Shepparton golf product Kyle Michel capped a groundbreaking 2022 in spectacular fashion last weekend, finishing runner-up in the PGA of Australia Gippsland Super 6 tournament at Warragul Golf Club.
Coming up against a star-studded field of competitors, Michel showcased the rapid improvement in all aspects of his game, as he blitzed his way to the final play-off with two days of outstanding golf.
And, while he unfortunately fell short in the final to rampant Power Horan, who claimed his second straight Gippsland Super 6 title, the result did prove one thing.
Michel’s career trajectory is headed in the right direction.
By far his strongest performance at a professional tournament, Michel detailed what was an exciting experience battling it out for a victory.
“It was the first time I had put myself in that position to win on the Australian tour and easily my best ever result, so I was very happy with that,” Michel said.
“I was a lot calmer (heading into the final play-off), than I thought I’d be, I thought I’d be very nervous, but I ended up feeling very comfortable in that situation.
“I played well in the final, but it was just my opponent made a few long putts and hit a couple of really good golf shots, so there isn’t much I can do about that.”
Battling it out with other tour professionals, Michel showed great poise and control across the weekend to find himself in a great position leading into the final day.
Making it to the final 24, the tournament then shifted to a one-on-one match-up format where he surgically worked his way through the field to reach the final.
“It’s a funny format because if you’re inside the top 24 going into the final day everything goes back to even and you have to beat one person at a time,” he said.
“I managed to do that by just playing solid golf, I didn’t give my opponents too much until the final and I was very happy with that.”
Now having had a taste of reaching the final stage, Michel said he was more motivated than ever to be a regular fixture contending for victories on the final day.
“I’ve played on the tour for the past three years, so to put myself in a winning position for the first time it was a good feeling and it makes you want to put yourself in that position again,” he said.
“You don’t know what it’s like to be up near the lead until you actually go out and do it, and then you realise that’s why you play golf.
“That experience just makes me want to go out and be in that position more and more, it’s certainly fuelled a bit of a fire in me.”
While it was not quite the PGA stage, Michel did recently record a memorable victory.
Returning to his Shepparton Golf Club home, a standard Saturday afternoon round turned into a day to remember, as he played a near perfect round of 62 to break the course record he had previously held.
“It was just a Saturday monthly medal competition, I got off to a pretty hot start and after joking about it for a while I realised with six holes to go I could actually do it here,” he said.
“I was lucky enough to finish off strong and beat it, which was a very nice feeling.
“It’s very special to have the record at Shepparton, it’s the place I grew up playing the game and it’s like my second home, so I’m very proud to have the course record there.”
Now set for a well-deserved break after a hectic calendar year, Michel said his game was in top shape as he embarks on an exciting 2023.
“Everything is trending in the right direction, I’ve had a pretty busy final three months of the year, playing tour events in WA before spending three weeks in Spain trying to earn a card on the European tour,” he said.
“I’ve then come back to Australia and played some more events closer to home before finishing the year in a great way last week, so I’m very excited to see what the future holds next year.”