Already feeling satisfied after a stellar year, an upbeat Lucas Herbert is positioned to cap 2024 with his first Australian Open golf crown after storming to a commanding halfway lead.
The Victorian used his intimate knowledge of Kingston Heath to overcome tricky wind conditions and post a second-round 66 on Friday to back up a sizzling 63 at Victoria Golf Club on Thursday.
He sits four shots clear of unheralded American Ryggs Johnston despite feeling he had to scramble in the Friday round, which included three successive birdies on the back nine.
"It was pretty windy and there was some tricky tee shots on that back nine," Herbert said. "I'm really proud of those last three or four holes there.
"I imagine I'll be in the last group tomorrow, so right where I wanted it coming into the weekend."
Herbert reeled in his LIV Golf team captain Cameron Smith to win the NSW Open earlier this month and, while he wasn't at his best in last week's Australian PGA Championship, he is the stand-out performer so far in Melbourne.
The 28-year-old arrived home high on life after his first year playing the LIV league, with his all-Australian line-up winning the team championship.
"I don't know that I've felt this satisfied after the end of a season as I have this season," Herbert said.
"Played some great golf, we had some wins, had a really great environment to be a part of Ripper GC, and felt like I really thrived in that environment.
"I made a lot of progress in my game, saw some really cool parts of the world and did some really amazing things.
"I've never come home feeling as satisfied with a year as I have this year so that's been really cool."
Despite the final two rounds of the dual-gender tournament being played at Kingston Heath, Herbert said he couldn't be complacent about his lead.
"I can't shoot 72-72, and expect to win this golf tournament," he said.
"There's a lot of work still to be done and I'm expecting these guys behind me to make a charge.
"If it rains tomorrow morning, the golf course will still be soft but I hope it doesn't ... it's starting to play like the sandbelt we know and love."
