Howdy speedgolf family! You’re reading This Week in Speedgolf.
This newsletter is like finding a $20 bill in an old golf bag — you’re unreasonably happy to see it, and now you’re wondering what else is in there.
Here’s what’s happening in speedgolf this week.
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» Again??? Robin Smith & Colette Blacklock repeat as Aussie Open champs
Robin Smith went back-to-back at the Australian Open, but Ben Taylor made him sweat — finishing just 42 seconds back after two rounds at Club Tocumwal. James McMaster rounded out the Open Men podium, Colette Blacklock repeated as the clear women’s benchmark, and the junior/beginner fields keep growing in Australia.
Australian Speedgolf Open | Club Tocumwal | Tocumwal, Australia | May 1–3 |
- Open Men: Robin Smith (NZL) | 75/79 in 40:30/41:30 | 236:00
- 2nd: Ben Taylor (AUS) | 78/75 in 42:01/41:41 | 236:42
- 3rd: James McMaster (AUS) | 74/72 in 49:29/50:00 | 245:29
- Open Women: Colette Blacklock (AUS) | 94/91 in 50:35/51:10 | 286:45
- 2nd: Ingrid Noack (AUS) | 93/97 in 64:30/69:38 | 324:08
- 3rd: Angela Campbell (AUS) | 111/121 in 79:09/82:04 | 393:49
- Senior Men: Aaron Shepherd (AUS) | 93/90 in 60:04/59:49 | 302:53
- 2nd: Jason Hooper (AUS) | 99/94 in 61:27/58:48 | 313:15
- 3rd: Shane Eagar (AUS) | 120/109 in 58:40/61:58 | 349:38
- 4/5-hole Junior: Franklin Smith | 30/40 in 16:06/18:00 | 104:06
- 9-hole Junior: Lochie Chandler | 55/52 in 26:37/23:30 | 157:07
- 9-hole Beginner: Troy Watts | 63/61 in 33:40/29:13 | 186:53
» Fling Golf Division Announced for U.S. Open, Nation Asks: “Must We?”
According to Director Scott Dawley, Speedgolf USA is co-sanctioning a FlingGolf division at the upcoming US Speedgolf Open in Temecula, California.
In past newsletters, I’ve been quoted as saying Fling Golf is “a ridiculous game only suitable for recovering lacrosse players”. But in the spirit of generosity, curiosity, and growing the big beautiful tent of weirdos running on the golf course, I welcome our fling brothers and sisters to Temecula. Party on!
» The six-months-til-Worlds super-scientific and methodologically-rigorous power rankings
In six months, we will have a new World Champion. Actually, we will have four world champions. Wait, we’ll have more than four. Let’s do the math.
We’ll have four individual champions: Senior Women, Senior Men, Women, Open.
The pairs categories haven’t been announced, but we can be sure there will be: Senior Men, Women, Mixed, Open, and MAYBE Senior Women. That’s 8-10 more.
In just six months, we will have 12-14 new World Champions!
And — because I’m the kind of guy who looks at speedgolf tournament results the way some people pore over heavily-redacted government documents related to UFO sightings — today you’ll learn the names and faces of the people most likely to be hoisting the most prestigious trophy in our sport (and the oversized check that covers 1/4 of the airfare).
Senior ranks today. Elite Men and Women coming soon!
» Senior Women
Senior Women is a developing division, which makes it one of the most interesting parts of the 2026 Worlds picture. If I’ve left any promising players off this list, let me know!
5 | Annelise La Roche | New Zealand
Annelise La Roche is the least internationally proven player on this list, but that is partly the point: New Zealand has enough senior depth that even the fifth name in the women’s rankings has a win under her belt vest.
“La Roche” is French for “The Rock”. Annelise is looking rock-solid six months out from Worlds.
Signature Performances: 1st at Wairarapa Speedgolf Open
4 | Felicity Paterson | New Zealand
Felicity means “happiness” or “good fortune,” which feels appropriate because Felicity Paterson has been a cheerful little plot twist in the New Zealand senior women’s scene.
