Melbournian golfer Connor McDade emerged victorious at the Mercedes-Benz Tropics Golf Club Pro-Am, securing a two-shot win as the North Queensland Swing of the adidas PGA Pro-Am Series commenced this week. This marks McDade’s first win of the year, achieved in only his second event. The victory earned him $4,490 from the $25,000 prize pool and advanced him to seventh place on the National Pro-Am Order of Merit.
McDade completed rounds of 66 and 65 to finish at 13-under par. He was followed by Brendan Smith at 11-under and Jay McKenzie at 8-under. McDade’s initial round proved decisive, with his 6-under 66 standing out as the best performance by two shots on a day when only six players scored below 70.
Reflecting on his performance, McDade stated: “It’s a nice hot start to the Troppo Tour, which is what I was looking for, so I’m stoked to put two hot rounds together.” He acknowledged Brendan Smith’s persistent challenge throughout the competition: “Brendan (Smith), he’s obviously a great player and has been for a long time. I don’t think he ever got within one shot of me at any time, but I just felt the pressure from him all day long.”
McDade recounted a tense moment during the final stretch: “He (Smith) nearly holed his pitch shot on the last. He was really aggressive off the tee and put himself about 40 meters out from the green and nearly holed it.” Despite this pressure, McDade maintained composure to secure victory with a solid par on the last hole.
The leaderboard concluded with William Bruyeres in fourth place at 137 strokes and Lachlan Aylen, Dean Jamieson, and Ben Hollis tied for fifth at 140 strokes each.
The North Queensland swing continues later this week with its official start marked by the CMR Recycling Sarina Golf Club Pro-Am scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
