Highlights of the third round at the Crown Australian Open.
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The DP World Tour continues its double header Down Under with the Crown Australian Open at Royal Melbourne Golf Club. After a 20-year absence, this week sees golf’s global Tour return to the renowned Royal Melbourne Golf Club for the fifth time. It previously staged the Heinekin Classic for four consecutive years between 2002-2005. This is the 17th time the men’s Crown Australian Open – co-sanctioned by the DP World Tour and PGA TOUR of Australasia since 2022 – has been held at the venue and the first since since 1991. Royal Melbourne was most recently under the international golf microscope when it hosted the Presidents Cup in 2019. At the top of the field is Rory McIlroy, making his 2026 DP World Tour season debut. McIlroy may be the headline name, but there are plenty of other draw cards for the home crowds. Among those are Major champions Adam Scott, Cam Smith and Geoff Ogilvy. Min Woo Lee draws strong support too, while fellow Antipodeans Ryan Fox, Daniel Hillier and Kazuma Kobori will be out to impress. There is a strong international presence, with South Korea’s Si Woo Kim, Mexico’s Carlos Ortiz and Japan’s Ryo Hisatsune among those to receive an invite.
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With the greens being so firm, the bounces of the shots into the green are going to be the thing that will define how close you can get a ball to uh to the hole. And this is the perfect example here. Oh, that struck beautifully and going miles in the air just right of it. Now spinning it down towards the hole. A great look for Bernie to close out his front nine. Looks like it’s coming from high and soft. Judging that first bounce perfectly, leaving himself an uphill pot into the first. This is the hole that Mroy doubled earlier on. Wy Ding has this to try and save par. So, he found trouble earlier. Oh, what a way to do it. He’s got plenty of support here at Royal Melbourne as well. Our Chinese visitor. It’s a perfectly executed wet shot into the first. Just a little bit of right to left for the perfect opener. He’s putting so well this week. What a start for Cam Smith. Joins Minimu Lee on eight under. Hoisting this way up in the air towards that left half of the green. He has that to a chance to escape with this man. This is good. This is good. Wow. What a great read. Mostly right to left and then just a little bit of left to right at the end. remarkable. Still finds a way. That’s our chance. Rory on 11. Just a couple of revs. just dimples short of fallen. Back to Rory in the meantime. Little bit of a funnel this a little bit right to left coming back to it. He’s hit a lot of good putts that just haven’t gone in, but that one does. He’s going to break to his right from back here. Should be at four and is second birdie of the day. Scotty coming from the left hand side of the farewell on four. Just grabs finds the back edge. Come on. And it does. Daniel Hillier if he can get flat stick hot. He’s going to be a real challenger. He’s had to wait till the sixth hole. He’s Adam Scott. We did make bogey at the last. By the way, is this for a birdie to get it straight back, which he does. Two in the sand. Three. Near Peterson. Not a great angle. 52 with a nine iron. But what a great looking shot this is. All over it. This was the hole yesterday, of course, where he had the air swing, but not today. Safely on the green. Nothing is safe when Rory’s around. Seems interested in this. Our leader near guard Peterson. Ali’s ball striking’s been superb the first few holes. What about that one? That gets near us the pin. Now, if this is Carlos Ortiz’s second shot, that is a massive T- shot. Oh, wonderful touch. Tight right bin. Congo right. Oh, this is good. This is good. Yeah. 329. And this did catapult him up into the cut area off on a cracking line very close to Eagle and that would have set the course of lights. This for Birdie walking it in. That’s an ominous sign for everyone else in the field. A very early walk. H this one an aggressive line. Beautiful looking shot just right of it and spinning back the trackman Tracer thanks to Rolex. Go a great feel for that one. Here you go. Peterson makes it for Birdie. Extends his lead. Smith. He produced something here on this short eighth. It’s rolling out and in for Smith. And a great look at birdie for Minu Lee who’s five back now. Make it four back. David, this will be a big massive snap cut with a 3-wood. 222 the left hand edge. He’s aiming left to the trap and this is coming out on a great line and he’s moving hard left or right. Oh, this is going to end well. I think that might be Doug Rory’s corner. Can we get this putter working? Go on. Oh yes, the last roll. Now he joins attack of Neard. Pretty simple by his standards. Daniel Hillier gets it rolling. And there’s another that just creeps in. Big fist to the crowd. He’s starting to the right. Moving back a little. Needs to get up. Not bad. What a way it would be to finish. He’s given himself the opportunity to replicate yesterday. Hasn’t he rolled it beautifully today. Seaw Kim for another birdie. Tracking its way in and he’s in outright second to 10 