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KITWE, Zambia – Sameul Simpson’s final round of three-under-par 69 was enough to finally end Herman Loubser’s dominance of this year’s Mopani Zambia Open and earn the young South African his first victory on the Sunshine Tour.

Simpson’s bogey-free final round at the Nkana Golf Club earned him a one-stroke victory over Loubser on 11 under par.

Loubser, who had been at the top of the leaderboard since the first round, struggled with a closing 76 to take second place on 10 under par.

Luke Jerling, JJ Senekal and Lyle Rowe shared third place on nine under par.

Simpson teed off the final round five shots behind Loubser. But it was his ability to limit his mistakes on a final day when Loubser struggled to do the same in a round of three bogeys and one double bogey that made the difference.

However, Loubser’s commanding lead meant he and Simpson were still tied for the lead on 11 under par through 17 holes.

But Loubser’s bogey on the 18^th  hole ensured the victory went to Simpson.

Simpson is the second maiden winner on the Sunshine Tour this season after the opening five tournaments following Luis Carrera from Mexico. – Michael Vlismas Media

KITWE, Zambia – Herman Loubser retained his place at the top of the Mopani Zambia Open leaderboard with another solid performance in Saturday’s third round at the Nkana Golf Club.

A bogey-free 68 lifted Loubser to 14 under par overall and five strokes clear of his nearest challenger and fellow South African Hennie Otto.

With two birdies on the front nine followed up by two more on the back nine, Loubser produced another composed round of golf to keep the lead.

“It’s been good and solid. I’ve played nicely and made a lot of par putts that kept the momentum going. The greens are tricky, but I have been good with my short game and I’ve hit the ball quite nice,” Loubser said.

With an impressive five-stroke lead heading into the final day, Loubser is exited about the challenge lying ahead.

“I just need to do the same thing tomorrow, that is the game plan. Hopefully the putting and chipping stays good. Obviously, there will be a few nerves, but it is quite exiting. There will be a lot of the guys out there tomorrow trying to win. I am keen for the challenge,” he said.

After Otto, young Sunshine Tour professional Ethan Smith starts the final round six strokes back after signing for a round of six-under-par of 66. – Michael Vlismas Media

KITWE, Zambia – Herman Loubser followed up his first round 67 with another five-under-par 67 on Friday to take a commanding three-stroke lead into the weekend of the Mopani Zambia Open played at the Nkana Golf Club.

But it was a round in which he had to rely heavily on his short game as he also overcame a double bogey on the 10^th on his way to claiming the lead on 10 under par.

“I didn’t hit the ball that good today, especially off the tee. I left myself a lot of work to do with the short game, but luckily my short game was really good today. My short game saved me today,” he said.

His nearest challenger is Samuel Simpson on seven under par following his round of 65 on Friday. There are a group of players on six under including defending champion MJ Viljoen and veteran Hennie Otto.

Heading into the weekend, Loubser’s gameplan is to keep things simple.

“I’m just going to try to hit the ball a bit better. I’ll keep the putting and chipping as is. But I need to just try to hit a few more fairways. This course gets tricky once you miss,” he said.

Simpson, who has already had two top-10 finishes this year, is also looking forward to a big weekend.

“I got off to a solid start today. My gameplan was just to birdie the par-fives and to plot my way around the golf course. I turned in four under and then just stuck to the strategy. There are still two more rounds, the course isn’t easy, and I’ve just got to stick to my processes.  If it adds up to a good total at the end, I will be happy.”

At just four strokes off the lead, Otto is hoping his experience will count on the weekend.

“The golf course is in unbelievable condition, but it gives and takes. You need a bit of luck, especially on the greens. The key this weekend is patience.” – Michael Vlismas Media

BENONI, Ekurhuleni – It was only after Malcolm Mitchell’s playoff victory in the Gary & Vivienne Player Challenge that he realised just what he’d achieved. And it was staring right at him from the trophy he held in his hands.

“Only afterwards did I realise what I’d done. It’s always nice to win an event, but when you have a name like Gary and Vivienne Player on the trophy, it’s just got a totally different feel to it. I’m very honoured and pleased to have won it,” Mitchell said at Benoni Country Club on Friday.

Mitchell claimed his second title when he beat Jonathan Broomhead in a playoff in a tournament that is the Sunshine Tour’s tribute to the remarkable career of Gary Player and the philanthropic work done by the Gary and Vivienne Player Foundation.

Mitchell closed with a 71 and Broomhead signed for a 69 to both finish on 12 under par, one stroke clear of Graham van der Merwe and Conner Mackenzie.

Playing the par-five first hole as the first playoff hole, Mitchell’s birdie earned him the victory against Broomhead’s par.

When he sunk the birdie putt to win, Mitchell’s fist pump told the story of what it meant to him.

