Indholdsfortegnelse for March 2024 i Compleat Golfer

We're back on track for the Paris Olympics, which will be the third in a row after a break of 112 years. The sport returned to the Rio Games in 2016 and was also included at Tokyo 2020, a showpiece that was staged in 2021 because of the Covid-19 pandemic. The two gold medallists in the men's individual competition were Justin Rose (GBR) and Xander Schauffele (USA). The women's gold medallists have been Inbee Park (KOR) and Nelly Korda (USA). South Africa's men's representatives in Rio were Brandon Stone and Jaco van Wyk, and in Tokyo they were Christiaan Bezuidenhout and Garrick Higgo. The women were Paula Reto and Ashleigh Buhai. There were no South African women in Tokyo. The top-15 world-ranked players will be eligible for the Olympics, with…

REINARD KILIAN RULES With the large-scale revision and modernisation of the Rules of Golf in 2019, one of the core principles introduced by the governing bodies was that of continuous updates. The three main mechanisms used are the four-year cycle of Rules revisions whereby the actual Rules book is updated; Clarifications that are published every quarter; and then together with these quarterly updates, new Model Local Rules are introduced that may be used by committees to modify certain Rules without needing to change the Rule book itself. Clarifications are just that - they clarify the application of a Rule already in the book. The distinction between a Clarification and a Model Local Rule is that the Clarification does not change a Rule, it merely explains the application of that Rule…

GARY LEMKE COLUMN Nick Dunlap's recent win at the PGA Tour's The American Express triggered memories of another amateur doing well against the pros at an important event. Dunlap is a 20-year-old college student with a world ranking of 4 129. but he held off South Africas Christiaan Bezuidenhout to become the first amateur since Phil Mickelson in 1991 to win a PGA Tour event The big winner. in a financial sense. was Bezuidenhout, who scooped Dunlap's winner's cheque for $1512-million (some R28-million]. while finishing second. Mickelson went on to win six Majors and 45 international tournaments after turning pro. so there's that for Dunlap to hold on to. Which brings me to Ernie Els. In 1988 he represented South Africa at The Amateur Championships at Royal Porthcaw! along with…

MEN OPEN 1 (1) Altin van der Merwe (Bellville GC) 2 (3) Jordan Burnand (Ebotse GC) 3 (2) Daniel Bennett (Silver Lakes CC) 4 (4) Pascal Gunther (Royal Cape GC) 5 (7) Dylan Kayne (Pearl Valley GE) 6 (6) Ivan Verster (Pinnacle Point GE) 7 (5) Jordan Wessels (Mooinooi GC) 8 (8) Oliver Goldhill (Magaliespark GC) 9 (9) Simon du Plooy (Krugersdorp GC] 10 (10) Janko van der Merwe (Magaliesberg CC) 11 (14) Astin Wade Arthur (Mount Edgecombe CC) 12 (12) Damian Osner (Pinnacle Point GE & Mossel Bay GC) 13 (13) Fabrizio de Abreu (Woodhill CC) 14 (11) Keagan Crosbie (Centurion CC) 15 (-) Tristan Leonard (Southdowns CC) 16 (19) Jean Pierre van der Watt (Humewood GC) 17 (20) Pieter Rossouw (Pearl Valley GE) 18 (-) Louis Moolman (Pretoria…

2023 winner: Scottie Scheffler ran away with The Players Championship title and along with it took the No 1 world ranking and the PGA Tour's richest purse of $4.5-million. It was another clinical effort from the unflappable American, who carded a final-round three-under 69 in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, for a commanding fiveshot win over England's Tyrrell Hatton, who closed with a 65. A winning total of a 17-under 271 brought Scheffler his sixth career title and second in his last four starts. Scheffler became just the third player, along with Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, to hold both The Masters and The Players Championship titles at the same time. ‘This tournament feels like a Major championship to me and this morning was tough,’ said Scheffler. 1 knew the conditions…

He's never been one to play it safe, and it's that which makes Yurav Premlall such an intriguing prospect among the youngsters currently making their way on the Sunshine Tour. Perhaps most famously in his young career so far. being aggressive nearly cost him his shot at winning a major trophy: ‘I almost lost it by being too aggressive.’he remembers about winning the Freddie Tbit Cup for the leading amateur in the 2021 South African Open Championship at Gary Player Country Club at Sun City He closed with a 75 there after his first three rounds of 70, 69 and 72. but he held on to win the trophy after four attempts I've never been one to play safe golf,’ he says. ‘Maybe I'm all for percentage golf, but especially…

