DP World Tour : Crown Australian Open Leaderboard Tee Times Results
Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen saved his best until last as he fought off the challenge of Major Champion Cam Smith to claim his maiden DP World Tour title at the 2026 Crown Australian Open.
Neergaard-Petersen began the day with a two-shot lead but was tied with home favourite Smith as the pair made their way down the 18th.
After missing the green, the Dane faced an uphill battle to save par but he rose to the challenge, getting up and down courtesy of a nerveless ten-foot putt to pile the pressure on Smith's par putt.
And with Smith unable to find the cup, Neergaard-Petersen celebrated a one-shot victory, the latest chapter in his remarkable story.
The 26-year-old finished the week on -15 after signing for a closing 70 which contained four birdies and three bogeys.
Smith was alone in second on -14 under, one ahead of South Korea's Si Woo Kim in third -13.
Neergaard-Petersen is no stranger to the winner's circle, having tasted victory three times on the HotelPlanner Tour in 2024 on the way to topping the Road to Mallorca Rankings.
But despite enjoying a remarkable 2025 season on the DP World Tour to earn dual membership with the PGA TOUR, he was not able to win.
He entered the final round with a two-shot advantage but saw his lead evaporate in the early stages as he bogeyed the fourth.
Neergaard-Petersen regained the outright lead with a tap-in birdie at the sixth but surrendered two more bogeys on the ninth and tenth to sit two strokes behind Smith at the start of the back nine.
A long-range birdie at the tough 12th led to a two-shot swing as Neergaard-Petersen grabbed a share of the lead once more before birdieing the 13th from close range to hit the front on his own.
After his tee-shot at the 14th landed under the trees on the right side, Neergaard-Petersen did well to save par but was caught at the top as Smith made birdie on the same hole.
With both Neergaard-Petersen and Smith finding birdies at the 17th, there was nothing to separate the pair with one hole remaining.
But Neergaard-Petersen produced a big finish when it mattered to win and earn his spot at next year's Masters Tournament.
He said: "I'm really at a loss for words.
"It's been a battle all day. From the outside, sometimes you can look calm but there was a storm inside all day today.
"But I managed to just keep battling and then to get it up and down from there to make that putt on the last - I don't really know what to say, to be honest.
"It's one of those things I feel like I've done the other couple of days - I've been able to finish well.
"So I always had that belief that if I just keep trying to hit my spots, eventually the putts were going to drop and I was going to be able to get some of those shots back.
"The Masters is the event I've grown up watching so many times, just dreaming of playing it.
"Getting to do that is awesome. It's gone by so fast. I don't feel like it's been two and a half years since I've been out of college. I haven't even been a pro for that long.
"To get the win here at my final event of the year was the only thing missing from a perfect year. I'm so happy."
EDIT>>>> His 1st prize of 193,209 euros is approximately $311,000 cdn dollars, a pittance compared to purses on the PGA Tour, however once again you can see the emotion of winning, no matter how much or little they play the game.
EDIT>>> Canada's Aaron Cockerill ended his fortnight down under strongly. After a MC at the PGA and an opening 74 this week, he shot 68 to make the cut on the number, followed by 67 to get into the top 25, then battled back today with 3 straight birdies at the 15th 16th and 17th to sign for 70 and a T23 finish to begin his 2026 season.
Also it was great news for evergreen Adam Scott who will return to The Open Championship for the 26th year in a row after punching his ticket to Royal Birkdale along with Si Woo Kim and Michael Hollick at the Crown Australian Open.
There were three spots available at Royal Melbourne to players not already exempt as part of the Open Qualifying Series, with Kim finishing third, Hollick fourth and Scott fifth to claim them.
Scott has played in the last 97 straight Major Championships, while Hollick will be making his Open debut.
europeantour.com
Bryan Angus (edit)
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