Eccles in rhythm ahead of Aus PGA Champs

BEN Eccles said he is enjoying playing golf the way he wants to as he leads the PGA Tour of Australasia’s Order of Merit.

The Torquay golfer and Geelong resident is fresh off his second-best performance of the 2023-24 season following his runner-up finish at the Victorian PGA Championship last Sunday.

The result pushed him two spots up to the top of the Tour’s Order of Merit with 327.97 points, more than 60 points clear of Kerry Mountcastle.

Eccles ended an eight-year drought on the PGA Tour of Australasia on October 15 when he won the WA PGA Championship.

The win, just Eccles’ second on the tour and first as a professional, is credited as being a major factor in the 29-year-old’s recent performances.

“That WA PGA Championship is something that I was chasing for eight years, it takes a lot of pressure off outside of golf, things such as job security et cetera,” Eccles said earlier this week.

“Doing it early in the season as well, it sets you up for a really nice run leading into all of the events, so it makes things exciting, and my game is feeling good.

“I’m playing golf the way I want to play golf, which is something my coach and I have spoken about all season, and just applying myself in the right way.

“It seems to be working and hopefully it continues.”

Eccles is now playing in the Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland Golf Club, mixing it up with the likes of Cameron Smith, Adam Scott, Geoff Ogilvy, and Min Woo Lee.

“It’s gonna be awesome. It’s always a great event to play in. The golf course looks amazing, and I’ll just approach this week the same as any other week,” he said.

“I just want to play golf the way I want to play and hit the shots I need to hit. Hopefully I can be thereabouts on Sunday.”