For the first 36 holes, Pieter Moolman was fighting to make the cut. Over the next 36 holes, Moolman was fighting to win the South African PGA Championship, sponsored by African Bank.
The Benoni golfer capped off a weekend to remember with a one-stroke victory in this prestigious championship, adding his name to a trophy that already bears the names of Gary Player, Ernie Els, Nick Price, Mark McNulty, David Frost, Dale Hayes and many of the other greats of Southern African golf.
Starting the final round three strokes off the lead, Moolman played composed golf and produced a bogey-free 67 to win on 15-under par and go one better than his second place here in 2021.
The 22-year-old Barend Botha, who was one shot off the lead going into the final round, held the lead on his own with a strong front nine. But three bogeys on the tricky back nine gave him a 70 and second place on 14-under as he came up inches short for birdie on the last to force a play-off with Moolman.
Trevor Fisher Jnr overcame a double-bogey start and signed for a 70 to take third place on 11- under, while JJ Senekal settled for fourth on 10-under with a closing 75.
It was a weekend Moolman will not forget soon as he looked up at the leaderboard from making the cut on even on Friday and then played the next 36 holes in superb fashion including a course record 62 on Saturday.
“This would’ve been hard to believe after the first two rounds. I didn’t really feel like I was playing well but then I had a good fight for it over the weekend and here we are,” said Moolman.
“There are some big names on this trophy. I came close a few years ago. To shoot the course record on Saturday and then to win the trophy today, I feel amazing.”
Botha certainly announced himself as a future star of the Sunshine Tour and now has two top-10s in his last two tournaments.
But it was Moolman’s composure on especially the back nine at St Francis Links that really made the difference.
“This golf course is tricky. We didn’t have the normal wind on the final day and the back nine played really tough. The par saves are crucial around here. I wasn’t really watching the leaderboard. I think I saw it on 15 and 16 but from there on it’s just golf. You need to hit the shot you have in front of you and hope for the best. I’m just thankful I did it,” he said.
The South African PGA Championship was also proudly supported by the Eastern Cape Parks & Tourism Agency (ECPTA), the Sarah Baartman District Municipality, the Kouga Local Municipality, Momentum and Cape St Francis Resort.
Scores
273 - Pieter Moolman 74 70 62 67
274 - Barend Botha 70 64 70 70
277 - Trevor Fisher Jnr 74 68 65 70
278 - JJ Senekal 67 68 68 75
279 - Oliver Bekker 70 69 73 67, Dylan Mostert 73 67 70 69, Gerhard Pepler 72 68 67 72, CJ du Plessis 69 66 70 74
280 - Hennie O'Kennedy 72 66 68 74
281 - Daniel van Tonder 72 72 69 68, Quintin Wilsnach 69 68 74 70
282 - Lyle Rowe 68 72 73 69, Dylan Naidoo 68 70 77 67, Jean Hugo 69 70 70 73, Rourke van der Spuy 68 66 74 74
283 - Jean-Paul Strydom 69 73 73 68, Fredrik From 72 70 72 69, Luke Brown 69 70 73 71, Malcolm Mitchell 69 72 71 71
284 - Heinrich Bruiners 67 72 76 69
285 - Bryce Easton 74 70 71 70, MJ Viljoen 72 71 72 70, Christiaan Burke 75 65 75 70, Danie Van Niekerk 71 71 69 74, Nikhil Rama 69 70 71 75, Robson Chinhoi 71 69 69 76
286 - Anthony Michael 73 67 74 72, JC Ritchie 73 71 71 71, Martin Vorster 70 74 71 71, Sean Bradley 72 72 71 71, Craig Ross 71 70 72 73, Herman Loubser 71 70 72 73, Tyran Snyders 69 75 66 76
287 - Ethan Smith 70 74 70 73, Jaco Prinsloo 70 74 74 69, Wynand Dingle 65 68 76 78, George Coetzee 68 74 78 67
288 - Callum Mowat 68 68 78 74, Christiaan Basson 70 71 73 74, Estiaan Conradie 67 73 76 72
289 - Jack Hawksby 73 70 73 73, Pierre Pellegrin 71 73 69 76, Stals Swart 65 79 74 71, Ockie Strydom 72 70 76 71
290 - Deon Germishuys 68 69 75 78, Keelan van Wyk 72 72 73 73
291 - Jacob Oakley 72 69 73 77, Jacques P de Villiers 73 71 74 73, Samuel Simpson 72 71 75 73
292 - Keenan Davidse 71 72 75 74, Stuart Krog 75 68 76 73
293 - Altin van der Merwe 72 72 73 76, Andre De Decker 74 70 74 75
294 - Karabo Mokoena 74 68 74 78, Jaco Van Zyl 68 74 75 77, Gregory Mckay 77 67 75 75, Rhys West 68 73 80 73
296 - Gary Kemp 73 70 74 79, Peter Karmis 74 69 74 79
298 - Franklin Manchest 72 71 76 79, Nick Cunningham 68 73 80 77
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