He came agonisingly close to pulling off what would have been an amazing victory. A product of the SA Golf Development Board’s efforts in the Free State, and then of the Ernie Els & Fancourt Foundation, and latterly the Sunshine Tour’s Gary Player Class of 2017 initiative, his game withstood the rigours of the week as he announced himself as someone sure to break through soon.

He was nicknamed ‘The Original PlayStation’ by the visiting Scots when he made six birdies in a row against them at the age of 17 as an amateur. He is originally from Phuthadijhaba near Golden Gate in the Free State and he grew up in a hut next to a field, where he and friends hit balls and cut holes into the ground.

After an impressive four days of golf in which he seemed to be on his way to a maiden victory on the Sunshine Tour, 29-year old Mazibuko had to settle for second behind Van Rooyen after he bogeyed the play-off hole, having finished the tournament at 16-under-par 272.

‘I am very happy with myself, with how I played this week,’ he said, ‘but at the same time I must congratulate Erik. He deserved to win because he played a nice shot in that play-off hole,’ Mazibuko mused.

Three birdies and a bogey on the front nine and then the same dose on the back nine in regulation play saw him summit the leaderboard momentarily before Van Rooyen and Frittelli caught up with him. It caused a great deal of excitement among those who came to watch, as they realised they were in for a spectacle.

‘This one was close so I am happy with how I played my game,’ he said. ‘I had to be calm. I want to thank all the people who supported me for this; after this I go to the next tournament with good confidence. I also want to thank my coach from Bloemfontein because he helped a lot this week.’

Now, a member of Gary Player Class of 2017 developmental programme of the Sunshine Tour for previously disadvantaged golfers, Mazibuko’s performance stands as testimony that with proper support and structure, everybody has potential to reach the highest level.

‘As I said in the week, the support we get in this programme is amazing and I want to thank the Sunshine Tour,’ he said. ‘And I want to say to the other guys in that programme they must continue to work hard and results will show.’

After his performance this week, Mazibuko has raised his profile and will become a force to be reckoned with in the local professional circuit.

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He finished regulation play with a birdie on 18 too, to finish on 16-under for the tournament together with Dylan Frittelli and Makhetha Mazibuko, who narrowly missed a par-putt on 18 in regulation which would have given him the victory. Last year’s runner-up Dean Burmester finished fourth after a disappointing round of one-over 73.

‘The 18^th is not an easy hole,’ said Van Rooyen. ‘I didn’t really plan to stiff it with my second in the play-off. My plan was to hit where I hit it in regulation, because that’s just the middle of the green. You need to give yourself a chance, especially after I saw where Makhetha hit his ball in the bunker. I knew par might have a chance. But my approach drew back so nicely and it almost went in. It was fantastic.’

The victory was the first in his Sunshine Tour career which stretches back to 2013 when he gained his card at the Qualifying School. ‘It’s hard to describe,’ he said of his feelings after the win. ‘I’ve worked really hard with a big group of people – sports psychologists, a trainer, a swing coach, whatever – for the last 10 or 15 years, and to finally get the win…

‘I’ve been in there a few times in the last few years that I’ve been on the Sunshine Tour, and I think today I really held my composure nicely. I think that’s where I slipped up in the past. But today, I got it done and now the emotions are boiling over a little.’

The fact of the matter was that he kept his composure throughout the tournament, rather than just in the final round. ‘I played some very consistent golf – 69-68-68-67 – so I knew that my game was there,’ he said. ‘The other guys played well. Dylan shot eight-under on Saturday, which was unbelievable golf, but I was in there with a chance. Obviously, Dean was the man to catch with the unbelievable golf he has been playing lately. I guess it comes down to the back nine on Sunday and I was there. I threw my name in the hat, and I got it done.’

Behind him, Mazibuko came agonisingly close to pulling off what would have been an amazing victory. A product of the SA Golf Development Board’s efforts in the Free State, and then of the Ernie Els & Fancourt Foundation, and latterly the Sunshine Tour’s Gary Player Class of 2017 initiative, his game withstood the rigours of the week as he announced himself as someone who will break through soon.

