BMG Classic heads to Glendower Golf Course

Golf is a simple game of distance and direction.

Remember always that a one centimetre putt counts the same as a 300 metre drive.

October 17 to 19 will see the 20th playing of the Sunshine Tour’s BMG Classic, an event sponsored by the Bearing Man Group.

This places the BMG in a special club of just three sponsors who have continued their support of the Tour for 20 years or more, the others being Dimension Data and Alfred Dunhill.

Following many successful years of Pro Am golf at the Witbank Golf Club, the Bearing Man Highveld Classic was held at the club in 1995.

The tournament remained at its Witbank home for 13 years until 2007 and then moved to the Ebotse Golf and Country Estate course in Benoni in 2008.

A year later, BMG moved the tournament to Glendower, where it has been staged ever since.

For many years, the BMG Classic has formed part of a key period for many Sunshine Tour players, hoping to fine-tune their games and improve their rankings ahead of the major summer tournaments.

Some of the winners of the BMG Classic include Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, John Bland, David Frost, Mark McNulty and Bobby Lincoln.

In the last decade, the BMG Classic launched the international careers of players such as Darren Fichardt, Titch Moore and Bradford Vaughan.

The first classic played at Glendower in 2009 was won by Canadian, Graham Delaet.

Delaet is now a regular on the PGA Tour and at 40th on the World rankings, he is currently the highest ranked Canadian in world golf.

Since then, Brandon Pieters, James Kamte and Teboho Seftasa have won.

Last year an outstanding performance from Ulrich van den Berg took him to a five stroke victory at 15 under par.

Ulrich carried that form into the summer and today ranks 10th on the Tour’s Order of Merit with earnings of R1 115 7774.

Ulrich will be back to defend his title from October 17 to 19.

Glendower is one the of the country’s finest championship courses, as noted by European Ryder Cup Captain Paul McGinley.

This year’s BMG Classic will again herald the start of the more lucrative summer swing on the Sunshine Tour.

Seeking glory ahead of what will be a bumper summer for the Sunshine Tour, the BMG Classic will no doubt once again drawn a strong field of seasoned professionals and young rising stars, hoping for success in the R800,000 tournament.