Williams charges back to winning ways

Lali Stander – JOHANNESBURG, 6 January 2017 – Kim Williams proved that class is permanent as she marched to victory in the 2017 Sunshine Ladies Tour season opener on Friday.

2017 SuperSport Ladies Challenge champion Kim Williams; credit Sunshine Ladies Tour

After three winless seasons, there were some who thought the former top-ranked Pretoria golfer would never scale great heights again, but Williams silenced her critics with a one-stroke victory in the SuperSport Ladies Challenge at Huddle Park Golf Club.

A three-under-par 68 at the pristine Linksfield course smoothed the way to a winning total of seven-under-par 209 and her first success since a maiden conquest in her pro debut in 2014.

A beaming Williams said she believes there is more to come.

“It came as a bit of a surprise to be honest, because my last competitive outing was 10 months ago,” Williams said.

“This was way, way overdue and now that the monkey is off my back, I’m eager to see what I can do for the rest of the season. We’ll be heading to Cape Town for the South African Women’s Masters in just over a week and then on to KZN for the SA Women’s Open.

“It’s awesome to take this momentum into the two national championships and to start the Chase to the Investec Cup for Ladies on a winning note. I was gutted when I missed the final last year, so this bodes well for my chances this year.”

The 30-year-old from Pretoria began the final round at four-under after successive rounds of 70.

She lagged three shots behind three-time Sunshine Ladies Tour winner Monique Smit and started the final 18 holes a stroke ahead of Kiran Matharu from England.

She shortened the gap with a birdie at the second and when Smit bogeyed the third, Williams pounced with another birdie to join the Southern Cape golfer in the front of the field. She took the outright lead at seven-under after a fourth birdie at the eighth, while Matharu quietly weaved her way into contention with birdies at one, six and nine.

Smit fell away after a double bogey at 10, but Williams three-putted from 10 feet and Matharu also surrendered a shot.

“Monique battled off the tees, which gave Kiran and me a chance to catch up,” said Williams. “Kiran showed all the experience of a decade on the Ladies European Tour and made almost no mistakes. I was relieved when she also dropped 10, but she stayed with me, though.”

Williams notched another gain at 14 and back-to-back birdies at 16 and 17 saw her head to the final hole with a two-shot lead at eight under.

“This is one of the toughest holes on the course, so having a two-shot cushion gave me some comfort,” she said. “I hit my second a little too long, but I had a pretty easy putt and then I quit on it and left myself a testing five-footer for par. I wasn’t going to get aggressive over that putt so I was happy to three-putt and take the win.

“The last three years have been tough, but I’ve always felt that if I could get in the mix, I could win again. Being back at the pro shop at Centurion Country Club has given me security and the chance to play golf, so this one is for the management, staff and members at Centurion.”

Meanwhile Melissa Eaton blitzed the back nine in 31 strokes to close with a four under 68 that sealed a runner-up finish at six under for the former Symetra Tour campaigner. Matharu also dropped the 18^th but a 70 was good enough for a third-place finish at five under in her Sunshine Ladies Tour debut.

KwaZulu-Natal golfer Michaela Fletcher – a student at the University of Memphis – closed with a 69 to finish fourth at two under and notched the leading amateur honour.

Final Result

All players RSA unless otherwise specified and amateurs indicated as (AMA)

209 – Kim Williams 70 70 69

210 – Melissa Eaton 73 69 68

211 – Kiran Matharu 74 67 70

214 – Michaela Fletcher 73 72 69

215 – Carrie Park 73 73 69, Nobuhle Dlamini 71 72 72, Ivanna Samu 72 70 73

216 – Bertine Strauss 69 75 72, Lejan Lewthwaite 71 72 73, Monique Smit 69 68 79

219 – Lara Weinstein 74 76 69, Eleonora Galletti 74 73 72, Catherine Lau 73 73 73

220 – Lora Assad 76 74 70, Tijana Kraljevic 73 70 77

222 – Nicole Garcia 70 74 78

224 – Bonita Bredenhann 71 79 74

225 – Crizelda van Niekerk 74 76 75, Alexandra Lennartsson 73 76 76

226 – Flavia Namakula 75 76 75, Tandi von Ruben 77 74 75, Laila Hrindova 72 79 75, Monja Richards 77 76 73, Francesca Cuturi 75 80 71

