Danie van Tonder’s ability to ignore all the nerves that comes with the pressure of winning and simply trust his attacking instincts once again paid off as he eagled the 18th hole at Kyalami Country Club to put himself in a play-off which he then won in the Gary & Vivienne Player Challenge on Friday.
Van Tonder, who started the final round four strokes off the lead, first of all chipped in to eagle the 480m par-five closing hole in regulation play to complete a brilliant six-under-par 66 and leap to 14-under-par for the tournament.
The 33-year-old then had to wait to see if his clubhouse lead withstood the challenge of the last three two-balls. The eagle proved crucial as both Yurav Premlall and Martin Rohwer shot four-under-par 68s to also finish on 14-under, sending the trio into a sudden death-play-off on the 18th.
Premlall was eliminated on the second play-off hole as he made par and Van Tonder and Rohwer both birdied the par-five. After replaying the last hole three times, they then took on the par-three 17th, which Van Tonder had bogeyed in regulation play. Another excellent chip shot, this time out of a bunker, set up victory for the 10th time on the Sunshine Tour.
“I was frustrated when I stood on the 18th tee in regulation play because I was unlucky twice on 17. First I had a bad bounce with my tee-shot that went over the green but I hit a great chip, only for the par-putt to horseshoe out. I knew it was a big putt,” Van Tonder said.
“I also knew I had to make eagle on the last to have a chance, so we took driver and tried to get as close as possible to the water. I had a five-iron in, which finished just right of the green. I said ‘Take the pin out!’ because I knew there had to be space for the ball, and then I chipped in.
“We then went back to 17 in the play-off and Martin and I were both in the greenside bunker. He hit a good shot to about three metres but I was able to put it within a foot and make the par,” Van Tonder said matter-of-factly about two extraordinary moments of self-belief.
“Congratulations to Daniel, who played magnificent golf. I cannot wait to welcome him and the other Sunshine Tour professionals who have qualified to join us at the Gary & Vivienne Player Invitational at Sun City. I’m extremely grateful to our Sunshine Tour professionals and their ongoing support of our efforts to raise funds for The Gary & Vivienne Player Foundation,” said Gary Player.
The Serengeti Estate golfer also won the FNB Eswatini Challenge on August 3 and said he was pleased his hard work on his game since returning from Europe is paying off.
“I’ve been playing well for a while, so it’s nice to be able to pluck the fruit from the tree, so to speak. They call me the Silent Assassin and the camera is never on me back in the field but the game is there,” Van Tonder said.
Premlall had birdied the 18th to get into the play-off but fell just short of his maiden Sunshine Tour title, while Rohwer had moved to 14-under with a birdie on the par-five 13th but he just could not grab another opportunity to move ahead.
Ruan Conradie (66), Christian Kriek (68) and Altin van der Merwe (69) finished tied for fourth on 11-under-par, while overnight leader Jonathan Broomhead made too many mistakes in the final round, suffering five bogeys in a 74 that left him on 10-under, tied for seventh with Malcolm Mitchell (68), Lyle Rowe (69), Christiaan Burke (71) and Jean Hugo (71).
Van Tonder and the next leading 22 professionals from this tournament, as well as the top five transformation professionals and two tournament invites, have earned a place in the prestigious Gary & Vivienne Player Invitational at Sun City in November, where a collection of professionals golfers, celebrities, sports stars and business leaders will come together to raise even more funds for The Gary & Vivienne Player Foundation.
Scores
202 - Daniel van Tonder 70 66 66 (won in play-off), Yurav Premlall 70 64 68, Martin Rohwer 67 67 68
205 - Ruan Conradie 68 71 66, Christian Kriek 69 68 68, Altin van der Merwe 73 63 69
206 - Malcolm Mitchell 68 70 68, Lyle Rowe 74 63 69, Christiaan Burke 67 68 71, Jean Hugo 69 66 71, Jonathan Broomhead 67 65 74
207 - Rhys West 70 67 70, Ruan de Smidt 67 69 71
208 - Jacques P de Villiers 67 69 72
209 - Austin Bautista 72 69 68, Neil Schietekat 69 70 70, Ruan Korb 70 68 71, Rourke van der Spuy 68 70 71, Jovan Rebula 71 67 71, Andrew Williamson 69 65 75
210 - Rupert Kaminski 73 69 68, Luke Brown 68 71 71, James Mack 66 72 72, Jaco Ahlers 70 68 72, Pierre Pellegrin 69 68 73, Kyle De Beer 69 67 74
211 - Heinrich Bruiners 71 71 69, Samuel Simpson 72 70 69, Stuart Krog 75 66 70, Dylan Naidoo 71 69 71, Kyle Barker 68 72 71, Simon du Plooy 67 73 71
212 - Jake Redman 69 73 70, Jacquin Hess 72 68 72, Nikhil Rama 68 70 74
213 - Luke Jerling 73 69 71, Quintin Wilsnach 68 72 73
214 - Regan Steyn 74 68 72
216 - Ricky Hendler 73 70 73, Albert Venter 71 72 73, Danie Van Niekerk 72 69 75, CJ du Plessis 70 71 75
217 - Nick Cunningham 74 69 74, Hennie Otto 72 70 75, Wynand Dingle 70 70 77
218 - Otto Van Buynder 70 73 75, Haydn Porteous 70 70 78, Stals Swart 68 71 79
221 - Ethan Smith 69 73 79, Robson Chinhoi 71 70 80
223 - Brandon Meads 68 74 81
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