Former PGA and Open champions commit to Australian Summer of Golf

Media Release:

Two-time Capital.com Australian Open champion Matt Jones and former BMW Australian PGA champion Harold Varner III will return to the country’s biggest men’s championships this summer.

Jones has committed to play in the BMW Australian PGA Championship at The Lakes Golf Club in Sydney from November 26-29, before heading south to contest the Capital.com Australian Open at Kingston Heath Golf Club in Melbourne from December 3-6.

He has already lifted the Stonehaven Cup in 2015 and 2019, both at The Australian Golf Club, close by The Lakes.

Varner is locked in as one of the internationals in the field for the BMW Australian PGA Championship, eight years after claiming the title for the first professional victory of his career.

As well as being part of an elite group of players to have won the national open on two occasions, Jones has also enjoyed a highly successful international career, winning twice on the PGA Tour – the 2014 Shell Houston Open and 2021 Honda Classic.

Most recently he has been a founding member of Ripper GC on LIV Golf, helping the team to LIV Golf’s Team Championship title in 2023.

His 2026/27 Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia season will also include the second edition of the ISPS HANDA Japan-Australasia Championship at Royal Auckland & Grange on February 18-21.

After his victory in the Australian PGA at Royal Pines on the Gold Coast in 2016, Varner went on to establish himself on the PGA TOUR, making 191 starts, recording 16 top-10 finishes.

He also claimed the 2022 PIF Saudi International, before joining LIV Golf, where he was victorious at LIV Golf Washington D.C. in 2023.

His 2016 victory remains the only Australian PGA Championship title won by an American since Hale Irwin's victory in 1978.

PGA of Australia CEO Gavin Kirkman said: “Having two players of the calibre of Matt Jones and Harold Varner III commit to our Summer of Golf is fantastic news for the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia and our fans.

“Both players have a genuine connection to our two major events.

“To have them both coming back to Australia and taking on our biggest championships adds another layer of interest to what is shaping up to be a very exciting fortnight of the best of Australian golf.”

Golf Australia CEO James Sutherland said Jones’ return to the Capital.com Australian Open was particularly significant given his record in the championship.

“Matt Jones has already established himself as one of the great modern Australian Open champions, so to have him back at Kingston Heath chasing a third Stonehaven Cup is a fantastic addition to the field,” Sutherland said.

“He knows what it takes to win this championship, and he has a wonderful history with the Australian Open. Having him back on the Sandbelt, competing against a field of international stars, is something Australian golf fans can look forward to.”

Jones and Varner will join a growing world-class field across the two championships, with Rory McIlroy, Ryan Fox, Cameron Smith, Adam Scott, David Puig, Sahith Theegala, Corey Conners, Lucas Herbert, Elvis Smylie, Cam Davis, Carloz Ortiz, Daniel Hillier, Marc Leishman, Sebastian Munoz and Josele Ballester among the players already confirmed for the Australian summer.

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