Greg Rhodes has held onto his lead in a race to the finish line at Royal Melbourne. The Coomealla member struggled on the greens today to narrowly defend his title by 1 shot from South Australian John Davey of Tea Tree Gully.
In typical Melbourne fashion the temperatures radically changed today, dropping to a high of 21 today after the heat wave yesterday. Play moved to the West Course for the third and final round of the Royal Melbourne Seniors Classic, following rounds 1 and 2 on the Composite and East courses respectively.
It was a fight to the finish for the Championship cup with Rhodes (231) and Davey (232) neck and neck in the lead group. Both players held on to fend off third place getter Ian Frost of Rich River, who had a field best of 74 today which included a birdie on the 15th hole to finish one behind on 233. Rhodes is currently the number one ranked senior male amateur in Australia and is adding this title onto the long list of accomplishments on his impressive golfing resume.
In the nett section, David Taylor of Commonwealth had the goods, putting together a three round total of 229 to win by 3 shots from Gregory Gillard of Hawks Nest (NSW). Gillard had a round best of nett 72 today to win a four-way count-back for the runner-up title with Wayne Evans of Royal Canberra (ACT) the next best in third place.
Rounding out the major 54-hole trophies was John Merrick of Royal Perth (WA), taking home the 65+ gross title with a score of 255.
The Royal Melbourne Senior Classic is one of three National Ranking Senior Events played in Victoria each year and always boasts a strong field of local players, interstate and international guests. The Championship offers players aged 55 and over with the opportunity to play both East and West Courses along with the rare opportunity to test their skills over the Composite Course layout.
Golf Victoria is extremely grateful to the Royal Melbourne Golf Club for allowing the inclusion of this event into the senior program. All courses were presented in pristine condition throughout the three days and the hospitality provided by the club was first class.
The next event on the senior calendar moves to Heidelberg Golf Club on Monday 30 January for the Yarra Courses Senior Amateur.
Click here for full results and photos from the tournament.