Signature Performances: 1st at North Island Open, 1st at Northland Open (yes, those really are two different events), 2nd at NZ Open
3 | Runa Pettersson | Sweden | 🏆 2024 World Champ
A lot of us got addicted to speedgolf because it’s a way to access flow state. Being completely absorbed in the present moment. I think that’s Runa Pettersson’s superpower. We all make double bogeys, but when Runa does, she’s still grinning ear-to-ear.
Signature Performances: 1st at 2024 Worlds, 4th at 2025 French Open, 1st in Mixed Foursomes at 2025 French Open
2 | Bev Fentiman | United Kingdom
A relentless globetrotter who played her way into 3rd in the ISGA Women’s overall rankings. Bev Fentiman may not have the single-round firepower for a world record, but nobody in the division has stacked more quality results in more countries.
Signature Performances: 8th at 2024 Worlds (Women’s division), 1st at 2025 Irish Open, 1st at 2025 French Open, 3rd at European Open (Women’s division)
1 | Colette Blacklock | Australia
The case for Colette Blacklock is simple: she owns the number. Her 86 in 49:10 = 135:10 is the clearest signal we have, and she keeps backing it up with wins in Australia and New Zealand.
She repeated as Australian Open champion this week, won Women’s Masters at the NZ Open, and if you want to be Senior Women’s World Champion, you’ll have to get past Colette.
Signature Performances: Senior Women’s World Record (86 in 49:10 = 135:10), 1st at Australian Open, 2nd at 2025 British Championships
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» Senior Men
I ranked exactly 12 Senior Men because I’m going to start selling a “Sexy Senior Speedgolfers” calendar. Reply to pre-order!
We’ve got some familiar faces and some new blood. Here are the fittest 50+ athletes in the sport today.
12 | Yasuki Ogawa | Japan
Ogawa-san is the four-time Japanese Senior speedgolfer of the year thanks to his dedication to the sport (and the fact that Joe Matsui moved to California). But there’s a mysterious new player in the Land of the Rising Sun (see below)…
Signature performances: 8th in Senior Men at 2024 Worlds; 1st at the 2025 Iga Open; 1st at the Minami Tsukuba Open
11 | John Farron | New Zealand
John Farron could be the best senior speedgolfer in 184 countries, but in New Zealand, he’s merely “quite good”.
Signature performances: 13th at 2024 Worlds; 3rd at 2025 New Zealand Speedgolf Open; 1st at Wairarapa Speedgolf Open (71 in 53:22 = 124:22 first round)
10 | Luther Olson | United States
We still haven’t seen Luther Olson’s birth certificate, but he assures me he’s over 50 now. He could start a fashion brand for athletic dads: Forever 36. All I know is: even when he’s battling injuries, he’s still faster around the golf course than I am. And he can hit a flop shot with an 8-iron!
Signature performances: 2nd at U.S. Speedgolf Open
9 | Atsushi Omura | Japan
Is Omura-san secretive, or just busy living his best life? I couldn’t find a photo of this guy anywhere on the internet, and neither could Joe Matsui or Jin Ota. Photo or not, shooting 75 in 60 minutes in his firs competition and winning the biggest event on the Japanese calendar has to count for something.
Signature Performance: 1st at Japanese Open 2025
8 | Mikael Palmberg | Sweden
We talk about “growing the game”. Mikael Palmberg spent 20+ years growing two young speedgolfers. Thanks to his efforts, there are three Palmbergs in the top 10 in the world in their respective divisions. You’ll see the Palmberg children young adults in Part 2.
Signature performances: 4th at 2024 Worlds; 2nd at Swedish Championships, 5th at European Open, Best-Two-Nines champ at South Swedish Classic
7 | Joe Matsui | Japan
Joe Matsui, the most decorated man in Japanese speedgolf history will be 52 for the World Championships this year. Expect him to arrive poised and accessorized head-to-toe in Callaway gear.
