Month: September 2024

KATHU, Northern Cape (17 September 2024) – The next evolution in the growth of South African women’s golf will play itself out on the Sunshine Tour this week when seven women professionals tee it up in the Vodacom Origins of Golf tournament at Sishen Golf Club from Thursday to Sunday as part of a pathway to their own international careers in the game.

Building on the success last season of having Sunshine Ladies Tour professionals competing with their Sunshine Tour counterparts on the Vodacom Origins of Golf series, the women professionals are not only competing for the same prizemoney but also for greater opportunities in the global game.

The Sunshine Ladies Tour professionals will have their own Order of Merit on the four-tournament Vodacom Origins of Golf series, with the winner receiving a cash bonus, automatic entrance into the 2025 Joburg Ladies Open if not already exempt and which is co-sanctioned with the Ladies European Tour (LET), and three tournament invites to play on the Ladies European Tour’s Access Series.

The Access Series is the LET’s official development tour based in Europe. The top six on the Order of Merit there at the end of their season secure their playing privileges on the LET, while positions seven to 20 are exempt into the final stage of the LET’s Qualifying School.

It’s an incredible opportunity for South Africa’s rising women professionals, and another powerful example of the global pathways the Sunshine Tour and Sunshine Ladies Tour have worked to secure for local professionals.

“We started last year with our effort to bring more women into the game to give them more tournament opportunities to showcase their talents,” said Dr Ntombi Mhangwani, the Executive Head of Vodacom Business Marketing. “We’re focused on how we can partner with them to get them where they want to be in their golf careers. The Sunshine Tour has played a central role in pulling all the sponsors together and the whole ecosystem must work together to make this succeed,” said Mhangwani.

Gabrielle Venter, one of the rising stars on the Sunshine Ladies Tour who is competing in the Vodacom Origins of Golf in Kathu this week, said the added incentives are a major drawcard for her.

“The incentives definitely made up my mind to play the series. Gaining an Access Series invitation is a big thing because it gives you a chance to play in Europe and get experience over there, and the Joburg Ladies Open is a Ladies European Tour event so there are a lot of world ranking points on offer there.”

PRETORIA (15 September 2024) – A lot goes into any win, and even more so a team victory. For both Jean Hugo and Ruan Korb, there was an immense sense of gratitude at seeing it all come together as they claimed victory in the Bain’s Whisky Ubunye Championship at the Silver Lakes Golf and Wildlife Estate on Sunday.

With family and friends watching, the duo put the finishing touches to a commanding final round better ball performance as they finished on 20 under par with a closing 63. It was Hugo’s second victory this season following his win in the Vodacom Origins of Golf last month. And Korb was delighted to win again after his last triumph in 2022.

“I’m very happy to be back in the winner’s circle. I thanked Jean on 18 for making that possible for me,” said Korb.

“You know, a lot of things have come together this season,” added Hugo. “Family life and that balance, and good friends, and then obviously all the hard work. All of us out here work very hard behind the scenes. But I think it’s balance and contentment. That’s the secret. I think it also gives a lot of people hope that no matter what age you are we can all play this wonderful game. It’s brilliant. I’m blessed.”

The teams of Trevor Fisher Jnr. and Stefan Wears-Taylor, and Jaco Ahlers and Michael Hollick, finished tied second on 16 under par.

Hugo and Korb finally got the fast start they were chasing all week and turned five under for their round, which had already distanced them from the field on a windy day at Silver Lakes. With three straight birdies from the 13^th they could enjoy a four-stroke lead playing the 18^th.

“We’re very happy about the start. When we teed off we told each other that if we could just start a little faster than the last three rounds we can build some good momentum. The course played harder today. But we managed the wind well and Jean helped me a lot with the direction of the wind,” said Korb.

Hugo also thoroughly enjoyed a day when he could truly soak in the win.

