Heineken Classic Golf Tournament in Australia

The Heineken Classic was a golf tournament played in Australia from the early 1990s into the 2000s. It originated as an event on the PGA Tour Australasia, and the European Tour co-sanctioned it for the second half of its run.

First played: 1990

Last played: 2005

Two golfers were multiple champions in this tournament: Michael Campbell won back-to-back, and Ernie Els won back-to-back-to-back. All five of those wins happened in consecutive years, too. Els also finished runner-up one year.

The Heineken Classic scoring record was 268, first set by Campbell in 2000, then tied by Els in 2004. The largest winning margin was six strokes by Campbell in 2000. In 10 out of the 16 years it was played, the winning margin was one stroke, and in another year it went to a playoff.

In the 2004 tournament, Els scored 126 over the first 36 holes, which set a European Tour record for lowest first two rounds.

The tournament, which had the largest purse in Australia for much of its run, was discontinued when beermaker Heineken withdrew as title sponsor.

Also known as: In its first three years (1990-92), the tournament was named the Vines Classic, after the golf resort where it was played (see "Golf Courses" section below).

Winners of the Heineken Classic

1990 — Jeff Maggert, 281
1991 — Blaine McCallister, 278
1992 — Ian Baker-Finch, 276
1993 — Peter Senior, 275
1994 — Mike Clayton, 279
1995 — Robert Allenby, 278
1996 — Ian Woosnam, 277
1997 — Miguel Angel Martin, 273
1998 — Thomas Bjorn, 280
1999 — Jarrod Moseley, 274
2000 — Michael Campbell, 268
2001 — Michael Campbell, 270
2002 — Ernie Els, 271
2003 — Ernie Els, 273
2004 — Ernie Els, 268
2005 — Craig Parry, 270 (defeated Nick O'Hern in playoff)

Golf courses: The Heineken Classic was originally played at Vines Resort near Perth, Western Australia. In 2002, and for its final four years, the tournament was played at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in the state of Victoria.