Likewise Frittelli, who played so well over the weekend, only to see his chances of winning evaporate with a poor tee shot on the play-off hole.

For Van Rooyen, there are three important tournament to look forward to: next week’s Dimension Data Pro-Am, followed by the Joburg Open and the Tshwane Open, co-sanctioned by the European Tour, which give him a chance of playing his way onto the international circuit.

‘I’m looking forward to the upcoming stretch of tournaments,’ he said. ‘I’ve prepared so well. I’ve played Royal Johannesburg and Pretoria Country Club many times in the last three weeks, so I’m well prepared for those events. Obviously this win will give me a huge confidence-boost. But, you know, you always think you can do it before you actually do it, and then you know you can do it. So to know that I can do it, that I’ve got the game to win, I’ve got the mental side to win, is awesome.’

From sunshinetour.com

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‘I’m really happy with the way I played, and I really like the golf course. I just see a lot of things here, and I really like the greens. It was nice to make a couple of putts, and I hope there’s more of the same on Sunday,’ he said.

Christiaan Bezuidenhout, the 2016 Sunshine Tour rookie of the year, was three shots back and tied for second with Ross McGowan, while Erik van Rooyen, Dylan Frittelli and Makgetha Mazibuko shared fourth place with America’s Justin Hicks.

‘It wasn’t easy with the wind blowing,’ Bezuidenhout explained. ‘All the tough holes were playing into the wind. I just kept my head down. I made a few putts, made a couple of great saves on 15 and 16. But overall, I just played solid golf and gave myself loads of chances.’

Burmester played sublime golf over the first three days to shoot rounds of 66, 67 and another 67 on Saturday for a three-stroke cushion in the final round. He recorded top10s at the SA Open and Qatar Masters and is continuing that vein of good form this week.

McGowan is a European Tour winner looking to make his comeback, having lost a playoff to Jaco Ahlers at the Cape Town Open three years ago. The Englishman has the ability to win, but his mental fortitude will be put to the test on Sunday.

Bezuidenhout’s mind will also be tested in the final round as he looks to secure a first 72-hole tournament victory. He broke into the winners’ circle at the Fish River Sun Challenge last year, but that was a three-day tournament.

The talented youngster will be pushing to win his local PGA Championship, following in the footsteps of Louis Oosthuizen and Jaco van Zyl.

‘I’ll just try to put early pressure on (Dean) with a couple of early birdies,’ said Bezuidenhout. But you never know on this course. The holes coming down the stretch are tough. You have to hit the fairways, so anything can happen right up until the end, so I’ll just hang in there’

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He finished his homeward nine – from one to nine, after he had started round two on the 10^th – in a five-under-par 31, and he will start the third round on 11 under par, two behind the leader, Justin Hicks of the United States.

‘We had perfect weather this morning,’ he said after play was suspended because of late afternoon thunderstorms. ‘There was a difficult breeze yesterday, so I was quite happy to get off the course. It was a bit of a frustrating day for me yesterday, but I managed to finish on a high yesterday with a birdie on one and birdie on two. I left myself a short par putt on three before I came back this morning and I just kept the ball rolling.’

He made further birdies on four, eight and nine to set himself up perfectly to take advantage of some great momentum for the third round.

‘I just didn’t feel comfortable yesterday,’ he said. ‘I think everybody gets those days. I think you wake up and it’s just not quite the same as the day before. You end up trying to push and you struggle your way around a little bit. Luckily I woke up in the right place this morning.’

Burmester was one shot clear of MJ Viljoen, who was in third on 10-under, while Daniel Greene and Christiaan Bezuidenhout shared fourth on nine under.

From sunshinetour.com

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That birdie on the par-three ninth – he started his round on the 10^th – took him to nine-under-par 63, two shots clear of MJ Viljoen and Colin Nel, with last year’s runner-up Dean Burmester a further stroke back after his 66.