“It was just such a build-up. My expectations are quite high, and to wait this long for a second win – my emotions took over there a bit.”

Mitchell has had his chances before this, but admits the timing seemed right for it now.

“I think it’s a bit of maturity. I’ve got a baby on the way. Your life changes and your priorities change. I’m doing this for my family now. It’s no longer just for me and what I want. That is a big thing. I’ve been doing a lot of work on being more patient. I struggled with that, and to actually do that today was big for me.”

After breaking through with his first Sunshine Tour title in 2023, Mitchell said this second victory held perhaps even greater significance for him.

“My coach and I always speak about how the second win is probably the biggest one. Once you’ve got your first win you believe you can do it and your expectations increase. Sometimes it takes a while to get that second one. To finally get that monkey off my back is a big thing for me.” – Michael Vlismas

BENONI, Ekurhuleni – Samuel Simpson has worked incredibly hard at what he terms “preparing myself to succeed”, and the young South African will head into Friday’s final round of the Gary & Vivienne Player Challenge with exactly that opportunity.

Simpson followed up his first round of 65 with another quality round of 66 to lead this Sunshine Tour field on 13 under par overall at Benoni Country Club.

He is two strokes clear of Malcolm Mitchell, who signed for a second round of 66. Martin Vorster, Jonathan Broomhead and Jason Roets are all joint third on nine under par.

It wasn’t an ideal start to Simpson’s second round as he bogeyed the second hole. But thereafter he made five birdies in his next seven holes, and added a further two birdies on the back nine.

“We started off early and I had a shaky start, but that happens. Then I hit a great shot on the third which settled my nerves,” he said.

“I was coming into today after a good first round, and that was in my mind. I just knew that I have a really good strategy around this golf course that I planned out before the week. So I knew that whatever happens I should just stick to that strategy and not play off emotion, and let the rest do the talking.”

Simpson was a decorated amateur before he turned professional in 2022 and admits it’s taken him some time to adjust to the professional arena. But he certainly seems to be finding his feet now.

Last season he finished just outside the top 50 on the Courier Guy Order of Merit on the Sunshine Tour in 64^th place, and with a few top 10s under his belt.

Then he started this season with a finish of tied seventh in the FBC Zim Open before taking the lead at Benoni Country Club on Thursday.

“I didn’t go back home to Cape Town in the break between seasons. I stayed in Joburg and got myself mentally ready for the new season. That’s the biggest thing for me – mental confidence equals good golf. This is my third year on the Sunshine Tour. I’ve learnt a lot. Last season I learnt how to make cuts, and how to put myself in a position to play well on the weekend. Coming into the first events of this season, I’ve prepared myself to succeed.”

A final round of opportunity awaits for Simpson in a tournament played as a tribute to Gary Player, who conquered the world with his tenacity on the golf course. And Simpson is well aware of the challenge he’ll face on Friday.

“The final round is out of my hands. I can’t control what anybody else does. All I can control is myself. My strategy won’t change. I’m going to go out and do my best.” – Michael Vlismas

BENONI, Ekurhuleni – Jonathan Broomhead’s incredible start to the season continued as he claimed a share of the lead in Wednesday’s first round of the Gary & Vivienne Player Challenge, a tournament that is the Sunshine Tour’s tribute to the remarkable career of Gary Player and the Gary & Vivienne Player Foundation’s work to improve the lives of underprivileged children.

Broomhead opened with a round of seven-under-par 65 at Benoni Country Club to share the lead with fellow South Africans Jason Roets and Samuel Simpson. They are two strokes clear of Graham van der Merwe, Malcolm Mitchell and Ricky Hendler.

Broomhead’s consistency at the start of the season has been phenomenal as he’s finished second and fourth in his first two tournaments.

He kept up that momentum on Wednesday with a bogey-free round that earned him a share of the lead.

“I started on the 10^th and made a nice birdie there, and then kept it going. I strung a few nice birdies along the way. I hit the ball well and made some good putts for most of the round,” said Broomhead.

It wasn’t the most that he thought he could’ve taken from the round, but Broomhead was still satisfied.

“It was a good day. It’s the first day and we’re playing just three rounds this week, not four like the last few weeks. So you need to adjust a bit. But I was hitting it nicely so I wasn’t getting too upset. It was still good golf even though some of the putts weren’t falling.”

The Benoni Country Club course is a fitting venue this week as the site where Gary Player won very early in his professional career on the Sunshine Tour.

And for Broomhead, the golf course is providing a strong test this week.

“The course is good and the greens are rolling really well. It’s firming up quite a bit, and some of the flags in certain positions on the greens can be tricky.” – Michael Vlismas

JOHANNESBURG, Gauteng – Zimbabwean Kieran Vincent secured his second Sunshine Tour title with a four-stroke victory in the Waterfall City Tournament of Champions supported by Attacq and WCMC at Royal Johannesburg on Sunday.

