Australian PGA Championship 2025 tees off in Brisbane: Sebastián García surges as storms halt Round 1

The BMW Australian PGA Championship 2025 opened with fireworks and a weather twist at Royal Queensland Golf Club in Brisbane, where Spain’s Sebastián García jumped to 7-under through 15 before lightning forced a late-afternoon suspension. With scorecards still open across the field and a resumption slated for early Friday, Day 1 delivered enough drama—aces, hometown roars, and a stacked red-number chase—to set up a compelling second act.

García grabs the lead before the horns

Methodical tee-to-green work and confident putting carried Sebastián García to the top of the board as the first round wound toward sunset. He reached –7 with three holes left when officials halted play for player and spectator safety. The Spaniard’s poised start is the headline of a broader international leaderboard that already features proven winners and rising names poised to pounce when Round 1 resumes.

Round 1 snapshot (incomplete—subject to Friday finish):

• Sebastián García (ESP): –7 through 15

• Chasers in the clubhouse or late holes: a cluster at –4 to –5, including form players from Australasia and Europe

• Pack at –3: multiple contenders lurking after tidy, low-mistake cards

Expect placements to shuffle on Friday morning as overnight leaders complete their closing stretch and the afternoon wave finishes up.

Storms over the river city: why play stopped

A volatile storm line built over Greater Brisbane late in the day, bringing lightning close enough to trigger immediate evacuations from exposed areas and a formal suspension. Course crews secured the property while players marked balls and returned to the clubhouse. With Royal Queensland drying quickly under normal conditions, the primary concern isn’t water but electrical activity and the time needed for safe re-start protocols. Tournament officials will confirm exact resumption times early Friday; scheduling may compress warm-ups for those first back out.

Cam Smith steady at home; Min Woo Lee and Adam Scott in touch

Brisbane favorite Cameron Smith opened with a composed two-under round, leaning on short-game sharpness to stay within sight of the lead at his home venue. Min Woo Lee and Adam Scott also posted under-par starts—professional, patient cards that typically age well on a course where the wind can flip holes between morning and afternoon. New Zealand’s Ryan Fox landed in the early red-figures group as well, positioning himself for a weekend climb with clean ball-striking.

Party hole pandemonium: two aces and a new BMW

Round 1’s highlight reel belongs to the par-3 “Party Hole” scene and its Western corridor counterpart:

• Daniel Gale authored the day’s viral moment with a hole-in-one that came with a new BMW—a signature Aus PGA prize that instantly changed his leaderboard and his garage.

• Kazuma Kobori matched the aces tally later with his own dart, juicing the amphitheatre atmosphere and securing a momentum bump for the rest of his round.

Those swings underscored Royal Queensland’s risk-reward character: get the yardage and spin right and you’re a folk hero; miss in the wrong quadrant and you’re scrambling to save par.

Royal Queensland’s moment—and what it rewards

With Brisbane’s broader sporting precinct in long-term redevelopment mode, Royal Queensland again shows why it’s a fitting curtain-raiser for the DP World Tour swing here:

• Angles and width: Generous sightlines off the tee disguise preferred corridors; miss them and approach geometry gets awkward fast.

• Firm-fast potential: When it bakes, landing zones shrink; Thursday’s pre-storm stretch still rewarded controlled trajectory and spin discipline.

• Wind reads: Subtle quartering breezes on the river flats punish indecision, especially on the par-3s and reachable par-5s.

That profile suits patient creators like García—and it keeps aggressive shot-makers like Lee and Smith in the hunt if they control volatility.

What to watch when Round 1 resumes

• Overnight leader’s closing stretch: García faces three holes where conservative targets can still yield a look; par-par-par likely keeps him alone at the top.

• Bunched middle at –3 to –4: Early Friday conditions could be the best of the week. Expect a few 62–65 flashes to reset the pace.

• Local momentum: Brisbane crowds amplify runs. Any early birdie train from Smith or Scott will travel quickly across scoreboards—and grandstands.

Key details for the week in Brisbane

• Dates: Nov. 27–30, 2025

• Venue: Royal Queensland GC (Par 71)

• Cut: Top 65 and ties after 36 holes

• Purse/points: Opens the new DP World Tour season, adding global weight to a title that already matters deeply to the region’s fans and players.

Day 1 at the Australian PGA Championship delivered a leader in Sebastián García, a pair of unforgettable aces, and a storm-paused finish that tees up a packed Friday. With Brisbane backdrops and a leaderboard rich in star power—Cam Smith, Min Woo Lee, Adam Scott, Ryan Fox—the championship is perfectly poised: cool heads on a strategic course, and the promise of low scores the moment the horns sound to play on.