Australian Master of the Amateurs: Nika Ito leads by one at the halfway point

January 10, 2024 | by Justin Golba of AmateurGolf.com

Nika Ito (Australian Master of the Amateurs Photo)

Zackary Swanwick and Max Morning are tied for the lead in the Men's Championship

Nika Ito shot a second-round 3-under 70 to take a one-shot lead through 36 holes in the women's competition at the 2024 Australian Master of the Amateurs at the Southern Golf Club in Keysborough, Australia.

Ito is 8-under through the two rounds, shooting a 5-under 68 in the first round to lead by two shots over the field.

Ito has recorded nine birdies, three bogeys, and an eagle through the first two rounds.

Avani Prashanth is in solo second place at 7-under. There is a dropoff behind the top two, with Rianne Mikhaela Malixi and Lion Higo T3 at 4-under and Ashley Chow and Ping-Hua Hsieh are T5 at 3-under.

Zackary Swanwick and Max Moring are tied for the lead at 10-under in the men's championship. Swanwick and Moring led after the first round with Ngai Si at 5-under 67. Si struggled in the second round, shooting a 2-over 74 to fall to T17.

Swanwick and Moring are two shots ahead of the field, with Siddharth Nadimpalli in solo third place at 8-under. Zachary May is in solo fourth place at 7-under and Jake Riley is in solo fifth place at 6-under. Six golfers are T6 at 5-under.

The Men's championship is a par 72, while the women's championship is a par 73.

The Master of the Amateurs, a 72-hole medal play Championship, has rapidly become one of the elite championships in amateur golf. Like The Masters, the champion receives a Green Jacket. Contestants participate in the first round of the championship with professional golfers in a unique Am-Pro Invitational.

The Master of the Amateurs winner gets an invitation to the Porter Cup in the U.S. Likewise, the winners of those two tournaments receive invitations to the next Master of the Amateurs tournament.

Results: Master of the Amateurs

Place	Player	Location	Pts	Scores
1	Phoenix Campbell	, Australia	1000	74-70-65-67=276
2	Siddharth Nadimpalli	, Australia	700	69-67-75-66=277
3	Zack Swanwick	, New Zealand	500	67-67-72-72=278
T4	Carl Banner	, England	500	69-71-71-68=279
T4	William Moll	Houston, TX	500	70-69-72-68=279