under. was a fast finish yesterday. Will it be the same again today? It sure will. What can he do from the bunker here? Looks like a really tough shot flying over another bunker, but negotiated it well. Another highlight for Hollik on a par three. one of four co-leaders right now representing the Spanish colors in his shirt. Oh, look at this from Vera Stair. He’ll be an outright leader in a moment to 12 Cam Smith. Yeah, 130 here for Cam. This is a direct line for the pin. Look out. What a beauty from Cam Smith. Now Bayister for the outright lead. Little off his right and in the right side it goes. Cam Smith has tied the lead here at the Crown Australian Open and Menwe first to go. 160 from the left half of the fairway. High ball fight drawing in. Looks pretty good to contend this for birdie for Seiw Kim to tie by a stair which he does. Minw throw a punch here for birdie at 12. It’s about time. Punch thrown, Ellie. So, Adam Scott, as we said, he’s eagled this hole the last two days. And from the rough, he’s played some shot there to give himself another opportunity. 123 gap wedge in hand. Should be able to create some spin with this high up in the air. It’s a good strike. It should land fairly softly landing. Four birdies in the last five holes. Kiwis can fly. Crowd get their wish. Mu on the move again. A tough day has just suddenly got a little better and a little brighter. Well, I saw I thought that put had stopped three times before it reached the hole and it just falls in. This has gone high to the right. Will need some help to draw back. Okay, but the Can you get the ground help now? Adam Scots just a couple of feet away now. Ding. Greenside bunker. Can he get this close? He can. Must have been slightly on the upslike there to get to double digits. Right in the middle from Minu Lee. Cooking with gas. Gallery’s brave. Oh, this has gone off in a great line. Just roaring to the left hand side past the bunker. It’s on grassy near enough to pin high. Slope right there. He can use to draw it in there. Gorgeous take dead aim. and saved in time. That’s gutsy. Here’s Orteza’s test. A This is not easy at all. He’s done a great job. Got it all the way over the bunker. Exceptional shot. There you go. Peterson got a good idea of the speed here on 16. A little bit of left to right in it as Minw’s part showed and he went to school. to be nice and aggressive. He’s pitches a fair way up the green. He’s already had an eagle on the back nine and that close to another. Hillia able to go with the normal putting stance. Just Oh yes. Walking it in to his left or right. I think more to his right coming from this angle. Yeah, you got that right, Nick. Some 40 ft. This looks like it’s online. This is really online. Job done. And now another co-leader at 12 under Park. He’s interested. He loves it. And he drops it. Seaw where Kim is just one back. He’s got to throw this one straight up. He’s got the club face way open. He’ll keep his weight forward. That’s coming out hot. Little bit of right to left in this one. Fist puff from the dine. Back on top again. Of course. Oh, how big will a lead be? It’ll be two. He starts and finishes the day in style. And he is the man to beat. Rasmus near Peterson went birdie birdie birdie to finish two clear with a round to play. The crown Australia Raasmus terrific round five under par 66 out in the final group and apart from the three putt on the fifth hole. Just brilliant golf out there especially the iron play. Yeah, I felt like I I stayed true to to my plan all week which has been to to stay patient. Obviously it’s uh not really what you want there on the fifth. I’ve hit a great shot in there walking away with four. obviously stung a bit, but I felt like I was I was able to kind of calm myself down and then from there on in, I felt like I played some really good golf and u you know, obviously really happy with the finish. I’ve been able to finish well here over the last couple of events in in even in rounds. So, it’s nice to finish off well today. I got to ask you about the birdie on 17 out of position off the tea. Had to chip out. You did well to get it back to the fairway and then a brilliant third and promptly hold the birdie putt. Yeah, it’s it’s one of those that I I kind of had a little bit of a gap, but not not much to be honest. But from there on in, I I hit a great shot in there. I’m going to be the first to say probably a little bit right of where I aim, but yeah, it ended up in a good spot and was able to Yeah. roll in a couple putts in the last three. Prior to the Australian PGA Championship last week, you were down here practicing on the sand belt with David Maloozi. How beneficial has that been this week? Uh, it’s it’s been good. just kind of getting used to the conditions a bit, playing firm and fast golf courses. And then for me, even that week after Dubai was a long week, obviously really happy with the outcome there, but it was nice to just have us have some downtown uh and play with a good mate of mine on great golf courses. We’ve loved watching you and you’ve had a had a tremendous year and we wish you all the best tomorrow. Thank you, mate. Cheers. To watch another DP World Tour video, click here. And to subscribe, click here.