“It was awesome today. I made a good putt for birdie on the first to set us off and then Ruan chipped in for eagle on two which was brilliant. We were looking great after nine holes and just wanted to keep each other calm out there. After the birdie on the 15^th we could enjoy it coming in. You can never relax too much, but with the lead we had it was quite nice playing the 18^th, just hitting the green, making the putt and enjoying the celebrations.” – Michael Vlismas

PRETORIA (14 September 2024) – The leading teams of Jovan Rebula and Martin Vorster, and Jean Hugo and Ruan Korb, are preparing themselves for a better ball shootout in Sunday’s final round of the Bain’s Whisky Ubunye Championship at the Silver Lakes Golf and Wildlife Estate.

Having come through Saturday’s foursomes tied for the lead on 12 under par and one clear at the top of a very tight leaderboard, both teams know full well that it’s all to play for in Sunday’s better ball.

“Anything can happen there and I think the scoring will be low because the guys will have figured out the course by now. It’s all guns blazing for the final round. I’m looking forward to it,” said the experienced Hugo, who combined with Korb for a solid 67 in tricky conditions on Saturday.

“We saw the format before the tournament and knew the better ball was going to be the final round, so it’s all up for grabs for anyone. Anyone can have an outstanding day there and win,” added Rebula, who together with Vorster showed immense composure to shoot a 70 in the windy conditions.

The two teams are one clear of Jaco van Zyl and Gregory McKay who signed for a 66. Van Zyl added a hole-in-one on the par-three 13^th that not only elevated his team, but also earned him 50 000 Airlink Skybucks courtesy of the Airlink Aces reward on the Tour this season.

Michael Hollick and Jaco Ahlers could also still easily have a say in the final round, which they’ll go into just two off the lead.

With that kind of challenge awaiting, Hugo and Korb will be out to make a faster start on the front nine than they’ve done all week.

“Somehow we don’t start well on the front and we’ll work on that for the final round. But we like the back nine. Having said that the conditions were tough over the last few holes,” said Hugo.

“For some reason the back nine seems to suit us better than the front. But I’m looking forward to having Jean’s experience with me in the final round,” added Korb.

As the young guns at the top of the leaderboard, both Rebula and Vorster have shown some pretty cool heads over the last three rounds.

“Patience was a virtue out there again today. We got off to a good start but mid-round it got a bit tough and we had to just take a step back a bit and keep the ball in play. But we’ve got our gameplan and are enjoying it out here,” said Rebula.

“I think we did a great job to stick to our gameplan. We were a little bit more conservative. Our goal today was just to keep ourselves on top of the leaderboard. We can’t control what the others do in the final round but will just stick to our gameplan,” added Vorster. – Michael Vlismas

PRETORIA (13 September 2024) – If foursomes golf is all about trusting your partner, then competing with your brother-in-law as Daniel van Tonder and Malcolm Mitchell did, or your close friend as Jovan Rebula and Martin Vorster did, explains why these two teams share the lead on 11 under par heading into the weekend of the Bain’s Whisky Ubunye Championship at Silver Lakes Golf and Wildlife Estate.

With the team format shifting to foursomes on Friday, Van Tonder and Mitchell combined well for a 64 while Rebula and Vorster were solid on their way to a 68.

It was a good performance by both teams on a day of wind and hard greens, and with the Silver Lakes course armed with as much water as the name suggests.

They are one clear of the team of Hennie O’Kennedy and LB Boshoff, who combined for a 67. And Ryan van Velzen, who is defending his title but with a new partner this season in Yurav Premlall, can look forward to teeing off in Saturday’s third round just two shots off the lead.

The third round will also be foursomes, followed by a final round of better ball on Sunday.

Van Tonder and Mitchell certainly proved that as brothers-in-law they know about more than just each other’s family holiday plans as the navigated a tricky Silver Lakes in superb fashion on Friday.

“I’ve trusted a couple of people in my life, but there are certainly people you trust more than others and Daniel would be one of them. He’s always in good form with his game, and we also know each other’s games so well,” said Mitchell.

“We gave each other some good chances out there, which helped. I draw the ball and he fades it, so we were making some hearts out there. The main goal is to have fun and not get too upset out there,” added Van Tonder.

