05 Mar 2022 at 13:24 | Published by: PatPenguin | Views: 35164 | News search

Australia Open Top 3  (Photo by Henry Epstein)

$10,000 in prize money and the best of the best miniature golfers descended upon Cobram Barooga for the Australian Mini Golf Championship in February. The field consisted of three former Australian Mini Golf Champions and members of the Australian team all ready to do battle over 108 holes (6 rounds) of Mini Golf.

Touring professional Ryan Haywood led the way, opening with a 35 off the stick through the first 18 holes. Crowd favourite Allan “The Putter King” then took the lead through 36 holes after equaling Ryan’s round of 35 over the second 18. At that point some players considered packing their bags as it appeared The Putting King might run away with the victory.

After 54 Holes, the ladies champion Gillian McKenzie was crowned after leading wire-to-wire with rounds of 48, 44 and 44 for a 14 shot victory over Jade Radojevic. The youths champion Jake Holt also ran away from his nearest competitors with consistent rounds of 42, 42 and 41 giving him a 6-stroke lead over Sonny Rowe.

After 72 holes international competitor Kevin Penfold shot a new course record 34 to bolt up the leader board into 5th place. The ink wasn’t even dry when former Touring Golf Professional Henry Epstein aka “King Henry” signed for a 34 equaling the course record with a round comprising all 2’s and 2 Aces. King Henry was now in the lead by two shots over Daniel Rebbechi and The Putter King.

12 players progressed to the final 36 holes and the big mover in the pack was course designer Richard Chamberlain from Mini Golf Creations who shot 38 and 35 in the last two rounds to make his way to 3rd on the podium. Richard said, “Absolutely blown away with how good this course turned out. My team has done a fantastic job, not just the course, but all the stuff wrapped around it. This is now a family place and a true asset to the community.”

After 90 holes 4 players were tied for the lead, Josh Mars “The Putting Wonder”, The Putter King, King Henry and international Kevin Penfold. Heading into the final round only 4 shots separated the top 8 players.

With 9 holes to play, King Henry had one hand on the championship trophy opening a two-shot lead over The Putter King. King Henry said, “I just wanted to dominate from the onset, I really had to dig deep early and use some of my experience from my playing days to build momentum.”

Five aces on the back nine from The Putting Wonder was only good enough to see Mars secure a second place on the podium. This gave King Henry the luxury of a four-shot lead playing the last hole.

“It’s nice to enjoy the walk up the 18th hole to win a National Championship. It’s great to see my fellow Queenslanders on the podium beside me. Huge thanks to Sporties Barooga, Australian Mini Golf Federation, World Mini Golf Federation, Golf Australia and Regional NSW Government for putting on such a fantastic event.”

The top Mini Golfers in the country will now head down to the South Australia Festival of golf over Easter to compete in the $10,000 Mini Golf Pro and Celebrities BLITZ event around SHANX Regency Park.

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