Signature performances: 5th at 2024 Worlds; 1st at Ibaraki Open, 1st at 2025 U.S. Open
6 | Glenn Coughlan | New Zealand
I’ve been teasing Glenn Coughlan in this newsletter because the Kiwis who have watched him play say he’s the real deal. So I dove in and did some research. The findings were… disturbing.
You see, Glenn is evidence of a growing trend in speedgolf: elite athletes taking up our beloved hobby and making us look bad.
Glenn was a high-level rugby player in New Zealand and Australia. They called him “Iceman” because he was cool under pressure. He’s played golf for over 30 years and travels internationally to run marathons (including Paris).
He taught himself speedgolf, playing alone on the South Island and his speedgolf debut was a 73 in 48:25 = 121:25 at the North Island Speedgolf Open just a few weeks ago. He’s played four competitive rounds and his WORST recorded speedgolf score is 129.
Anyone want to bet against Glenn making a splash at Worlds?
Signature performances: 2nd at North Island Open; 2nd at NZ Open
5 | Troy Harold | New Zealand
Rob Hogan taught me that in speedgolf, your golf score is your ceiling and your time is your floor. Troy Harold has a very high floor. He’ll be 55 in November and still got around Waipu Golf Club in 43 minutes (that’s just 3 minutes behind Robin Smith’s world record round).
Signature performances: 1st at Cape Kidnappers Invitational, 1st at North Island Open, 1st at Northland Open, 2nd at Taranaki Open, 5th at NZ Open
4 | Steve Vancil | United States
Steve is going to be so angry when he finds out I considered ranking him outside the top 5. So what if Steve is 10 years older than some of these guys? Deep in his heart, he knows he can beat them all. He made the podium at age 59 in Japan, and I’ve heard from reliable sources he’s confirmed for New Zealand.
Signature performances: 3rd at 2024 Worlds; shot 70 in 45:58 for 115:58 as an exhibition at the 2025 Oregon Open; 7th at US Open 2025 (Open division)
3 | Marko Kuningas | Finland | 🏆 2024 World Champ
There’s a reason they call Marko Kuningas The King. (It’s because Kuningas is Finnish for ‘king’). But they wouldn’t call him that if he weren’t also a dominant presence in speedgolf!
Marko is big, he’s strong, he’s fast, and he plays with intensity. And anybody who wants to beat him in November is going to have their work cut out for them — even those ahead of him on this list.
Signature performances: 1st at 2024 Worlds; 2nd at European Open; 18 holes in 41 minutes at 2025 Irish Speedgolf Open
2 | Joakim Wikland | Sweden
Everyone on this list knows: you only get 1-2 shots at the Senior title before some young whippersnapper comes along and pushes you off the podium.
When Joakim Wikland showed up at the 700 Club for Worlds in 2024, he was just a few weeks away from his 50th birthday. He didn’t complain about the timing. He gathered valuable intel, and has spent the last 18 months locked in.
He’s beaten Marko twice in their last two meetings, and if his Strava is any indication (run, run, golf, run, golf, run, run, golf…), he has his sights set on one goal.
Signature performances: 1st at European Open; 1st at 2025 Swedish Championships; 1st at Torslanda City Links; 25th in Open division at 2024 Worlds
1 | Damian Mills | New Zealand
Damian Mills does not seem especially interested in being the main character. Unfortunately for Damian, shooting 72 in 43:59 = 115:59 makes you the main character whether you asked for the role or not.
He was runner-up at Worlds in 2024, won the 50+ division at the 2025 New Zealand Open, and along the way casually dropped the lowest senior speedgolf score in history at Waipu (even then, all eyes were on Robin Smith’s show-stopping 64 in 40).
In a country overflowing with terrifying speedgolfers, Damian has become the benchmark for senior men: no noise, no drama, just fast, high-quality golf.
Signature performances: 2nd at 2024 Worlds; Senior World Record holder (72 in 43:59 = 115:59), 1st at NZ Open, 2nd at Cape Kidnappers, 2nd at Northland Open, 1st at Taranaki Open, 1st at NZ Open 2025
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Adam
Adam Lorton
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