Virtual reality: How a Sydney golfer qualified for the NSW Open on a fake golf course

The 35-year-old, originally from Glasgow, is a professional golfer who came to Australia a decade ago to pursue a career as a footballer; he was a semi-pro player for Stirling Albion and played for Hakoah in Sydney. But after getting a job at Royal Sydney golf course, he switched studs for golf spikes and is now in his third year of the membership pathway program with the Australian PGA. Macpherson competes occasionally but practices often using a simulator, so he was well-prepared when Golf NSW announced it was launching a virtual tournament, with a first prize of $10,000 and a start in the NSW Open. “I play a fair bit of indoor golf,” Macpherson said. “I’m a bit of a gear head, so I like to look at all numbers and data and stuff like that. Then I saw Golf NSW had come up with this pathway, and so I entered the qualifying and got into the final, and then it all paid off, thankfully.