‘I didn’t hit my tee-shot to the ninth that well,” he said. “I didn’t want to go for the pin because I knew I couldn’t hold the ball at the back of the green, but I left myself a lot of work. But everything lined up well for me and it went in.’

That was the ninth birdie of a sparkling round, one which was only his third on the course after a practice round and a trip around it in the pro-am. He turned in five-under-par 31, and then made four more birdies coming home.

‘I drove it well and just tried to give myself opportunities out there,’ he said. ‘Fortunately the putter co-operated and I made a lot of great putts.

‘I think it’s a great golf course. I had no idea about what I was going to find out here. I was just going off what people had told me. I think they’ve done a magnificent job here and I think they could host just about any tournament they want on this course,’ he added.

Hicks is on a four-week trip to South Africa to look around and get some competitive golf after his career on the PGA Tour took a knock with two years of injury woes in 2015 and 2016 left him without his playing privileges in the United States.

He got into this week’s tournament on a sponsor’s invitation, and it’s given him a chance to seek to regain the kind of form he showed in 2014 when he finished inside the top 10 three times on the PGA Tour, with a best of second in the Barracuda Championship, just a week after he finished third in the RBC Canadian Open.

‘I lost my card last year when I was playing on a medical exemption,’ he said. ‘I started the year and then I had some additional problems. I’ve done a lot of work with a trainer back home, I’ve been patient and just tried to believe in myself. I hope it’s come back.’

Viljoen matched the best nine of his professional career as he closed with a 30 coming home. His 65 included three bogeys, and puts him in a great position.

Nel’s 65 had just one bogey, and that came from his only three-putt of the day, while Burmester was bogey-free.

But for the leader, it’s about keeping his run going for as long as possible. ‘I know you never really win a tournament on the first day,’ said Hicks, ‘but you try not to lose it. I’ve still got a lot of work to do for the rest of the week. I’ll keep trying to make more birdies, add them up at the end and hopefully it will be good enough.’

From sunshinetour.com

Scores:

63 – Justin Hicks

65 – MJ Viljoen, Colin Nel

66 – Dean Burmester

67 – Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Louis de Jager

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The Eye of Africa PGA Championship, which tees off at the Eye of Africa Signature Golf Estate on Thursday, is the flagship tournament of the PGA of South Africa – the association of professionals who work at golf clubs giving lessons on the range, running the pro shop and generally adding value to a golf club’s overall business.

The PGA of South Africa will have 18 of its professionals competing alongside the Sunshine Tour professionals this week.

It’s the one week in South African professional tournament golf where a clear distinction is made between the regular touring professionals who play the game for a living around the world, and the PGA professionals who work in the game at golf clubs and driving ranges.

‘The Eye of Africa PGA Championship brings together the PGA professionals and the elite tour professionals of the Sunshine Tour who have all benefited from the contribution of a PGA professional to their personal growth in the game at a golf club or golf coaching level,’ says Ivano Ficalbi, the Chief Executive of the PGA of South Africa.

‘This is the PGA’s flagship tournament and it allows us to promote our members and the work they do. The PGA brand is one of the most recognised brands in golf worldwide. Our job is not to grow the game of golf but rather ensure that PGA members are trained in all aspects of the golf industry to assist the relevant bodies or development projects in delivering successful projects.’

The 18 PGA of South Africa professionals in the field this week include Johan Smit, Kenneth Dube and Henk Alberts who recently returned from Turkey where they represented South Africa at the PGA’s of Europe International Team Championship, where they finished tied 11^th.

‘It’s a great opportunity for our members, but also for the association as a whole,’ says Ficalbi.

‘We had an incredible year of growth in 2016 in which we made a real impact throughout Africa in terms of assisting with the development of PGA professionals on the continent, which we have been mandated by the Royal and Ancient to do. We are also a respected international member of the PGAs of Europe. So this week will be a celebration of the PGA’s contribution to the game of golf.’

