The news that Charl Schwartzel and Branden Grace will play the SA Open in January 2018 is exactly what the doctor ordered, writes WADE PRETORIUS.
Ernie Els is a golfing legend. Not only in South Africa where he has achieved superhero status but worldwide – the way his pros speak about him is testament to his place in the game.
He leaned on his relationship with Rory McIlroy to get the superstar from Northern Ireland to play in the SA Open last year and the results were, well, spectacular. The only thing missing was Rory beating Graeme Storm in the playoff but hey, you can’t have everything you want. The galleries – even on practise outings – were packed and the roars audible around the course whenever McIlroy attacked the pin.
The follow act up to the McIlroy Open was always going to be hard to follow and crucial to the longevity of the championship.
The timing of the event, the location (at least for the American superstars) and the purse means that getting the likes of Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas etc is near impossible.
But thankfully getting Schwartzel and Grace to commit has not proven to be.
And credit must go to everyone involved in enticing the duo back to the event which will enjoy another great year of support from the locals. The event could easily have retracted back to a good but not great co-sanctioned event which has been the springboard for many promising players onto the European Tour. Now, these prodigies have two big game hunters to battle past if they want to write their names into the history books alongside former winners of the country’s national championship Els, Retief Goosen, Tim Clark and Trevor Immelman.
Glendower will now serve as the perfect place for one of Schwartzel or Grace to get back into the winner’s circle – a place they didn’t not tread in 2017. Grace is currently floating his way out of the top 50 in the world – which brings with it an invite to The Masters, so a win in January certainly would help matters.
Schwartzel will also be looking to find some form – nothing like a win to do that – as he prepares for another dart at the Green Jacket. He finished third last year but a win in January could be what he needs to get his mojo flowing before April’s test at Augusta.
Am I predicting a shootout between the two? No, the likes of Brandon Stone, George Coetzee, Hayden Porteous, Dean Burmester, Darren Fichardt and Dylan Frittelli provide enough to quality to upset even the best on their days so a great battle is on the cards. All but Coetzee – who is finding some nice form late on the year – won on the European Tour this year and would love a boost to their 2018 Race to Dubai points on home soil.
The 2018 event promises to be a thrilling one. Let’s enjoy it from start to finish before we turn to Ernie once more to ask, ‘How are you going to make sure 2019 matches its predecessors?’ …
Photo: Andrew Redington/Getty Images
