Elvis Smylie wins Australian PGA Championship, beating Cameron ...
Elvis Smylie has stared down Cameron Smith at his pet event to win the Australian PGA Championship and book a return to the European tour.
The 22-year-old from the Gold Coast, son of former tennis star Liz Smylie, produced a string of clutch par saves and dodged Smith's last desperate swings in a bogey-free Sunday at Royal Queensland.
His 14 under total (65, 67, 67) left him two clear of three-time winner Smith (67, 65, 69), who was level with Smylie to begin Sunday but again stuttered on the final day after blowing a final-round lead at the NSW Open last weekend.
"It's a dream come true … I won't forget this day playing with Cam and Leish," Smylie said.
"My short game was great; I definitely saved myself."
Smylie and Smith traded birdies to begin their rounds but it was the protege — Smylie won former world number two Smith's scholarship in 2019 — who produced down the stretch with four gutsy par saves despite missing fairways and greens.
LIV Golf star Smith kept swinging, though, a birdie on the 15th and a brilliant chip-in birdie from behind the 17th party hole green getting him within two shots with one hole to play.
A wayward drive meant he had to curl his second shot from behind a tree, but Smylie kept his cool again to get up and down from the greenside bunker to ice the win.
Smylie had a one-shot lead after the first round before rain scrapped all play on Friday and the event was reduced to a 54-hole spectacle.
Smith was on-song when he carded a six-under 65 on Saturday but Smylie rallied to ensure they shared the lead overnight.
Anthony Quayle came from the clouds with a final-round 63 to finish third at 11 under alongside Marc Leishman, who added another top-five finish with a round of 69 full of near misses.
Smylie was a prodigious amateur who battled on his first season in Europe before COVID-19 hit, the left-hander overhauling his team and finding joy with a professional breakthrough victory at last month's WA Open.
Smylie will get another crack in Europe, his $323,000 cheque coming with a two-year exemption on the European Tour.
ABC/AAP
