City Golf Club Associate Minami Inoue emerged victorious at the Norris Motor Group Associate Pro-Am held at Royal Queensland Golf Club. This tournament, in its third year, is exclusive to Queensland Associates and boasted a $25,000 sponsorship from Norris Motor Group, making it the richest one-day prize for an Associate event.
The competition attracted 59 Associates statewide. Inoue secured his win with a birdie on the 180-metre par-3 eighth hole, finishing with a score of 3-under 69. He edged out Campbell Jones from Pacific Golf Club and Zane Lowe from Yamba Golf and Country Club, both scoring 70.
Inoue had previously won the $3,000 PGA Associate & Employer Challenge at Keperra Country Golf Club in January. Reflecting on his performance, he said that larger prize purses seem to motivate him more. “I can show off for money I suppose, don’t I?” Inoue joked. He added that major sponsors like Norris Motor Group and Liberty One allow players to focus better by offering substantial prizes.
His putting was notably effective during the tournament as he made several long putts for birdies, including a decisive 25-footer. Inoue also noted that his driving was exceptionally good during this event.
Originally from Japan, Inoue moved to Australia at six years old and settled on a cattle farm in Tenterfield, New South Wales. His grandfather introduced him to golf where he showed natural talent early on. A knee injury from rugby league at age 14 led him to pursue golf seriously.
“Not a lot of Japanese or Asian people would have the experience like I did,” said Inoue about his journey into golf. After injuring his knee playing rugby league, he decided to focus on golf entirely.
While Inoue took home most of the prize money, runner-up Jones and third-placed Lowe also received accommodations courtesy of sponsor Liberty One: ten nights for Inoue in Melbourne’s Liberty One Apartments, five nights for Jones via countback criteria, and four nights for Lowe.
