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Australian golf great Karrie Webb credited with helping next generation of major winners

Australian golf great Karrie Webb credited with helping next generation of major winners

The great Karrie Webb is being credited with inspiring newly crowned major champ Grace Kim as Australia's crop of uber-talented women's golfers stand on the brink of global domination.
Kim produced a round for the ages to recover from a four-shot deficit and clinch a dramatic play-off victory at the Evian Championship in France.
The 24-year-old joined Webb, Minjee Lee, Hannah Green and Jan Stephenson as only Australia's fifth female major winner.
Kim's epic victory also secured Australia a second-straight major after Lee won the Women's PGA Championship only three weeks ago.
Major title winners
* Then known as the Kraft Nabisco Championship
** No longer a major
*** Then known as the LPGA Championship
Former professional Karen Lunn, the WPGA Tour of Australasia chief executive, is predicting an Australian could also win the Women's British Open that gets underway at Royal Porthcawl on July 31.
As well as Kim's remarkable run, world number six Lee finished in a tie for third just one shot behind, while Gabi Ruffels was co-leader heading into the final round before finishing joint ninth.
Throw in 2024 Evian runner-up Steph Kyriacou, who finished 14th, and 2019 Women's PGA Championship winner Green, and Australia has five genuine contenders to win the fifth major of the year.
Only the dominant South Korean contingent has been able to conjure three successive victories in a calendar year in the current five-major era; in 2020 and in 2013, when Inbee Park won three in succession.
"It can get really, really windy there. But all of our girls, they've grown up in Australia playing in a lot of wind … so they're more than capable of handling the tough conditions," Lunn said.
"And when the conditions are tough, you need a good short game, and you know Gracie's got one of the best and obviously Minjee is putting so much better with a long putter this year.
"It's not beyond the real possibility that we could get three-straight majors."
Lunn credits the golden generation coming through with all having ties to seven-time major winner Webb.
Kim was a four-time winner of Webb's scholarship, which gave her the chance to learn from Australia's greatest champion, with Green, Lee and Ruffels also spending a week with the Hall of Famer as part of the prize.
"She brings two players to a major championship and they all have dinner with the other Australian players who are playing," Lunn said of 50-year-old Webb.
"Grace Kim was a part of that and, when Hannah won her major (in 2019), Grace was one of the scholarship holders that week and was one of the first to run on the green and congratulate Hannah.
"Karrie is a mentor and they've all got her phone number and she's at the end of the line whenever they needed advice on anything.
"Even though she's retired from playing she's still incredibly involved and I know she was glued to the TV and would've just been so thrilled and so proud of Grace's win."
Lunn says the Australians on the LPGA Tour are like a family, often sharing lodging and meals together, and are regularly seen on the side of the green ready to celebrate or commiserate with their contending compatriots.
"It's a little bit infectious — they're feeding off each other's success," Lunn said.
"Hannah missed the cut this week but she was one of the ones there celebrating with Grace.
"Hannah, she's not playing her best golf, but she'll get a big boost seeing Grace win."
And with all but Lee and Green aged under 25 and a number of other young rising stars, the glory days could continue for some time.
"This next generation are coming into the prime of their golfing career so those names are going to be there for a long, long time."
AAP
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Australian relay teams win gold on day one of world swimming championships
Australian relay teams win gold on day one of world swimming championships

