Morobe Open attracts top Aussie golfers to country

THE LAE Golf Club’s premier event of the year the Morobe Open tees off on Thursday with a strong lineup of professionals contesting this year’s title.
The Morobe Open from April 19-22 — the precursor to the SP PNG Open April 26-29 — will feature Australian professionals in the likes of 2017 Morobe Open winner Chris Woods, Damien Jordan, Brett Rankin (a former PNG Open winner) and Dale Brandt-Richards to name a few.
The pro-am is on Wednesday. Tournament coordinator Nicole James said she expected experienced campaigners Steven Jeffress, pictured, who won the Morobe Open in 2008, and former PNG Open champion Michael Wright and Blake Proverbs to be among the top performers at the four-day event.
Jeffress, 42, whose best result was winning the inaugural 2014 Fiji International has played at tournaments in Japan and also on the ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia.
The New South Welshman made a good start to the year courtesy of an equal second placing at the 2018 Coca-Cola Queensland PGA Championship along with two wins on the PGA pro-am series: Leeton pro-am and equal first Qantas Golf Club Gold Coast Challenge.
Wright, who bagged the 2009 Morobe Open, has other top performances.
His best performance last year was second place at the Tahiti International and so far in 2018 he finished equal fifth in the Qantas Golf Club Gold Coast Challenge.
Proverbs awarded the 2017 Onplatinum Rookie for the Queensland PGA pro-am series following strong performances throughout last year is another player to watch in the Morobe Open.
Proverbs’ best performance to date this year was equal 16th in the Coca-Cola Queensland PGA Championship.