227 – Morgana Robbertze 72 78 77, Casandra Hall 78 77 72

228 – Mae Cornforth 74 78 76

229 – Mandy Adamson 76 76 77

230 – Nicole Becker 79 76 75, Alana van Greuning 77 79 74

232 – Hanna Roos 75 76 81, Lindi Coetzee 73 76 83, Natasha Carlsson 78 77 77, Siviwe Duma 77 80 75

234 – Caitlyn Macnab 77 82 75

236 – Lynette Fourie 73 80 83

239 – Sarah Bouch 84 81 74

241 – Michelle de Vries 81 83 77

242 – Yolanda Duma 79 79 84, Maria Roos 79 80 83, Shawnelle de Lange 84 78 80, Michelle Leigh 87 79 76

246 – Wilna Bredenhann 80 84 82, Leslie Grandet 86 80 80

247 – Nina Grey 84 83 80

253 – Kim de Klerk 86 83 84

Williams charges back to winning ways

Vorster seals Nomads SA Boys U-15

MODIMOLLE, 6 January 2017 – Southern Cape junior Martin Vorster fired a closing 69 on Friday to complete a wire-to-wire victory over Casey Jarvis from Ekurhuleni in the Golf RSA Nomads South African Boys Under-15 Championship.

2017 Golf RSA Nomads SA Boys U-15 champion Martin Vorster; credit SAGA

The 14-year-old Louis Oosthuizen Junior Academy member was in imperious form over all three days at the Koro Creek Bushveld Golf Estate in the Limpopo Province.

He shot 67 in the wind-swept first round and added a 66 on day two en route to posting an impressive winning total of 14-under-par 202.

Vorster defeated reigning SA Boys U-15 Challenge champion Casey Jarvis by one stroke to capture his first on the national junior circuit.

The Pinnacle Point golfer impressed with a top 10 finish in the Nomads SA Boys U-19 and a fourth place finish in the Nomads SA Boys U-17 championships last year. Needless to say, he was extremely pleased with the winning display.

“I am so pleased that I pulled this through,” said the beaming youngster. “Casey won the Boys 11-13 Division at the IMG Junior World Florida Challenge in December and he arrived here in red-hot form.

“He chased me hard from day one and he stayed in the fight and never let up in the final round. He made me work hard and that pushed me to produce my best golf ever.”

Vorster towers at 1.85 metres tall in his socks and his booming drives fly the 300 metre mark, while the one and a half metre short Jarvis averages at around 230 metres off the tee. Not surprisingly, the spectators were primed for the David and Goliath battle on the final day and the pair did not disappoint.

“I have the advantage off the tee and Casey has great all-round skills and he never stops fighting, so I knew I was in for a long and tough day,” Vorster said.

Vorster birdied the first and fired a trio of birdies after a bogey at the third to move three shots clear of Jarvis, who chipped in for his first gain at the par four sixth. He dropped another shot at the 10th when he short-sided himself after leaving a seven-iron approach shot short and Jarvis cut his advantage to a lone shot with a birdie at 13.

“At 14 I pulled my tee shot and finished about 10 metres off the fairway,” said Vorster. “I left my six-iron in 20 metres short of the green, but I chipped to two feet and holed the putt for birdie to widen the gap again.

“With a two shot cushion, I stayed cautious over the closing holes, kept the ball in play and made sure I hit fairways and greens. I had a two shot lead going down 18, but like I said, Casey never gives up.”

Vorster laid up to 85 metres and parked his approach seven metres short of the pin. He lagged his first putt to hole a one and a half feet and holed the putt for par, but Jarvis went one better and boxed his birdie effort to sign off with a flawless 69.

“In the end there was just one shot in it every day and it was a fantastic contest,” Vorster said. “I am happy and delighted at the same time and excited about the season ahead. It was fantastic to play with Casey and I just want to remind him that he still has one more year to add this championship to his tally, so keep working hard Casey.”

Liam van Deventer also returned a 69 that sealed third spot at one under for the Benoni Lake golfer.

