Golf-‘Old guy’ Jones flirts with cut before winning New Zealand Open

(Reuters) – Australian Brendan Jones nearly missed the cut at the New Zealand Open but rounds of nine-under-par 62 and five-under 66 over the weekend saw him claim the Brodie Breeze Trophy by three strokes at Queenstown’s Millbrook Resort on Sunday.

After a pair of 69s that opened the tournament, the 48-year old was at risk of not making it to the second and fourth rounds. He trailed Shae Wools Cobb by four shots when play began on Sunday.

Wools-Cobb shot an 78 and was eliminated from contention. Jones, who drained three birdies in the back nine, finished at 18-under, which is three shots more than Ben Campbell and TomoyoIkemura and John Lyras.

“This is just incredible,” Regular on the Japan Tour said so.

“I don’t know what’s happened but I’ve won it and I played some pretty awesome golf, for an old guy anyway. It’s a dream come true.”

After being cancelled in 2021, 2022 and 2022 by the COVID pandemic, this week’s New Zealand Open was reopened.

(Reporting and Editing by Nick Mulvenney, Tom Hogue).