Alongside them at the top of the leaderboard, Vorster and Rebula also had a good understanding between them.

“I didn’t have to really deal with a bunch of challenges because Martin just hits tee shots straight down the middle of the fairway,” said Rebula.

“But I suppose it is different in that you’re playing for somebody else rather than just yourself. You put a little bit more emphasis on certain shots because  you want to put your partner in the best position possible. But we worked out a good gameplan today. You have to keep it in play on this course, and then you’ve got a lot of water around the greens here, which in this wind makes it interesting. But we just had a good gameplan and will carry on with that in the third round.”

“It’s more pressure than usual but Jovan is probably the most chilled guy on a golf course so I really enjoyed it,” added Vorster. – Michael Vlismas

PRETORIA (12 September 2024) – Some of them first met when they were as young as nine. Others have played so much golf together they know each other’s games as well as their own. For the Sunshine Tour’s professionals, selecting the right partner for this week’s Bain’s Whisky Ubunye Championship is much like the ingredients coming together to create a fine whisky.

Ryan van Velzen and Yurav Premlall certainly had the right mix in Thursday’s first round of this team event at the Silver Lakes Golf and Wildlife Estate.

They opened with a better ball score of eight-under-par 63 to share the lead with the teams of Heinrich Bruiners and Keenan Davidse, Luke Brown and Fredrik From, and Jovan Rebula and Martin Vorster. Vorster went so far as to add a hole-in-one on the par-three ninth hole.

They are all one clear of the teams of Dylan Mostert and Dylan Naidoo, and Altin van der Merwe and Christian Kriek.

It was the perfect start for Van Velzen, who won this title last season playing with Luca Filippi. “Yurav and I have known each other for a long time and we played a lot together in our junior golf days, so it’s a natural pairing. We have a lot of fun on the course,” said Van Velzen.

Premlall remembers the first time he met Van Velzen, and unlike this week they were on opposite teams on that occasion. “I was playing for Central Gauteng the first time I met Ryan, and I think we gave them 6&5 in our match. I remember it quite well because it was him and Casey Jarvis that we beat. We’ve always been pretty good friends though.”

Thursday’s better ball format was certainly suited to the attacking styles of both of them.

“We play a naturally attacking brand of golf and aren’t shy about taking the golf course on. I think that attitude of just going for it on every hole gave us a chance,” said Premlall.
Bruiners and Davidse have known each other since they were teenagers competing on opposite provincial teams.

“I played for Southern Cape and he played for Boland in those days. We weren’t supposed to get along,” said Bruiners.

Davidse said he’s thoroughly enjoying partnering with a golfer he’s always looked up to. “When I was 12 he was 14 and he had his Springbok colours already. In those days it was Heinrich Bruiners and Branden Grace in the Southern Cape team beating everyone. Heinrich then turned professional before I did and the fact that he’s won twice on the Sunshine Tour and come back from a very serious injury is an inspiration. I have so much respect for him.”

Behind the leaders, Naidoo and Mostert can also trace their first meeting back to their junior golf days.

“We first met at age eight or nine. We used to play together as juniors on a Saturday at Modderfontein Golf Club. We’ve been good friends since then. We’ve travelled together. We went to Japan together. It’s actually crazy how many years we’ve had playing golf together,” said Naidoo.

“I wouldn’t say we finish each other’s sentences, but we’re good friends,” added Mostert.
Friday’s foursomes format will require a completely difference approach.

“I think the foursomes will be key this week. It’s all about just playing solid stats golf – just hitting fairways and greens to give yourself chances,” said Van Velzen. – Michael Vlismas

PRETORIA (11 September 2024) – Daniel van Tonder heads into this week’s Bain’s Whisky Ubunye Championship at Silver Lakes Golf and Wildlife Estate in some of the best form of his career with two Sunshine Tour victories in August alone.

Van Tonder has played his way to the top of the Sunshine Tour Order of Merit delivered by The Courier Guy with victories in the FNB Eswatini Challenge and the Gary & Vivienne Player Challenge last month.