Final Result (top 20)

202 Martin Vorster 67 66 69

203 Casey Jarvis 68 66 69

215 Liam van Deventer 72 74 69

217 Kieron van Wyk 72 72 73

220 Luka Stanisavljevic 72 75 73

221 Yurav Premlall 72 73 76

222 Emerson Bam 75 72 75

224 Nash de Klerk 77 76 71; Carl Mwale 76 77 71

225 Jordan Duminy 73 77 75

226 Christiaan Maas 76 78 72

227 Christiaan Kieser 78 76 73; James Murray 78 75 74; Malan Potgieter 75 75 77

229 Gheran Hattingh 76 74 79; Matthew Dennis 75 79 75

230 Dylan Melville 82 75 73; Neil Retief 80 73 77; Zander Lombard 75 79 76

231 Matthew Mc Carthy 79 78 74; Christopher Bagnall 75 74 82

Vorster seals Nomads SA Boys U-15

Vorster seals Nomads SA Boys U-15

MODIMOLLE, 6 January 2017 – Southern Cape junior Martin Vorster fired a closing 69 on Friday to complete a wire-to-wire victory over Casey Jarvis from Ekurhuleni in the Golf RSA Nomads South African Boys Under-15 Championship.

2017 Golf RSA Nomads SA Boys U-15 champion Martin Vorster; credit SAGA

The 14-year-old Louis Oosthuizen Junior Academy member was in imperious form over all three days at the Koro Creek Bushveld Golf Estate in the Limpopo Province.

He shot 67 in the wind-swept first round and added a 66 on day two en route to posting an impressive winning total of 14-under-par 202.

Vorster defeated reigning SA Boys U-15 Challenge champion Casey Jarvis by one stroke to capture his first on the national junior circuit.

The Pinnacle Point golfer impressed with a top 10 finish in the Nomads SA Boys U-19 and a fourth place finish in the Nomads SA Boys U-17 championships last year. Needless to say, he was extremely pleased with the winning display.

“I am so pleased that I pulled this through,” said the beaming youngster. “Casey won the Boys 11-13 Division at the IMG Junior World Florida Challenge in December and he arrived here in red-hot form.

“He chased me hard from day one and he stayed in the fight and never let up in the final round. He made me work hard and that pushed me to produce my best golf ever.”

Vorster towers at 1.85 metres tall in his socks and his booming drives fly the 300 metre mark, while the one and a half metre short Jarvis averages at around 230 metres off the tee. Not surprisingly, the spectators were primed for the David and Goliath battle on the final day and the pair did not disappoint.

“I have the advantage off the tee and Casey has great all-round skills and he never stops fighting, so I knew I was in for a long and tough day,” Vorster said.

Vorster birdied the first and fired a trio of birdies after a bogey at the third to move three shots clear of Jarvis, who chipped in for his first gain at the par four sixth. He dropped another shot at the 10th when he short-sided himself after leaving a seven-iron approach shot short and Jarvis cut his advantage to a lone shot with a birdie at 13.

“At 14 I pulled my tee shot and finished about 10 metres off the fairway,” said Vorster. “I left my six-iron in 20 metres short of the green, but I chipped to two feet and holed the putt for birdie to widen the gap again.

“With a two shot cushion, I stayed cautious over the closing holes, kept the ball in play and made sure I hit fairways and greens. I had a two shot lead going down 18, but like I said, Casey never gives up.”

Vorster laid up to 85 metres and parked his approach seven metres short of the pin. He lagged his first putt to hole a one and a half feet and holed the putt for par, but Jarvis went one better and boxed his birdie effort to sign off with a flawless 69.

“In the end there was just one shot in it every day and it was a fantastic contest,” Vorster said. “I am happy and delighted at the same time and excited about the season ahead. It was fantastic to play with Casey and I just want to remind him that he still has one more year to add this championship to his tally, so keep working hard Casey.”

Liam van Deventer also returned a 69 that sealed third spot at one under for the Benoni Lake golfer.

Final Result (top 20)

202 Martin Vorster 67 66 69

203 Casey Jarvis 68 66 69

215 Liam van Deventer 72 74 69

217 Kieron van Wyk 72 72 73

220 Luka Stanisavljevic 72 75 73

221 Yurav Premlall 72 73 76

222 Emerson Bam 75 72 75

224 Nash de Klerk 77 76 71; Carl Mwale 76 77 71

225 Jordan Duminy 73 77 75

226 Christiaan Maas 76 78 72

227 Christiaan Kieser 78 76 73; James Murray 78 75 74; Malan Potgieter 75 75 77

229 Gheran Hattingh 76 74 79; Matthew Dennis 75 79 75

230 Dylan Melville 82 75 73; Neil Retief 80 73 77; Zander Lombard 75 79 76

231 Matthew Mc Carthy 79 78 74; Christopher Bagnall 75 74 82

Vorster seals Nomads SA Boys U-15