B y most conventional wisdom, you'd be thinking that the best men's golfer in the world is the player ranked No 1 on the Official World Golf Ranking. As we moved through February, that man was Scottie Scheffler. The 27-year-old American might well be the best player in the world. Then again, he might not be. Such is the impact that LIV Golf has made to the rankings, with points not allocated for the breakaway circuit, which features shotgun starts and 54-hole events, that some of the finest golfers in the world won't reach the summit. Some, like Jon Rahm and Dustin Johnson, are golfers who one might think are top-10 players at any time of any given year. Johnson is still only 39, but he was officially world No 1…

As one of just four courses in South Africa which basks in the ‘royal’ designation conferred by King George V, Royal Cape Golf Club also has the distinction of being the oldest golf club in Africa. There is a wealth of memorabilia preserved in the clubhouse, built in 1923, with the foundation stone laid by Prince Arthur of Connaught, then Governor General of South Africa, and since modernised with its original charm. That alone makes a visit to the club worthwhile for the golfing aficionado. Of course, with a bag of clubs in tow, this is no good walk spoiled: Royal Cape Golf Club enjoys tremendous views of Devils Peak and the long tail of the Thble Mountain Range. Although the course is surrounded by the encroachment of the city,…

EQUIPMENT If it's true that the PGA Show wasn't as appealing in the past couple of years, Owing to the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent dip in industry business, it's probably fair to say that the 2024 event was back to its former glory. Fuelled in large part by the continuous advancements in golf technology and specifically golf launch monitors, traffic boomed. Exhibit halls were packed with more than 7 000 PGA professionals mixing. VIP buyers attending the show represent approximately $800-million in purchasing power and nearly $2-billion in retail sales. Representatives of 89 countries attended in late January. Here are some observations from the show and things that caught the eye. LOOKING THE PART Callaway, Titleist, Cobra, Ping, Cleveland/ Srixon and Mizuno were all there with large booths. Titleist…

WYNDHAM CLARK There's enough history up to now to know that when there's smoke around a LIV Golf new signing, it turns into a towering inferno. And right now the talk is that Wyndham; Dark will be the next hfghprofile convert from the PGA Tour to LIV. And wore it to happen it wouldn't he about Line money new would it? Because, as the 30-year-old American raid reporters following his AT&T Pebble- Beach Pro-Am victory In February. I Ultimately declined going to LIV because l lull like I still have a lot of things left in t he tank on the PGA Tour and I wanted to chase records I wanted to chase world ranking My dream is to hi in- of tin top players in Ilia world it not…

RYAN CAIRNS COLUMN Life on the road is not for everyone, even when they believe it to be. After watching Dylan Erittelli win again on the DP World Tour, for the first time in six years, it reminded me of a story. The story led me to a belief: there is no single formula for success. Years ago, long before he broke through in Europe and longer before he won the John Deere Classic, Dylan walked out of the Lanseria Airport terminal dragging his bags and came across a stranded Zimbo, looking for a ride to Leopard Creek. It was the week of the Alfred Dunhill Championship and I often cringe when I think about how unbelievably disorganised [and dirt poor) I was, but lo and behold, that afternoon Dylan…

FOpen champion Louis or discerning golfers, there's a new gem at this World Top 25 Golf Resort: La Réserve Golf Links. Let's take a closer look at the defining features of the first and only contemporary links course in the Indian Ocean, co-designed by Oosthuizen. Challenging Layout La Réserve Golf Links has been codesigned by acclaimed course architect Peter Matkovich, known for creating some of the world's most iconic golf courses, with the links expertise of Open champion Louis Oosthuizen. The 18-hole championship layout is designed to challenge golfers of all skill levels. With a par of 72, the course spans over 6 700 metres, with each hole offering multiple tee positions to provide challenging, yet enjoyable experiences for golfers of any ability. For seasoned players looking to test their…

