableford: A grade – Lani McDowall 38, Sandra Callaghan 37, Tracy Whitbread 34c/b; B grade – Trish Eldridge 37c/b, Jeni Archer 37c/b, Pauline Sunderland 37; women’s 9-hole stableford: Jeanette Dehnen 18, Bettina Hammant 17, Karen Johnston 16c/b.
Tuesday 22 February
Men’s stableford: A grade – Trev Sumner 40c/b, Michael Newman 40, Stephen Thorn 49, Tony Giles 38c/b; B grade – Kenny Lindsay 38, Dave Whitehead 37c/b, Jason Porter 37c/b, Nicholas Cookman 37; C grade – Maurice Farrell 43, Gary Shaw 40, Greg Moore 39c/b, Michael Meltzer 39c/b.
NOOSA SPRINGS
Monday 21 February
Men’s stroke: Vince Green 69c/b, Noel Telfer 69c/b, Simon Cotton 69; women’s: Mally Jane 70, Margaret Stawski 72c/b, Lianne Wamsteeker 72.
Tuesday 22 February
Men’s stableford: Gavan Ascoli 37, David Wrigley 35, Phillip Fortington 34.
