Golf: Peter Lee qualifies for pro tour

Rotorua golfer Peter Lee, 19, has qualified for the PGA Tour of Australasia after recently turning professional. Photo/Stephen Parker.

Rotorua golfer Peter Lee has qualified for the PGA Tour of Australasia.

The 19-year-old has spent the past two weeks at qualifying school in Melbourne after recently turning professional.

The Rotorua Golf Club member finished 30th at qualifying school, which earned him a second-tier qualification on to the tour.

He told the Rotorua Daily Post it would mean he can play the majority of competitions on the tour next year but would not be eligible for the tier-one competitions, like the Australian Open, at the end of the year.

However, if he performs well early in the season he will have a chance of being re-ranked and becoming eligible for the top tournaments in 2014.

"There was a lot of pressure and it was a tough two weeks," he said about Q-school. "I played all right, I could have gone better but I am happy with what I have got."

Lee will also look to qualify for the Asian Professional Golf Tour in February.

Lee said knowing he had already qualified for a professional tour next year took away a lot of pressure. "At least I can play, there is a lot more breathing room now.

"[Q-school] was a great experience ... it will help me a lot for my preparation at Asia Q-school.

"Asia is a bigger tour and there is a lot more money in it. It would be great to play on that tour but it would mean a lot more travelling."

Lee said he would need to see how he goes at Q-school in Asia first and then will plan his season.

He was mentally prepared for the challenges ahead as a pro golfer, and said he was excited about the future. "I am really excited to start now."

More than 160 golfers attended qualification school for the PGA Tour of Australasia this month, with the top 50 working their way on to the tour.

Lee is looking forward to a break over Christmas in Rotorua after three consecutive weeks of high-pressure golf.

At the start of the month he helped lead the Bay of Plenty men's golf team into the final of the Toro Men's Interprovincial golf competition.

It was his last tournament as an amateur and his team finished runners-up to Manawatu-Wanganui.

Lee is the under-19 New Zealand golf champion and has won the Springfield Open and Rotorua Open in recent years.