ABC News

time22 minutes ago

  • ABC News

Australian relay teams win gold on day one of world swimming championships

The Australian swimming team has had an outstanding start to the World Aquatics Championships, winning two gold and a silver to open the competition. Australia's men's and women's 4x100m freestyle relay teams both claimed gold, while Sam Short won silver in the men's 400 metre freestyle. The all-conquering women's 4x100m freestyle relay team won gold ahead the US in second and the Netherlands in third, to extend a major championship winning run that began with a world record set at the 2018 Commonwealth Games at the Gold Coast. The Australian men's team followed up just minutes later with a stunning come-from-behind win anchored by veteran Kyle Chalmers to set a championship record of 3:08.07 ahead of Italy, with the US favourites in third. Chalmers dived in with Australia in third place after earlier legs by Flynn Southam, Kai Taylor and Maximilliam Giuliani, but stormed home in 46.53 seconds to secure the victory. "It's so good to be part of a relay team that's so young and hungry and eager to have success in LA like I am," Chalmers said. "We've won bronze, bronze, silver, I really desperately want to win a gold medal in a few years' time." Southam said the goal for himself, Taylor and Giuliani "was just to give Kyle a punter's hope". "And we all did our job extraordinarily well, but we came together and represented the country, so there's no greater honour, I think, and to do it in a relay is so much more special than an individual event," Southam said. Giuliani said the result, on the first day of the swimming competition in Singapore, was "unbelievable". "We spoke about it the first day we came together on staging … and to deliver on that in great fashion — I mean championship record [and] we weren't too far off the world record," he said. "I think we've got a whole lot of potential in this team." The women's race was equally dramatic. Mollie O'Callaghan led out and established a lead by the first change, which was extended in the following two legs swum by Meg Harris and Milla Jansen. In the final leg, Olivia Wunsch was chased down by Olympic relay gold medallist Torri Huske, who turned at the 350m mark in first place. But Wunsch turned on the afterburners to reclaim first place, touching the wall in 3:30.6 seconds. "I just wanted to power home and give it all I had and it's really exciting to be able to stand up with a gold medal today," Wunsch said. "I love racing, and I love anchoring a relay so that was really exciting. O'Callaghan said the team was "very nervous leading up to this". "I thought I've just got to try my best for these three girls and especially the girls in the heat," she said. "It's nice to know that we have a strong set-up for LA and Brisbane and, yeah, I'm very confident in these girls and it's going to be a great week." The US team had been rocked by a case of gastroenteritis that has gone through the team after a staging camp in Thailand. Just minutes before the final, multiple Olympic relay gold medallist, Gretchen Walsh pulled out of the team. But Huske said the team wasn't making excuses. "I don't want to speak to how much it's affected us necessarily," she said. "We've done a really good job in staying resilient." Earlier in the night, Sam Short fell agonisingly short of a gold medal, losing by just 0.02 seconds to German world record holder Lukas Martens. Short's time of 3:42.37 was 0.3 seconds slower than the time he swam in the morning's heats. But rather than express disappointment, Short said he was pleased to be back on a world championship podium after previously taking gold at the 2023 championships in Fukuoka. "So happy to be back on the podium," he said. "It was a pleasure to race the Olympic champion, world record holder and now world champion, so I knew he was going to be a tough opponent. "I'm really proud of how hard I pushed myself and you know, .02, it's not the end of the world, silver medal, I get to get back on the podium and long meet to come." He said the result was some consolation after a disappointing campaign at the Paris Olympic Games, where he was a chance to win the gold medal in the 400m freestyle but narrowly missed bronze in the final. He then missed the finals of the 800m and 1500m and dubbed his Olympic Games "a failure". As to why he swam slower in the evening than his morning time, which would have won gold, he said in hindsight he could have gone slower in his heat swim. "I felt comfortable this morning, I actually felt I could have gone 3:40 this morning," he said. "So, you know just a high-pressure environment, backing that up, small turnaround and also a great field as well. "When I was with him with 100 to go, I knew it was going to be a dogfight — he's a pretty good level, he's the world record holder. "I knew I wasn't going to be pulling away and I was hurting as well. "I've got a good finish on me, and it wasn't quite good enough today." Short still has swims in the 800m and 1500m freestyle events and the men's 4x200m freestyle relay. In the women's 400m freestyle final, Lani Pallister was in second until the 250m mark, but faded to finish fourth behind world record holder Summer McIntosh. China's Bingjie Li was second, with US veteran Katie Ledecky in third. McIntosh's campaign to claim five individual gold medals at a world championships is on track and while her time of 3:56.26 is more than two seconds slower than the world record she set earlier this year, it was still two seconds faster than Li. Pallister's time of 3:58.87 was a personal best. "I think fourth is a bit shit, but if it's fourth and a PB you can't really ask for more," Pallister said. Pallister said a young girl from Singapore had given her a pin with a picture of her when she was five. She said she was looking at the pin as she made her way into the pool on Sunday night. "That little girl would think that I was like the coolest person in the world, to be standing in that final, let alone being fourth," she said. Another Australian, Pallister's lifelong friend Jamie Perkins, was sixth in a personal best time of 4:03.2. Perkins said she was "pretty disappointed", despite the personal best time, but said she was learning. "I'm still young, so see what we get moving forward," Perkins said.

