Improved ball striking off the tee is the key to Lucas Herbert’s chances in this week’s Australian Open at The Australian Golf Club in Sydney.
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Herbert enters Australia’s biggest tournament on the back of a runner-up performance at last week’s New South Wales Open.
The Neangar Park product shot 18-under par for the tournament, but he was far from satisfied with the way he played.
“It was good to come second and boost the budget for summer,’’ Herbert said from Sydney on Tuesday.
“It was good to shoot low numbers, but to be honest I didn’t feel as though I was playing that well.
“I didn’t hit the ball great, but I managed to roll a few putts in and that was good enough to shoot those numbers.”
Herbert finished tied for 20th at last year’s Australian Open and this week he’s rated a $51 shot of winning the title against a field that includes Jordan Spieth ($3.25 favourite) and Jason Day ($6).
“If I can hit the ball better than I did last week then there’s no reason why I can’t go better than last year,’’ Herbert said.
“I really battled with my long game last week, so I’m about to do some work with my coach on my swing and if I can get that sorted then that will give me the best chance to play well this week.
“The rest of my game seems in order… I just have to get that ball striking in order.”
Herbert said The Australian Golf Club layout suited his style of play.
“It’s a really long course, so you have to hit it long off the tee and there’s some holes where you’ll be playing long irons into greens,’’ he said.
“The course suits players who hit the ball long off the tee, so if I can drive the ball well then I’ll have more opportunities than some others to hit shorter irons into the green and get the ball into smaller parts of the green.”
After the Australian Open, Herbert will head to the Gold Coast for the Australian PGA Championship.
His final tournament for the year will be in Indonesia before he grabs some rare rest and relaxation at home in Bendigo.
“I’ll play in the Indonesian Masters (December) and then I’ll have some time off until the end of January,’’ he said.
“I’ll be able to spend some time at home which will be good because I haven’t been back for a while.
“If I can finish the year well and get high up on the Australian order of merit then I’ll get some exemptions into Q-schools.”
Herbert is one of three Bendigo golfers in the field for the Australian Open.
Andrew Martin and Kris Mueck will also tee-off on Thursday.