Queenslander Jason Atkins only made a last-minute decision to enter the Australian Long Drive Championship – and after beating a field of the country’s longest hitters at Sandy Links yesterday, he’s very happy he did.
Turning back the clock, the 49-year-old, who plays off a handicap of 11 at his home course of Windaroo Lakes and has been troubled by back issues, smashed a 340-metre drive in the final to defeat another Queenslander, Joel Taylor, whose longest of six balls recorded 332.7 metres but finished outside the grid.
By finishing in the top two, Atkins and Taylor qualified for the open division of the World Long Drive Championships in the United States and will also back up to contest the seniors.
After qualifying in seventh position in the indoor TrackMan session, Atkins thrived outdoors, running through his three finals matches with seven 320-metre-plus drives and caused a big upset in his semi-final, ousting the top qualifier, Jordan Bovalina.
“It’s been a long while since I’ve been in this position so I’m absolutely thrilled,” said Atkins, who has been a long-time competitor on the long drive scene and has “DaBomma” as his Twitter/X handle.
“I’m coming to America. Watch out.
“The future of long drive in Australia is exciting. Look at Jordan, what he can do – wow. He’s got the ball speeds that will do what he wants to do over there in the US.”
The oldest competitor in the last eight, Atkins last won his national title in 2011 and it was only a round at his home course on Saturday that convinced him he was right to travel to Melbourne for a shot at another.
“I’ve had back issues but I played yesterday, made the decision then jumped on a plane and here I am,” he said. “This means a lot.”
Taylor, who turns 45 today, made it through to the last two by beating Melbourne’s Steffan Scutti in the semi-final, launching a 319.4-metre drive while the 2022 Asian champion had a longest of 331 metres but was wayward and couldn’t find the grid with any of his six attempts.
“I was already going to America for the seniors at the world champs, but I guess I’ll be having a go at the opens now,” said Taylor, who no longer plays regular golf but was a plus-2 handicapper at his best.
“It’s going to be a pretty full on week. I’m glad to be back hitting again after having a bit of a break.”
Western Bulldogs star Rory Lobb [pictured, with Atkins] was a celebrity contestant before the final and showed his long drive potential, crunching one 302 metres, leading to some friendly offers to be the 207-centimetre key forward’s long-drive coach.
Top eight qualifiers (via TrackMan): Jordan Bovalina 355.0, Joel Taylor 340.7, Ben Jeffries 332.3, Reece Pospishil 331.4, Stefan Scutti 330.8, Jason Atkins 330.6, Karl Peters 327.0.
