ANDREW Dodt arrived in Darwin on Monday with his Asian Tour card secure for another year and renewed confidence in his game ahead of the $150,000 Northern Territory PGA at Palmerston Golf course.
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It's a far cry from two months ago when the Charlestown-based Queenslander could barely pick his 10-month old daughter up due to a crippling back injury.
Dodt fired a final round eight-under 64 and then won a play-off to win the $442,000 Sarawak Championship at the Damai Golf and Country Club in Malaysia on Sunday.
The Asian Tour tournament was his first back since April when he hurt his back on a rowing machine in Morocco and had to withdraw from a European sanctioned event.
"I had a two-month injury layoff in April and it was probably a good reset," Dodt said on the Golf Australia website. "Gave myself a break and got the love of the game again.
"We had our first baby almost 10 months ago so I got to spend some quality time with her.
"This means a lot, I'm a proud Aussie and I love my golf. To win is extra special.
"I started my career on the Asian Tour. It's nice to win on tour again. It feels very rewarding.
"I've been playing great at home and I transformed that form at home into this week. It's great to be holding the trophy. I'm over the moon.
"I will have to sit down and reassess my schedule now but I'm loving my golf, I just want to keep playing."
The victory, Dodt's third on the Asian Tour, gives the 33-year-old a one-year exemption.
He plans to play a couple of the bigger co-sanctioned events during the rest of the season but will concentrate mainly on the Australian summer.
"I'm playing well, I feel like my game is in a good place, my head's in a good place. Just keep the foot down."
Dodt is one of seven Hunter players teeing up in Darwin.
James Nitties and Nick Flanagan are back after spending the winter in the US, where they are based.
Call O'Reilly is fresh from his honeymoon and joins Jake Higginbottom, Pacific Dunes club professional Jamie Hooke and Sydney based Aaron Townsend.
Dodt pocketed $80,000 for the win in Malaysia and moved from 59th to 19th on the order of merit.
He missed only one green and three fairways en route to a closing 64 which took him to 24 under.
Richard Lee then eagled the par-five 18th to force a play-off.
They returned to the 517-yard par-five 18th for the sudden-death playoff where both found the middle of the fairway with their tee shots.
Dodt laid up to about 75 yards from the pin while Lee decided to go for the green.
The 28-year-old got lucky as his ball hit the cart path and bounced back to about 25 yards right of the green in the rough. He then chipped to 12 feet but Dodt sealed the deal after sticking his approach to two-feet.
* Macquarie College student Brij Ingrey will head to the Australian Schoolboys Championships in Perth in good form after winning the junior division of the NSW Zone Two Regional Championships at Newcastle on Sunday.
The regional competition features the best players from Newcastle, Lower Mid-north Coast, Central Coast and Hunter River districts in juniors, opens and seniors.
Ingrey carded rounds of 79,74 in tough conditions to be nine over and win on a count back from Toronto's Jake Riley (74,79).
Josh Robards (Kotara High), who is also in the NSW Schoolboys team, finished four strokes behind Ingrey.
The NSW team travels to Perth on Sunday. The championship involves four rounds of stroke with a rest day on Wednesday.
* Kooinda Waters' Lloyd Radcliffe shot rounds of 74,72 to defend his regional title.
Former Australian amateur champion Darcy Boyd (Toulkey) was five strokes back in second.
David Bagust (83,78), from Port Macquarie, won the senior division. Central Coast's David Willett (81,84) was runner-up
Angus McMahon (The Vintage) took out the 36-hole handicap division with a nett 148, seven clear of Oscar Gilson (Newcastle).
Hamish Ellison (Belmont) carded a four-over 76 to win the opening 18-hole scratch. Toronto's Jacod Dundas won the second 18 scratch with 73.
The Maitland team of Hayden Gulliver, Clayton Small, Will Frazer and Josh Knott collected the Sandy Cameron Shield and Hunter River claimed the Jim Baker Shield for the best performed district.
* Tom Creigh (Pacific Dunes) and Cooper Walton (Hawks Nest) won the B and C Divisions of the Oc Colley Cup played earlier this month.
The cup is a qualifier for the B and C grades pennants which start next month and will have 13 teams in north and south divisions.
* Tee times are still available for the Nelson Bay Cup, which is being held on Sunday. Brian Carmichael (Waratah) is the defending champion.
* Josh Robards and Harry Atkinson will fly the flag for the Hunter at the South Coast Junior Masters at Bateman's Bay this weekend.