A great tournament deserves a great ending, so the 2025 Australian Open got what it deserved.
It’s just that this is not the result that fans really want.
In a stunning comeback on the 72nd hole, Rasmus Nergaard-Petersen went up and down from impossible territory in the rough on the right side of the green before Cameron Smith three-putted for bogey on the other side of the green, giving Nergaard-Petersen his first DP World Tour victory in the process.
Thousands of spectators packed the final green as Smith and RNP entered the final tie, but after Nelgaard-Petersen’s shot sailed right into jail, Smith found the green and was right in the driver’s seat. This would mark the end of Smith’s 2025 storybook; his first in eight games this year as a non-LIV starter. Instead, it marked a big step in the right direction, but also a particularly harsh way to fail.
Instead, Neergaard-Petersen has his own perfect way to end 2025; just a year after competing (and winning) on the HotelPlanner Tour, he’s done well to earn his 2026 PGA Tour card, and now he’s also claimed his first victory on the DPWT.
“Winning in my last race of the year was the only thing missing from a perfect year. I’m happy,” he said in his post-race interview.
We will have much more to say about this glorious golf tournament, but in the meantime, here are some notes from Royal Melbourne.
– With the victory, Nergard-Petersen also qualified for the Masters; this was the first time he had qualified for the Australian Open and he took full advantage of it.
“It means the world. The Masters is an event I watched so many times growing up and just dreamed of playing it,” he said.
-He is also the first Dane to win the Australian Open.
-His winning putt was excellence. A punch full of confidence and perfect speed.
-Smith’s three-putt was regrettable but understandable; he came from miles away across the final green and broke a ridiculous number with his first putt.
– Smith made a birdie putt on No. 17 to stay tied, which was a good thing.
– Three players (Si Woo Kim, Michael Hollick) will qualify for the 2026 Open Championship. This means a lot to Horlick, who has never played in a major championship. It also means a lot to Scott, who will now compete in all four majors for the 25th consecutive season. Ridiculous winning streak.
– Rory McIlroy This week has obviously meant a lot to him personally and to the thousands of people who follow him around Royal Melbourne. It was fitting, then, that he exited on a high note with stunning birdies on Nos. 17 and 18.
“It’s absolutely amazing,” McIlroy said afterward. “I’m happy to be back here for a while.
“Obviously, it’s been over a decade since I’ve been to the Australian Open and I think just looking at the scenes this week, the crowds, the golf courses, they’re absolutely unbelievable.”
Good news: He’ll be back next year.
So will we.
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