Jay Mackenzie has claimed the first of six Regional Qualifiers for the 2026 Ford NSW Open following a thrilling final day at Lismore Workers Golf Club, where he traded blows with overnight leader Jake McLeod throughout the day.
Remaining bogey-free for the second, and final, round, Mackenzie recorded seven birdies and an eagle in his 9-under-par round of 60 to finish at 16-under-par and two shots clear of former Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winner McLeod.
The victory extra special for Mackenzie, who lives nearby in Lennox Head and whose brother, Daniel, made his professional tournament debut at Lismore.
“This is nice having these events leading into the season. Obviously it’s a really good field and all we pros are good with the amateurs, it’s nice,” the understated Mackenzie said of the victory.
“It’s cool to win in front of people that watch you and follow your results, so that was nice. I had a couple of members from Ballina (Golf Club) come out and stuff.”
Starting one shot back of 2018 NSW Open Champion McLeod alongside Alexander Simpson, Mackenzie made a hot start with a hat-trick of birdies from the first hole, but McLeod was hotter, the Queenslander eagling the opening hole after a tremendous approach with a long iron.
McLeod added another eagle at the sixth in between two birdies as the combination of a hot putter and Lismore Superintendent David Hobday as caddie looked to be too much for Mackenzie to overcome.
Mackenzie continued to find fairways and pepper flagsticks through the front nine and around the turn, but putts shaving the edge, or coming up a roll short, meant he couldn’t eat into McLeod’s lead, which stood at two shots through nine holes.
Simpson was his closest challenger as Austin Bautista had his moments, including a near albatross at the par-5 sixth in his attempt to rise up the leaderboard.
Mackenzie drew closer with a birdie at the 10th that was matched by Simpson as a dramatic back nine conclusion beckoned.
After not dropping a shot for 29 holes, McLeod gave Mackenzie and the other chasers hope with his first bogey at the par-4 12th, having found tree trouble, with Mackenzie shooting to the top of the leaderboard two holes later courtesy of an eagle at the par-5 14th.
Regularly the first to play a second shot in the final group, it was a driver off the deck that swung the momentum Mackenzie’s way at the 14th, with the quality putts he continued to hit finally finding the bottom of the cup.
“I made a fair share, you can’t make them all,” Mackenzie said of the countless putts that came close to dropping early in the round before he found his range.
“The greens are so good. If you keep hitting good putts, they’re going to go in eventually, and you need a bit of luck to win as well. Sort of went my way today, which was nice.”
Simpson dropped shots as regularly as he picked them up in the closing stages as Bautista faded from contention and McLeod attempted to wrestle back control from Mackenzie, who never looked back once in the lead.
Birdieing 15 and 17, Mackenzie had a two-shot buffer walking down the last, which would remain the margin over McLeod, with Simpson a further shot back on 13-under in a share of third with new professional Coby Carruthers, while Queensland’s Douglas Klein was another shot adrift.
Mackenzie, who was already qualified for the Ford NSW Open, happy to claim the winner’s cheque and pay tribute to the Regional Qualifying Series for players like himself, his debutant brother, as well as Carruthers, Simpson and Lincoln Tighe who confirmed their place at The Vintage in November.
“I had no support. Mum and dad went and watched him (Daniel), which is good, though, his first event,” Mackenzie joked of his sibling.
“It’s (Regional Qualifying Series) awesome. It’s nice when they pair the amateurs with some good players.”
Set to be married in less than 12 months, McLeod no doubt echoes the thoughts of Mackenzie as the Series heads to Teven Valley on Thursday, while Simpson was happy to feel the competitive juices flow and secure his spot in one of the summer’s biggest events.
“It was fun to be a part of it,” Simpson said of the final day battle in Lismore.
“Pushing each other along and it was an enjoyable day.
“It’s great to lock it (Ford NSW Open) in and be able to plan for it this far out.”
Carruthers, who only turned professional in May this year, relishing the chance to test his game against experienced players.
“I feel like it’s a Tour field out here. It’s a fantastic field. Look at the names on the list, and I was just like, ‘Wow, everyone’s going out to play’, and to come top three, I was really happy with my play,” the former NSW Junior Amateur winner said.
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