Tour de France: Imperious Pogačar claims fourth title, Van Aert wins brutal final stage
Tour de France: Imperious Pogačar claims fourth title, Van Aert wins brutal final stage

SBS Australia

time22 minutes ago

  • SBS Australia

Tour de France: Imperious Pogačar claims fourth title, Van Aert wins brutal final stage

Tadej Pogačar closed out a supreme 21-day performance to win the Tour de France in a rainy Paris on Sunday, crushing his rivals to rack up a fourth title. Wout van Aert won the final-day cliffhanger on the cobbled roads of Montmartre, but Pogačar was spared any late challenge when the weather forced organisers to neutralise times to avoid potential accidents. However Pogačar more than played his part on the final in a six-man breakaway during a thrilling finale before Belgian Van Aert pulled away on the last climb. "I was really happy they neutralised the times of the GC (general classification)," Pogačar said. "Then it was more relaxed to race and you just had to have good legs to be in front. I tried but hats off to Wout, he was incredibly strong. It was a really nice race." Runner-up Jonas Vingegaard was unable to contend with Pogačar, but the winner praised the Dane for having helped him improve over the years. Spectators gathered in Paris' Montmartre district during the 21st and last stage of Tour de France. Source: PA / Blondet Eliot "I spoke to Jonas today. We've been racing each other for five years now and we have raised each other to a higher level," Pogačar said. Despite the rain, tens of thousands of spectators packed Montmartre to follow Pogačar's progress up and down the narrow lanes of the popular tourist spot. He played to the delighted crowds by racing to the head of the peloton near the Moulin Rouge cabaret at the foot of the climb before Van Aert produced a well-timed attack to drop Pogačar and charge to the finish line on the Champs-Elysees avenue. Pogačar was fourth on the day but after wins in 2020, 2021 and 2024, he again proved untouchable in the world's greatest bike race. Overall winner Tadej Pogacar (centre), second-placed Jonas Vingegaard (left), and third-placed Florian Lipowitz (right) celebrate on the podium. Source: AFP / Anne-Christine Poujoulat Vingegaard, the champion in 2022 and 2023, suffered two shocking off-days and ended second overall, 4min 24sec adrift. "We came out fighting in the first week and after stage five I felt I had the legs to win. It was clinched in the second week," Pogačar said. Breakout German star Florian Lipowitz took third on his debut, rounding out the podium a distant 11 minutes off the pace in third. Turning the screw Defending his title, Pogačar embarked from the start in Lille as clear favourite and won four stages along the way. In the first week, he struck on rolling runs in the north and west at Rouen and the Mur de Bretagne. He then turned the screw on the slopes of the Pyrenees in week two with his rivals as good as vanquished. Vingegaard suffered on the stage-five time trial, and again in the second week at the Hautacam mountain, leaving the Dane in shock as his form abandoned him. In need of a massive turn around in the Alps, Pogačar adopted mature tactics and sat on his rival's wheel. After it was all over, a radiant Pogačar said he could finally relax. "Everybody has different ideas about how to celebrate. I want some peace and beautiful weather, enjoying some quiet days at home," he said. The place to watch the 2025 Tour de France — live, free and exclusive — plus the fourth edition of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift is right here on the SBS On Demand Hub .

