Adam Baillie and Georgia Garner-Dart are the new Amateur Champions of Western Australia following a thrilling day of match play golf at Cottesloe GC.
Baillie held firm to edge a cracking match against teen star Nate Johnson 3&1, while Garner-Dart was never behind in her clash with Amanda Gan, eventually winning 2&1.
With both finals contested over 36 holes it was always going to be a marathon rather than a sprint, but Johnson was quickest out of the blocks as he birdied the short par-four 1st to go 1UP.
The Vines’ Baillie hit back straight away to level on the 2nd and the contest became a nip-and-tuck affair with little to separate the pair until Baillie sensationally chipped in on the 12th to go two holes clear.
He extended his advantage two holes later when Johnson overhit a chip and failed to save par, but the Joondalup teen never let his head drop. He won the 16th with a birdie and was just two holes down at the halfway stage.
Nate Johnson showed great determination and maturity throughout the men’s final
In the women’s final, 22-year-old Garner-Dart first took the lead with a solid par at the par-three second, but Gan was quickly level and the pair were deadlocked after eight holes.
Lake Karrinyup’s Garner-Dart holed a testing four-foot par putt to retake the lead on the 9th, and she would never relinquish it. Indeed, she looked to set to run away with things as she romped into a four-hole lead after 18.
Gan came out firing after the lunch break, however, birdieing the 1st from 12 feet to reduce the deficit.
So began a seven-hole stretch of high-quality, swashbuckling golf where no holes were halved. Garner-Dart regained her four-hole advantage only to be pegged back before again pulling clear.
Afternoon rollercoaster ride
It was a similarly gripping contest in the men’s afternoon round. Baillie birdied the 1st to move three clear but Johnson showed determination and maturity beyond his 17 years to turn things round.
A Johnson birdie at the 22nd hole of the contest closed the gap to just one hole and he should have been level at the next but inexplicably missed a two-foot birdie putt at the par-three 5th.
It was a pivotal moment. Baillie knew he had been let off the hook and he held grimly onto his lead before moving three clear with five to play.
Johnson did pull another one back with a steely par at the 33rd hole but Baillie had enough in the tank to get the job done, eventually closing out a 3&1 win with a shaky par at the par-five 17th.
Garner-Dart, meanwhile, looked home and dry as she moved into a four-hole lead with just four holes remaining.
Gan, the 2024 champion, had other ideas, though. She holed a monster putt to win the 33rd hole and closed the deficit to two holes after another birdie at the next.
Amanda Gan’s fighting spirit was on display throughout a high-quality women’s final
The par-five 17th looked to represent a great opportunity for big-hitting Gan to heap the pressure on her rival, with Garner-Dart routinely 40 metres shorter off the tee.
However, the willowy Garner-Dart has the sort of steady game ideally suited to match play. Relentlessly grinding our pars is her great strength and she did it again on the penultimate hole to clinch a memorable 2&1 victory and secure by far the biggest win of her career.
Champions savour career highs
Victory was the culmination of a sensational 12 months for Baillie, who has grown in stature to become one of WA’s most consistent performers in national events.
A finalist in the NSW Amateur Championship just a few weeks ago, he went one better here to underscore his great potential.
“This means so much to me,” Baillie told GolfWA. “I haven’t won an event as big as this before, so this is a pretty cool experience.
“I stayed patient, stuck to my game plan and did everything I needed to do to get it done. I think I only made two bogeys across 35 holes today, so I’ve got to be happy with that.”
Baillie now turns his focus towards towards trying to earn his card on the PGA Tour of Australasia, but still hopes to play for WA in May’s Interstate Teams Matches.
He paid tribute to coach Alex McKay, who Baillie says has been instrumental in his success.
“I started working with Alex less than a year ago. We’ve been working really hard but it’s been really good. He’s put me on the right path with my swing and he’s helped a lot with my mental game, too.”
Proud coach moment: Alex McKay with proteges Adam and Georgia
Interestingly, Garner-Dart is also one of McKay’s proteges but her run to the women’s title was a shade less predictable – even to the player herself.
“It’s not at all what I was expecting at the start of the week!” she told GolfWA. “Reaching the final is a big deal for me and I was going to be happy whatever way things worked out, but I’m so excited to have won.
“Chipping and putting wise, this may have been the best I’ve ever played. I knew I couldn’t afford to make bogeys against Amanda and my short game really kept me going. I only had 22 putts on the first 18 holes and that’s what kept me ahead.”
A final year geology student at UWA, Garner-Dart says she’s re-evaluating her golfing ambitions on the back of her stunning victory.
“I’ve got one more year of study and then I think I’ll take a year off and just play golf. It’s always been a dream of mine, but it seemed quite far off until today.”
WA Amateur Championship winners
Men’s Champion: Adam Baillie (The Vines G&CC)
Women’s Champion: Georgia Garner-Dart (Lake Karrinyup CC)
Men’s Stroke Play Medalist: Spencer Harrison (Royal Perth GC)
Women’s Stroke Play Medalist: Amanda Gan (Royal Fremantle)
Men’s Mid-Amateur Champion: Scott Baker (Royal Fremantle)
Women’s Mid-Amateur Champion: Sarah Terrell (Royal Fremantle)
View all the championship scores and our live-blog from today’s finals here.
View photo galleries from the week here.
From left, Spencer Harrison, Adam Baillie, Georgia Garner-Dart, Amanda Gan
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