AP, Sydney :
Cruising for most of the final round and a leader after the second and third, Matt Jones suddenly needed to make a big putt on his final hole for a second Australian Open title.
He came through, making a testing four-foot par putt on the 18th to hold off Louis Oosthuizen by one stroke after a 2-under 69.
Jones, who is a member at the host Australian Golf Club and won his first national title there in 2015, had a 72-hole total of 15-under 269.
Oosthuizen, playing for the first time in Sydney, finished second after a 66. The South African eagled the 18th after hitting his second shot to 15 feet, making things interesting for Jones at the end.
“I was told on the 18th fairway that Louis had made eagle ahead of me,” Jones said. “So it was a pretty good up and down to win the championship.”
Japanese amateur Takumi Kanaya (71) finished tied for third with Australian Aaron Pike (69).
Jones, Kanaya and Pike qualified for next year’s British Open by finishing among the top three who were not already qualified. Former British Open champion Oosthuizen was already exempt for next year’s tournament from July 16-19 at Royal St. George’s.