Imperious Tadej Pogacar wins Tour de France for fourth time
Imperious Tadej Pogacar wins Tour de France for fourth time

News.com.au

time22 minutes ago

  • News.com.au

Imperious Tadej Pogacar wins Tour de France for fourth time

Tadej Pogacar closed out a supreme 21-day performance to win the Tour de France in a rainy Paris, crushing his rivals to rack up a fourth title. Wout van Aert won the final-day cliffhanger on the cobbled roads of Montmartre, but Pogacar was spared any late challenge when the weather forced organisers to neutralise times to avoid potential accidents. However Pogacar more than played his part on the final in a six-man breakaway during a thrilling finale before Belgian Van Aert pulled away on the last climb. 'I was really happy they neutralised the times of the GC (general classification),' Pogacar said. 'Then it was more relaxed to race and you just had to have good legs to be in front. I tried but hats off to Wout, he was incredibly strong. It was a really nice race.' Runner-up Jonas Vingegaard was unable to contend with Pogacar, but the winner praised the Dane for having helped him improve over the years. 'I spoke to Jonas today. We've been racing each other for five years now and we have raised each other to a higher level,' Pogacar said. Despite the rain, tens of thousands of spectators packed Montmartre to follow Pogacar's progress up and down the narrow lanes of the popular tourist spot. He played to the delighted crowds by racing to the head of the peloton near the Moulin Rouge cabaret at the foot of the climb before Van Aert produced a well-timed attack to drop Pogacar and charge to the finish line on the Champs-Elysees avenue. Pogacar was fourth on the day but after wins in 2020, 2021 and 2024, he again proved untouchable in the world's greatest bike race. Vingegaard, the champion in 2022 and 2023, suffered two shocking off-days and ended second overall, 4min 24sec adrift. 'We came out fighting in the first week and after stage five I felt I had the legs to win. It was clinched in the second week,' Pogacar said. Breakout German star Florian Lipowitz took third on his debut, rounding out the podium a distant 11 minutes off the pace in third. Defending his title, Pogacar embarked from the start in Lille as clear favourite and won four stages along the way. In the first week, he struck on rolling runs in the north and west at Rouen and the Mur de Bretagne. He then turned the screw on the slopes of the Pyrenees in week two with his rivals as good as vanquished. Vingegaard suffered on the stage-five time trial, and again in the second week at the Hautacam mountain, leaving the Dane in shock as his form abandoned him. In need of a massive turn around in the Alps, Pogacar adopted mature tactics and sat on his rival's wheel. After it was all over, a radiant Pogacar said he could finally relax. 'Everybody has different ideas about how to celebrate. I want some peace and beautiful weather, enjoying some quiet days at home,' he said. A barnstorming first week of the Tour revealed a raft of emerging stars. Lipowitz was given a run for his money for third place by 22-year-old Scot Oscar Onley, whose steady ride propelled him to fourth overall. The pair came first and second in the white jersey battle for the best under-25 rider adding hopes of a new rivalry on the race. Ireland's Ben Healy bagged a stage win and a two-day stint in the yellow jersey. Adding a heroic near-miss on Mont Ventoux was enough to earn Healy the prize for combativity, voted for by the public. The return of Dave Brailsford from his role at Manchester United to Ineos Grenadiers was overshadowed by the team's Italian powerhouse Filippo Ganna falling early on stage one. He was withdrawn due to concussion. Having previously masterminded seven overall Tour de France wins, Brailsford dug in and the team's Dutch climber Thymen Arensman pulled off heists in the Pyrenees and the Alps to win two stages. France's sole and unexpected stage win came on the lunar-like summit of Mont Ventoux when Valentin Paret-Peintre won an enthralling war of attrition with Healy. The 2025 Tour though will be remembered for Pogacar's all-round dominance, where he adopted a more measured

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