Having scaled the heights of Amateur golf, Victorian Nathan Holman is about to embark on the next chapter of his burgeoning career, confirming he will turn Professional in October. 22-year-old Holman will play his first tournament as a Professional at the WA Goldfields PGA Championship to be played at Kalgoorlie Golf Course from 3-6 October 2013. Currently ranked as Australia s No. 2 amateur and No. 25 in the world, Holman said the decision to turn Pro came relatively easy. I waited last year to prepare for the Professional ranks and just tried to play as many events as I could, said the Woodlands Golf Club member who counts the Master of the Amateurs, Riversdale Cup and the Victorian Amateur amongst his victories to date. I wanted to finish off the US summer as an Amateur then I had plans to turn Pro as soon as I was done with that trip. I got an exemption for the WA PGA so I m taking the opportunity to play it as my first event. Having played regularly on the PGA Tour of Australasia for the last 12 months, Holman is no stranger to the Tour. In January this year he shot an opening round of 66 to lead the Victorian PGA Championship by two heading into the second round, eventually finishing inside the top 20 in the company of considerably more experienced campaigners. Not an isolated performance, in the following weeks Holman continued to impress at the Heritage Classic and Victorian Open finishing tied for fifth and tied for second respectively. I feel like it s going to be quite a comfortable change because of the opportunities that I had to play in Professional events last year. It just shows that I can play, that I can match it with the rest of them and that s made the decision very easy. Regardless of the new challenge Holman says he plans to tackle the opportunity aggressively. It’s business as usual. I m going to play to win, he said. With the results I had last year, I don t think that s going to be beyond me. I m feeling pretty confident and I m ready to step out and win in my first week as a Professional. Before heading to Kalgoorlie, Holman is packing his bags and will fly to Italy this Thursday to contest the First Stage of European Tour School at Bogogno Golf Club from 24-27 September. With his sights firmly on Europe as a gateway to his eventual goal of the PGA TOUR, he’s also hoping to compete in more PGA Tour of Australasia events before the year is out. I ve got a start confirmed in the Talisker Masters but unfortunately it clashes with the Final Stage of Tour School. Either way I ve got two good events I could play that week. I d like to be playing the Final Stage but to be able to fall back on the Masters is a great opportunity. The WA Goldfields PGA Championship will be played at Kalgoorlie Golf Course from 3 – 6 October 2013. The tournament returns to Kalgoorlie for the second consecutive year following on from last year s inaugural goldfields tournament, won by Victorian Peter Wilson.
Author: PGA