The 24-year-old, who won on Tour as an amateur six years ago at the WA Open, went on a birdie-birdie-eagle-birdie run to seize control of the Australian leg of Final Stage, eventually winning by four strokes with a 15-under-par total after 72 holes.

He will now turn his attention to heading back to Europe, where he has status on the Hotel Planner Tour.

“I’ve played a couple Q schools before, played Asia and played DP the last three years, so I kind of knew what to expect,” Hopewell said after closing with a 6-under-par 66 on the Champions Course.

“It's a bit of a marathon out there and you’ve just got chip away at a few birdies.

“I’m definitely excited to play back on the Aussie tour. I've been playing in Europe for the last three years, so it's good to know I've got pretty much a full category back on the Aussie tour.”

After starting the final round in a share of second spot, Hopewell was part a big pack at the top of the leaderboard before his surge started at the par-3 11th.

“I was feeling a little bit strangled, but managed to chip in on 11 to get the ball rolling and then hit a good 8-iron on the next, holed the putt for eagle, and stuffed a couple wedge shots after that,” he said.

“Just rode the wave really.”

As the 2026/27 Final Stage winner in Australia, he will head his tournament category, giving him the best chance of earning a start in every event of the 2026/27 season.

Included in the list of players to secure their card by finishing in the top 26 and ties, which required a score of 3-under-par or better after 72 holes, were six amateurs from New South Wales, headed by Coby Carruthers, who closed with back-to-back 67s to be part of the group sharing second place at 11-under.

He was joined by birthday boy Daley Loumanis (seventh), Ali Rachid (eighth), Blake Phillips (T9), Will Moody (T20) and Jake Riley (T26)

The other amateur now eyeing off a professional career is WA’s Michael Hanrahan-Smith, who started with a 77 on Tuesday but closed with the lowest round on Good Friday, a 7-under-par 66, to finish in a share of 20th.

Other notables to secure their card included former WA Open champion Deyen Lawson; Sydneysider John Lyras, who contended at the Heritage Classic last month; 2023 Asia-Pacific Amateur champion Jasper Stubbs and Americans Chris Malec and Pat Healy, who first gained Tour status through the inaugural US Qualifying School last year.

The next chance to qualify for the 2026/27 season comes at the Final Qualifying Stage – USA at Kinderlou Forest in Georgia on July 24-27.