Murdoch looks to perform at home course

13^th Beach Golf Club professional Jack Murdoch is hopeful a strong showing at this week’s Vic Open on his home course can propel him to a strong finish to the 2023-24 PGA Tour of Australasia.

Murdoch, a resident golfer at 13^th Beach Golf Club, will ready himself for his fifth Vic Open appearance, with the opening round beginning today (Thursday, February 1).

Fresh off a Top 25 finish at the Webex Player Series in Cobram a fortnight ago, Murdoch has impressed this season with three top 30 finishes through his first four appearances of 2024 and will have the home course advantage at one of the biggest events of the year.

“I’m feeling good heading into this year’s event, everything from my perspective is tracking along nicely, you can never predict how you’re gonna play before a tournament, but everything is trending nicely,” Murdoch said.

“It’s always nice coming back home for the Vic Open and seeing family and friends again, it might make me a little bit anxious because it can sometimes feel like you have to play well, but you can only do what you can do.”

The 26-year-old has graded his season well, headlined by a runner-up finish in May last year at the Papua New Guinea Open to open the campaign.

Murdoch’s lone professional win came in October 2022 where he won The Sands Torquay Pro-Am, but he also claimed a sixth place finish at the Lonsdale Links Pro-Am and a Top 20 finish at the Gippsland Super 6.

Murdoch is on track to earn his PGA Tour of Australasia card for next season.

This season’s results, partnered with nine PGA Tour of Australasia event appearances and 136.50 Order of Merit points, has him ranked inside the top 30 at the tail-end of the season.

Only the Top 60 in the Tour’s Order of Merit automatically retain their cards for next season.

“This time of the year can be quite stressful for a lot of players but given how I’ve played this season to this point I should be able to avoid that situation and avoid going to Qualifying School,” Murdoch said.

“I won’t feel the pressure to play well, it’s just doing more of the same of what I’ve been doing already, which will be a nice change compared to previous seasons.”

Murdoch also thanked 13^th Beach Golf Club, a club he has been a part since he was 13,  for their assistance over the years.

Keep up to date with the Vic Open over the next four days at golf.org.au/vicopen/