Month: July 2023

PORT EDWARD, KwaZulu-Natal – South Korea’s DK Kim brushed aside strong winds that forced the first round of the SunBet Challenge to be suspended as he enjoyed pride of place at the top of the official leaderboard at Wild Coast Sun Country Club on Wednesday when play was interrupted shortly after 11am.

When the wind only showed signs of getting stronger for the rest of the afternoon, tournament director Reinard Kilian made the decision to suspend the first round for the day, leaving Kim on three-under-par through 12 holes, enjoying a one-stroke lead.

The first round will resume at 8am on Thursday, with the second round not starting before 1.30pm.

“We kept an eye on the wind all morning and it was a constant speed and then gusting at speeds of more than 55km/h, which made it impossible to play. With the forecast indicating that it was not going to die down today [Wednesday], we made the decision to resume tomorrow [Thursday],” Kilian said.

“At this point, it is likely that we will finish very late on Friday, but we are confident that we will still complete 54 holes.”

The 34-year-old Kim, who began on the 10^th hole, had reason to feel frustrated about his round being interrupted because he had just eagled the par-five third hole when play was suspended.

“The wind was quite strong and the third was all downwind. I hit a good drive and then hit my second to just three feet,” Kim said.

The highlight of his round thus far capped a strong resurgence by Kim after he was two-over-par through his first five holes. But he then collected birdies at the par-five 16^th and the par-four 18^th and second holes, before the brilliant three on the third.

“I hit the ball good the whole day. The first five holes I didn’t play too badly, they were just simple drops and I three-putted the one hole. I felt good, I was hitting good spots, but in these high winds, you could hit a good shot and the wind would take it,” Kim said.

Inveterate Sunshine Tour winner Jaco van Zyl made his mark early on with birdies on the first and second holes, and another on the par-four fifth, putting him second on the leaderboard, although he had just dropped a shot on the par-four ninth when he reached the turn and play was suspended.

Only five other golfers were under-par in the tough conditions, the in-form Neil Schietekat, Rourke van der Spuy, Anthony Michael, veteran Jean Hugo and American Clancy Waugh all being on one-under. Schietekat, the leader of the Order of Merit delivered by The Courier Guy, has played 12 holes, while the rest are through nine.

Casey Jarvis held his nerve on the final day of the Euram Bank Open at Golf Club Adamstal to secure a memorable maiden Challenge Tour victory.

The South African took a five stroke lead into the final round, and despite a late charge from Scotland’s Euan Walker, Jarvis kept his composure to par the final hole and secure a one shot victory with a one under par round of 69 to add to rounds of 65-63-65 earlier in the week.

The 19-year-old, who has registered three second place finishes already on the 2023 Road to Mallorca, was delighted to get over the line.

“I haven’t felt this good in a long time walking off a golf course,” he said. “I didn’t think winning would be this special. It’s an unbelievable feeling.

“I had those second place finishes in the back of my mind pretty much the whole day so I didn’t want it to happen again, and luckily I got it done.

“I’ve learned a lot being in contention throughout this year. I felt like I had experience under that pressure. I still felt a lot of pressure today, but I’m really happy with the way I handled it.

 “I’ve got a lot of confidence right now, so I feel like that I’m going to run with that confidence through the next events I play in and see how it goes.”

Jarvis made his first gain of the day on the third hole to extend his lead to six, and despite three dropped shots on his next two holes, he would birdie the sixth and eighth to remain four clear at the turn.

The South African then birdied the 12th before a two shot swing at the 13th, with Jarvis making a bogey and Walker a birdie. Despite Jarvis making a birdie at the par five 15th, Walker holed out from the bunker for eagle to close the gap to one.

The Scot looked to be out of the running when he bogeyed the 16th, but he birdied 17 to get back within one going down the last, however it was Jarvis who prevailed, with both parring the last.

“It all started on hole 13,” he added. “Euan hit it long right and I’ve never seen a chip as good in my life. He bladed it from the rough and holed it.

“Then the par five up the hill, the 15th, he hit an unbelievable bunker shot and holed that as well. There was nothing I could’ve done about it. I just had to stick to my own game plan and I’m so glad that it worked.”

Walker ended the day one shot behind in second place on 17 under par, with American Julian Suri in solo third four shots further back on 13 under par, and Frenchman Robin Roussel in fourth on 12 under par. Tomas Gouveia from Portugal, Englishman Sam Hutsby and Frenchman Romain Wattel shared fifth on 11 under par.

The win sees Jarvis move to the top of the Road to Mallorca Rankings, overtaking Frenchman Ugo Coussaud who drops to second. Italian Matteo Manassero, Spaniard Manuel Elvira and Italian Lorenzo Scalise all drop one place to third, fourth and fifth respectively. – European Challenge Tour

Fortress Real Estate Investments Limited, sponsors of The Fortress Invitational on the Sunshine Tour, have expanded their support of next-generation greatness on the Tour with a new Rookie of the Year incentive for the country’s future stars.

The Rookie of the Year award is the Sunshine Tour’s most prestigious accolade for young talent and traditionally rewards the best performing rookie professional on the Tour for that season. The rookie professional who finishes the highest on the Sunshine Tour Order of Merit delivered by The Courier Guy at the end of the current season will take home R200 000 in prize money. 

The incentive is open to those who earned their Tour card for the 2023/24 season by way of the Qualifying School, the Altron Vusi Ngubeni Development Tournament, the Blue Label Development Tour and the Altron Big Easy Tour. The winner will be crowned at the Sunshine Tour’s season-ending Tour Championship.

Ian Vorster, CFO of Fortress, believes that golf aligns best with the brand’s core value of powering growth. “We are pleased to support new golfing talent as they come up through the ranks. Every Sunshine Tour professional has earned his playing rights through patience, passion and sheer hard work. It is our honour to acknowledge and celebrate the Rookie of the Year.”

Additionally, the prize money for this year’s Fortress Invitational has been increased to R2,000,000 and the tournament has grown to a 72-hole event. The second edition of this tournament tees off from 5-8 October 2023 at Glendower Golf Club.

“The Sunshine Tour and Fortress Real Estate Investments Limited are equally aligned when it comes to a focus on empowering growth. Following a warm welcome to our Sunshine Tour family last season as a tournament sponsor, we are grateful to Fortress for further entrenching themselves on our Tour through the Fortress Rookie of the Year incentive. This is a purpose-driven award that will inspire and reward tomorrow’s heroes,” said Thomas Abt, Commissioner of the Sunshine Tour.