Here's question. What do you get when you cross the world's most iconic sports brand with a sport's most transcendent, successful and identifiable athletes? The answer, as it turns out, is not all that much. How else to appraise the recently dissolved, 27-year union of Nike and Tiger Woods? After several weeks - indeed, months - of speculation, 15-time Major champion Woods announced on 5 January that he and his longest-standing sponsor had called it quits. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Woods reflected on his ‘partnership with one of the most iconic brands in the world’, thanking Nike chief executive Phil Knight for his ‘passion and vision’. Reciprocating on Instagram, Nike posted a picture of Woods celebrating his first Major victory, the 1997 Masters, adding: ‘Tiger, you challenged…

BARTH MILNE FITNESS With the seismic shift in the professional game, large prize funds and bonuses are on offer on the world's professional golf Tours. There has been a lot of coverage divulging the large sums of money received by professional golfers and Order of Merit winners. These amounts are certainly worth playing for, but casual golf fans presume that professional golfers earn these large sums for a mere four, or even three, days of work. However, these moments of exceptional play are the product of years of preparation and countless hours of hard work. In fact, there is a full team behind every player that allows them to get to where they are today. Every golfer, whether amateur or professional, who is competing on the major Tours around the…

SIGNATURE HOLE 14th hole, par four, 401m By Cassie Viljoen, General Manager With the predominant south-easter wind in summer, the player faces a challenging tee shot with a relatively narrow landing area. Trees close to the fairway on the left, a fairway bunker on the right and a clump of huge trees on the right put a premium on an accurate tee shot. The tee shot should be middle to middle-left to leave a dear shot to the green as there is a penalising tree on the corner of the dogleg right which might block your approach To be clear of the bunker and the tree on the corner, a drive of 270 yards (at sea level) is required. There is a penalty area short right ot the green which…

Jordan Burnand fired a final-round three-under-par 67 around Mt Edgecombe's The Woods course to claim the biggest title of his career, the South African Stroke Play Championship, by a single shot. The 23-year-old almost didn't make it to the 1st tee, though, after being ill during the week leading up to the GolfRSA flagship event. ‘I played at the Gauteng North Open at Copperleaf last week and really struggled through the final 36 holes,’ Jordan explained. The doctor confirmed I had pneumonia and bronchitis; I spent two days on a drip, and the rest of the week recovering.’ Burnand didn't touch a club for a week, but he was determined to play at the opening tournament of the GolfRSA South African Swing - the three biggest tournaments in local amateur…

ASHLEIGH BUHAI COLUMN I had a busy off-season which still involved lots of travel. We spent two weeks in Australia after my Australian Open win and had so much fun. We took a trip up the north coast of New South Wales, about two hours from Sydney, where we spent the week with family and good friends of ours we used to play with on Tour. After that, we headed back to Sydney to spend a little more time there so we could catch up with friends we hadn't seen while I was playing the Australian Open. I know us South Africans and Aussies have a huge rivalry and we are always giving each other grief but I actually think it's because we are so alike. We love the same…

South Africa's 18-year-old rookie sensation Ashleigh Simon announced her arrival on the world golf stage in 2007 by winning the Catalonia Masters in Barcelona - just a month after turning pro. In snatching victory from overnight leader Kirsty Thylor of England, she became the youngest professional to win in Ladies European Tour history, although Korea's Amy Yang was younger - just 16 -when she captured the 2006 AZN Masters as an amateur. ‘I told my dad (Mike) before the final round that I'd win it as a Father's Day present for him,’ said an elated and emotional Simon after sinking the final putt. This was only the Royal Johannesburg & Kensington golfer's fourth tournament as a professional but she won it in style with rounds of 70, 68 and 70…

In July 1984, when Seve Ballesteros won The Open Championship at St Andrews, I was a 12-year-old golf obsessive with a half-set of Wilson Andy Beans and a diminishing handicap. Seve, my hero, was 27 and in his blistering prime. By the end of the last round. I picked a vantage point on The Links and stood on a milk crate behind a 10-deep scrum of spectators, craning my neck for a glimpse of Ballesteros as he strode impassively up and over the mounds towards his ball. To my left, I could see a crowd massed behind the 17th waiting for Seve's closest rival, Tom Watson, to approach. His ball lay just over the notorious road, inches from an old stone wall. But the American was still level with Ballesteros…