Newcastle golfer Blake Windred held his nerve when it mattered to claim his first professional title with a one shot triumph in the Victorian PGA Championships at Moonah Links on Sunday.
A joint leader alongside three other players heading into the final round, Windred shot a three under 69 to hold off Queenslander Brad Kennedy. Cory Crawford and Cameron John finished equal third, a further stroke away.
There were some anxious moments for Windred over the final holes after he eagled the 14th hole and followed up with a birdie to grab a three-shot lead over playing partner Kennedy with three holes to play.
His advantage was cut to one coming into the final hole and the door opened for Kennedy when a poor second shot from Windred on the par five left him in a fairway bunker and unable to reach the green in three.
But a fearless chip from the 24-year-old under plenty of pressure put the heat back on Kennedy, who then needed to hole a makeable putt for a birdie to send the tournament to a play-off.
Kennedy's putt grazed the right edge leaving Windred with a tap in for his breakthrough win. It was a great way to finish the year for the Novocastrian, who has spent plenty of time playing in Europe this year.
# The all-Australian team of Marc Leishman and Jason Day say they will have to conjure another low round to close out a wire-to-wire victory at the QBE Shootout in Florida.
Leishman holed out for eagle for the second straight day as he and Day built a three-shot lead at the 12-team event.
A day after Leishman made eagle on the 10th hole during the scramble format in the first round, he holed out from 96 yards on the par-4 seventh hole.
It helped put the duo in command of the unofficial PGA Tour tournament at Tiburon Golf Club while Day sunk a nice birdie putt from the edge of the green on the 18th.
Leishman and Day posted an eight-under-par 64 in the modified alternate shot format on Saturday to be 24-under 120.
"It was nice to be able to contribute today, but we got one more day to go so we've got to stay focused," Day said.
While enjoying a handy advantage, Leishman was wary of the challengers when the final round four-balls begin.
"We're going to have to shoot a really good round tomorrow to win," he said.
"The guys went crazy low today and tomorrow is four-ball, so we're going to have to go a lot lower than we did today.
"Just keep doing what were doing, give ourselves chances and hopefully we can play good and see how we end up."
Defending champions Harris English and Matt Kuchar were still in the mix for a fourth title at the charity event.
They had a 66 and were tied for second with the teams of Jason Kokrak and Kevin Na (64), and Billy Horschel and Sam Burns (62).
Graeme McDowell and Corey Conners, who carded a 67, were another shot behind.
Matt Jones, the other Aussie in the field, and his American partner Ryan Palmer had a 69 on day two to share 10th at 14 under par.
In modified alternate shot, both players hit tee shots and then they picked the best one and alternated shots from there.
Leishman and Day had six birdies to go with Leishman's holed shot for eagle.
Lexi Thompson, the only LPGA Tour player in the field, teamed with Bubba Watson for a 66 to sit five shots off the pace.
All but one of the teams posted scores in the 60s, with the exception of Brian Harman and Hudson Swafford, who had a 71 and were in last place.
