Former gang member punches ticket to The Open Championship after serving time in prison

The Australian golfer and former gang member Ryan Peake has qualified for the 2025 Open Championship. He won the Asian Tour's 2025 New Zealand Open and has booked his ticket for the 2025 Open Championship at Royal Portrush.

When he was 21 years old, Peake was part of the outlawed motorcycle gang The Rebels and was sentenced to five years in prison. Since then, he has changed his life completely and dedicated his life to golf.

"I’ve just changed my life," said Peake via Sky Sports. "This is what I do. I want to be here and just play golf. The story is what it is, but I’m just out here playing golf. I always knew I could do it; it was just a matter of time when I was going to do it."

The 31-year-old golfer is now part of The Open Championship for the first time as the New Zealand Open is part of the Open qualifying series where the winner earns a spot at the final major championship of the year in the United Kingdom.

The 2025 Open Championship is all set to begin at Royal Portrush in Dunluce Course in Northern Ireland. The Open Championship is returning to Northern Ireland for the first time since 2019, which was the first Open Championship in the country after 68 years.

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Ryan Peake's score at the 2025 New Zealand Open

The Australian golfer carded five-under 66 in the final round to claim his first OWGR-recognized tournament win in his pro golfer career. Ryan Peake played amateur golf alongside Cameron Smith before he was sentenced to five years in jail in 2014.

He competed regularly on the PGA Tour of Australia but never really made headlines or showcased any impressive golfing skills. However, this week, he remained bogey-free on the final 54 holes and claimed the trophy along with a spot at the 2025 Open Championship and an Asian Tour card as well.

Here's the final leaderboard of the 2025 New Zealand Open (Top 30 golfers).

• 1. Ryan Peake – (-23)
• T2. Jack Thompson – (-22)
• T2. Ian Snyman – (-22)
• T2. Kazuki Higa – (-22)
• 5. Guntaek Koh – (-21)
• 6. Bobby Bai – (-20)
• 7. John Catlin – (-19)
• T8. Taichi Kho – (-18)
• T8. Dylan Gardner – (-18)
• T8. James Marchesani – (-18)
• T8. Elvis Smylie – (-18)
• T12. M.J. Maguire – (-17)
• T12. Daniel Hillier – (-17)
• T12. Sam Brazel – (-17)
• T15. Harrison Crowe – (-16)
• T15. Taichi Nabetani – (-16)
• T15. Berry Henson – (-16)
• T15. Justin Warren – (-16)
• T15. Travis Smyth – (-16)
• T15. Sam Jones – (-16)
• T21. Jed Morgan – (-15)
• T21. Miguel Tabuena – (-15)
• T21. Michael Hendry – (-15)
• T21. Lucas Herbert – (-15)
• T21. Kade McBride – (-15)
• T26. Scott Hend – (-14)
• T26. Kevin Yuan – (-14)
• T26. Daniel Gale – (-14)
• T29. Denzel Ieremia – (-13)
• T29. Tom Power Horan – (-13)
• T29. Austin Bautista – (-13)
• T29. Dongmin Lee – (-13)
• T29. Austen Truslow – (-13)
• T29. Ren Yonezawa – (-13)
• T29. David Micheluzzi – (-13)
• T29. Wade Ormsby – (-13)
• T29. Hakhyung Kim – (-13)