Kobori becomes another amateur to win on the Charles Tour

Kazuma Kobori joined an illustrious group of a handful of amateurs to win on the Jennian Homes Charles Tour when taking out the Autex Muriwai Open in Auckland by four shots.

Kobori had his work cut out for him at the start of the final day, with around 15 players within four shots of his lead. He had carded rounds of 66, 75, and 69 to be six under par.

The 20-year-old Rangiora Golf Club member began the final round with a bogey at the first hole to give his one-shot lead away immediately. 

But he steadied himself with four pars in a row before nailing a birdie at the par five sixth hole to get back into a share of the lead with Harry Bateman.

The 2019 New Zealand PGA Championship winner then rattled off birdies at the seventh and ninth to go out in two under par and set up a blockbuster final nine holes with Bateman, who had moved equal with Kobori once again.

Kobori remained steady in the windy conditions making birdies at the 14th and 16th holes to take complete control of the tournament. He then parred his final two holes to shoot a final round of 68 and capture the first Charles Tour event of his career.

He said it was great to get back into the winners' circle again.

“It feels pretty surreal right now. I haven’t won a big event in such a long time,’’ Kobori said.

``The NZPGA Championship in 2019 was the last one I won, but that was at my home club.

“To win against a bunch of elite players feels fantastic.”

His victory on the Charles Tour has been a long time coming. Kobori is a perennial contender on the tour and has played in Charles Tour events since he was a teenager.

Kobori said he had learned a lot from all the professionals he had played with on tour, which helped him get over the line on this occasion.

“I started playing the Charles Tour when I was about 16 years old, which is four years ago now. 

``Playing on the tour with players that have a lot of experience like the ones here this week is great as I can learn lots from them whilst competing.

“After the second day, where the weather was horrific, most of the names that were up near the top of the leaderboard were professionals, and to learn and rub shoulders with them has certainly helped me progress a bit quicker.”

Kobori said he wanted to soak up the victory before focussing on his preparation for a trip to the United States, where he will be competing internationally for the first time in a while.

“It was a perfect week. I couldn’t have drawn it up any better.

“Coming into the week, I thought I might have a chance as I was playing quite well, but it doesn’t matter how well you’ve been playing before the week, you still have to go and hit the shots, and I’m glad I did.”

Kobori finished at 10 under, four shots ahead of Harry Bateman in second place. Luke Toomey was third, a further shot back.