Vincent closed with an eventful 70 that included a nine on the par-four third hole for a total of 18 under par. Daniel van Tonder finished second on 14 under with a closing 70, while Pieter Moolman took third place on 13 under par with a 69.

“Well the first one went out of bounds and the second one followed suit. Once the second one goes out of bounds you start to get really nervous,” Vincent said of his experience on the third. “But me and my team have been taking about fighting for a while, and that’s what was ringing in my head. Walking off the third green towards the fourth tee, I told myself the only way we can go through this is if we fight.”

The Zimbabwean did just that and rolled in seven birdies over the composite nine-hole setup for this tournament to carry him to the title.

“Credit to my team throughout the last couple of months for instilling a lot in me to be able to fight like the way we did today. A lot goes on when you play a nine-hole loop and it’s my first time doing that. I really enjoyed it. All in all, it was a great day,” he said.

Van Tonder rolled in an eagle putt on the last to secure second on his own.

Tandi McCallum finished as the top Sunshine Ladies Tour professional on one under par following her final round of 72. – Michael Vlismas Media

JOHANNESBURG, Gauteng – Zimbabwean Kieran Vincent produced a magnificent 11-under-par 61 to surge into a four-stroke lead of the Waterfall City Tournament of Champions supported by Attacq and WCMC at Royal Johannesburg on Saturday.

Vincent didn’t drop a single shot in an incredible round of golf on the famed East Course and over this composite nine-hole set-up specifically designed for this tournament.

The Zimbabwean leads on 16 under par and is chasing his second Sunshine Tour title.

“I’ve been playing some good golf and my team has been working really hard behind the scenes to get to this point, and we were talking about how good golf is just in front of me. I think we’re seeing glimpses of this now,” said Vincent.

His nearest challenger is Daniel van Tonder, last season’s winner of The Courier Guy Order of Merit on the Sunshine Tour, on 12 under par following a third round of 66.

Vincent made the most of his Saturday and rolled in five birdies on the front nine and then six birdies on the back, including five birdies in a row.

It was a better start than his triple bogey on his first hole in the second round. But thereafter on Friday Vincent made a string of birdies and was clearly still in that frame of mind on Saturday.

“I made a bunch of birdies coming in yesterday and kept that momentum today. I was a bit nervous after the triple bogey start yesterday so I just wanted to get through the first hole and see a putt go in today. We got lucky in that stretch of five birdies in a row, and I’m just thankful.”

Pieter Moolman, a winner of the South African PGA Championship, is in third place on 10 under par following a round of 69.

Tandi McCallum is the leading Sunshine Ladies Tour professional on one under par following her third round of 69. – Michael Vlismas Media

JOHANNESBURG, Gauteng – Mexico’s Luis Carrera heads into the weekend in a four-way tie for the lead and hunting his third consecutive victory on the Sunshine Tour in the Waterfall City Tournament of Champions supported by Attacq and WCMC at Royal Johannesburg.

Carrera signed for a 67 on Royal Joburg’s East Course to share the lead on seven under par with Jonathan Broomhead, Pieter Moolman and George Coetzee.

After a difficult first day, Broomhead found his form with a 65 on Friday. Moolman signed for a 67 and Coetzee added a 70 to also be in contention.

They are one stroke clear of Daniel van Tonder and MJ Viljoen.

Carrera has dominated the Sunshine Tour this season having won the Qualifying School in April and followed this up with victories in the first two tournaments in the FBC Zim Open and Kit Kat Cash & Carry Pro-Am.

“A third win in a row would be great, but I’m taking it day by day. My strategy will stay the same for the weekend,” said Carrera, who is loving his first look at the famed East Course and also his debut in this tournament played over a composite nine-hole layout which the golfers play twice.

“I think this is a great golf course. It’s very challenging. You hit a lot of good mid irons. It’s a great competition with all the winners here and there are great names here,” he said.

Broomhead was delighted with his second round as he seeks a victory after finishing second in last week’s Kit Kat Cash & Carry Pro-Am.

“I found it extremely tough in the first round. I felt like we made all the birdies then, but also all of the bogeys. Today I started well and made four in a row in the middle of the round. I hit the ball well and made some good putts,” he said.

Broomhead has also enjoyed the format this week.

“It’s a cool tournament this. I like the course set-up. It forces you to really concentrate because when you play the nine again you can make the mistake of thinking I’ve done this. So you have to focus. I just want to keep the same feelings for the weekend.”

Nadia van der Westhuizen is the leading Sunshine Ladies Tour professional on one under par following her second round of 69. – Michael Vlismas Media