Tim Wilkinson has completed a dominant week at Tauranga Golf Club, claiming the 20th Carrus Tauranga Open by seven shots after closing with a four-under 66.
The experienced Kiwi finished at 20-under-par 260, posting rounds of 63, 66, 65 and 66 to comfortably hold off defending champion Josh Geary and Kerry Mountcastle, who shared second at 13-under.
Despite the eventual margin, Wilkinson had to work hard during an eventful final round.
Starting Sunday with a two-shot advantage, he birdied the second before consecutive bogeys at the fourth and fifth tightened the contest.
An eagle at the par-five sixth restored momentum and another birdie followed at the eighth, but a double bogey at the ninth sent him to the turn in even-par 35.
“A struggle. It was tough work out there,” Wilkinson said.
“I started pretty solid, hitting the ball well, and then I struggled in the middle of the round. But the back nine, I had some really solid shots, made a couple of good putts, and it was good.”
Wilkinson responded with a bogey-free four-under 31 on the back nine.
Back-to-back birdies at the 12th and 13th opened up his advantage before another at the 16th put the result beyond doubt.
A final birdie at the 18th took him to his target of 20-under and completed an impressive wire-to-wire week near the top of the leaderboard.
“I thought, if I got out there and got to 20-under, which I eventually did at the very last, that it’d be tough for the guys behind to catch me, especially on a day like this,” Wilkinson said.
“I didn’t feel comfortable all day, but I hit some good shots and made some good putts when it mattered.”
Geary closed with a 68 as his run of three consecutive Carrus Tauranga Open victories came to an end, while Mountcastle signed for a final-round 71.
Jake Meenhorst, Douglas Holloway and South African amateur Nash de Klerk shared fourth at 10-under.
De Klerk’s performance earned him the men’s amateur title after rounds of 67, 65, 68 and 70.
James Hydes finished seventh at nine-under, while Zachary May produced one of Sunday’s best rounds, firing a six-under 64 to climb into eighth.
So Claims Women’s Amateur Title
Chloe So completed a seven-shot victory in the women’s amateur division, finishing at 11-over after rounds of 75, 75, 73 and 76.
Yeowon Yoon was runner-up at 18-over, with Sophie Yu third at 22-over.
The All Abilities Invitational was won by Daniel Robinson in the Gross division with a two-round total of 168, while Andrew Woo claimed the Net title on 151.
Wilkinson’s commanding performance provided the headline result from the 20th edition, with the former PGA Tour player reaching 20-under and pulling seven shots clear to secure the Carrus Tauranga Open crown.