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Having shot a confidence-boosting 68 in the pro-am on Tuesday, Van Zyl knows it’s the putts one makes which determine victors from the rest. ‘I have been playing really nicely, you know, hitting it unbelievably. Unfortunately, to win an event you need to make the putts at the right time. You know I managed to do it the last time so hopefully I can repeat it this year,’ he said.

While winning the Eye of Africa PGA Championship remains a dream for many golfers, the reigning champion will be looking to match a 47-year old record if he wins, and become only the second player ever to have won four PGA Championships. He lifted his third title in style last year when his experience proved too much for Dean Burmester, who lost on the first play-off hole after a not-so-convincing approach shot allowed Van Zyl to slot home a birdie putt for a dramatic end to a dramatic round.

Following a solid start to his European Tour season – where he finished in the top-20 at the BMW SA Open, tied for 23^rd at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and came second at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters – a successful defence of this title will etch his name into the history books and the 38-year-old Van Zyl is relishing the prospect.

‘I’m still young so I have got youth on my side so hopefully I can go get a couple more,’ he said of the prospect of winning a record fourth title and going on to match Bobby Locke’s record of seven (although those seven were achieved during the match-play era of the tournament).

He added, ‘You know, I got my goals set for the next two weeks and if all goes according to plan, it (victory) will open quite a few doors for me for the rest of the season.’

Van Zyl will be looking to join Harold Henning as the only player to have won the tournament four times since it became a stroke play event in 1965. Back in 1970, Henning lifted his fourth PGA title to place himself in the record books for the most PGA titles won.

He remains the most successful of the stroke play champions, winning in 1965, 1966, 1967 and 1972.

Van Zyl, if he wins here, will eclipse such luminaries as Gary Player and Ernie Els among the greats who have won the title three times. But victory will also do wonders for his confidence when he returns to Europe, especially after that close one at the Qatar Masters.

Van Zyl acknowledges the success he has had in the tournament, but he is not getting carried away and instead has found more motivation. ‘This is an event at home and I really feel it is time to capitalise on that,’ he said.

From sunshinetour.com

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‘He’s already taking all the credit,’ laughed Burmester ahead of Tuesday’s pro-am when he discussed his prospects with Francois Olivier on the bag in place of his father Mark, who will be looping for England’s Ross McGowan in the tournament.

Incidentally, Burmester senior took Zimbabwe’s first wicket in Test cricket, claiming the prized scalp of the big-hitting Indian opening batsman Ravi Shastri back in 1992 in a drearily drawn match in Harare.

Burmester brings some great form into one of South Africa’s most venerable tournaments, and he’s relishing reprising his final round performance last year when he made seven birdies on his way to a seven-under-par 65 in what was eventually a fruitless pursuit of Van Zyl, who, astonishingly, made just one bogey during the entire tournament.

‘I’ve been playing well,’ Burmester allowed of his recent run which included fourth at the BMW SA Open and seventh at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters, ‘and it’s nice to get all those results going my way.’

He played five holes at Eye of Africa on the day before the pro-am, and was struck at how different the course looked. ‘It’s not just the extra length,’ he said of the change from 6,934 metres to 7,200 metres. ‘The rough is up, and everything feels much tighter. Last year, I was able to bomb driver and it just rolled and rolled. Not that the rough and the distance is going to stop me using driver a lot again this year. I’m hitting it straight, so I need to grab that advantage if I can.’

If he can go one better than last year, it would be a great start to four significant tournaments on the Sunshine Tour in four weeks – this event is followed by the Dimension Data Pro-Am, the Joburg Open and the Tshwane Open, all of which open significant international doors for their winners.

Burmester, who tried and just failed to earn his card at the European Tour Qualifying School, has been trying to force his way onto the lucrative international circuit. ‘I don’t have anything set up for me yet in Europe going forward,” he said, “so I really want to win one of those tournaments.’

A win in the Eye of Africa PGA Championship could set off the kind of run which could see him fulfil his wish.

From sunshinetour.com

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