This week brings a different focus and strategy as he teams up with fellow professional Malcolm Mitchell for a 72-hole Bain’s Whisky Ubunye Championship that is played in a team format including betterball and foursomes.

This R2 million tournament has quickly become one of the most popular on the calendar for the professionals as they enjoy a rare week on Tour of team golf.

But Van Tonder will still have a singular focus about what he wants to achieve this week as he looks to keep building on his current form.

“I had a six-week break recently and I think it did me the world of good. It gave me some good time to really practice and work on a few changes, and to take a step back from just playing week in and week out. And I think that has helped me to just enjoy my golf again,” he said.

Another man in great form is Yurav Premlall. The young star is currently second on the Sunshine Tour Order of Merit delivered by The Courier Guy, and as much as he’s chasing Van Tonder on that list he’s been doing the same on the golf course in August.

Premlall finished second to Van Tonder at both of his victories, and he’s added another two top-fives on the Sunshine Tour this season.

“I think I’ve just been getting my confidence again and competing with the kind of mindset I had as an amateur. It’s just a case of believing in myself that I can compete out here,” he said.
Premlall has Ryan van Velzen as his partner this week, with Van Velzen having won this title last season when he played with Luca Filippi.

“We make a good team and I’m looking forward to the week with him. We both play an aggressive brand of golf and are hoping we can take advantage of this course with that strategy.”
The Bain’s Whisky Ubunye Championship could certainly play its part as an enabler for the kind of bigger dreams Premlall has.

Last season when Van Velzen and Filippi teamed up to win, Van Velzen went on to win the overall Sunshine Tour Order of Merit delivered by The Courier Guy and thereby secured himself a DP World Tour card and a spot in The Open and US PGA Championship this year. And Filippi used that breakthrough victory to go on and claim the Blue Label Challenge for his second Sunshine Tour title two months later. – Michael Vlismas

Corey Conners will join a rare club of Canadian professionals to have competed in the Nedbank Golf Challenge when he tees it up in ‘Africa’s Major’ at Sun City from December 5-8, 2024, with tickets and an exciting new luxury public hospitality option available to buy here…

Conners has confirmed his place in the field for this DP World Tour event played in honour of Gary Player and which forms part of the 2025 Race to Dubai, in partnership with Nedbank and Sun International.

Conners will join Mike Weir as notable Canadian professionals to have played in the Nedbank Golf Challenge at the Gary Player Country Club at Sun City.

The 32-year-old Conners heads to Sun City as a two-time winner on the PGA Tour, with both of his titles coming in the 2019 and 2023 Valero Texas Open.

He is also a member of the International Team for this year’s Presidents Cup, where he will compete under the captaincy of countryman Weir.

Conners’ performance in the Majors this year was highlighted by a finish of tied ninth in the US Open. He has also had three top-10s in The Masters in his career.

Conners adds to a strong field already including defending champion Max Homa, the South African Olympic duo of Christiaan Bezuidenhout and Erik van Rooyen, and Sunshine Tour Order of Merit delivered by the Courier Guy winner Ryan van Velzen.

Fans at this year’s Nedbank Golf Challenge will also be able to take their viewing experience to the next level with the new luxury public Hospitali-TEE Lounge option.

Aimed to provide something more than the normal day visitor experience, fans will be able to book to watch the tournament in style in a brand new hospitality lounge located close to the Public Village and offering an air-conditioned facility with indoor and outdoor seating, a live feed of the golf, and catering throughout the day.

The package fee will include an official entrance ticket to the Nedbank Golf Challenge, accreditation for exclusive access to the Hospitali-TEE Lounge, a premium buffet including breakfast, lunch and afternoon snacks, a fully stocked open bar, an all-day coffee station, a live television feed of the golf, daily live entertainment, a daily player autograph opportunity, a sunscreen station, daily prizes and competitions, and official Nedbank Golf Challenge merchandise. To book click here…