Smit bags second Sunshine Tour victory

Three weeks ago, Smit held off a spirited challenge from Ladies European Tour (LET) winner Ashleigh Simon at the Dimension Data Ladies Pro-Am in George.

Smit said she was delighted with her win, especially after the frustrations at the Ladies Tshwane Open.

“I’m really proud of the way I played and how I held up under pressure from Lee-Anne,” she said.

“It’s been a tough week with the suspension and delays at Copperleaf and we were really worried that we would lose this event when Zwartkops was flooded.”

The Southern Cape golfer kept Lee-Anne Pace at bay to claim the title in the sixth event of the Chase to the Investec Cup series by one shot.

Smit carded rounds of 71 and 68 for a winning total of five-under-par 139, while eight-time LET champion Pace matched her four under 68 to take second place.

Stacy Bregman and Simon were the only other two players to finish in red figures.

Bregman finished fourth on one under 143 behind overnight leader, Nobuhle Dlamini from Swaziland, while Simon bettered her opening 76 by six shots to slot into eighth on two over.

Smit began the final round one shot off the pace, but signalled her intentions with an eagle at the par-five second hole.

Although she dropped a shot at the third, the eagle set the tone for her game-plan for the day.

“This course is incredibly tight, but if you commit to aggressive lines, you can make birdies.

“If you’re accurate off the tee and attack the pins, chances are you’ll make birdies to reverse mistakes. So I made a conscious decision to be aggressive.

“I nailed a pair of birdies at the seventh and eighth, and turned in three under. I knew the game plan was working, so I just stuck with it, even if I dropped a shot here and there.”

With the win, Smit vaulted to the top of the standings in the Chase to the Investec Cup for Ladies.

Pace, who vaulted to seventh on the standings, will miss the seventh and final event in the series to compete in the LET’s Lalla Meryem Cup in Morocco.

The former European number one hoped she had done enough to earn a spot in the Investec Cup for Ladies.

“There are a number of girls behind me, who are also going to Morocco, but quite a few that could challenge in the last event and push me out of the top 10,” Pace said.

“Not much I can do about that, but if I make it, I’m going all out to win the Investec Cup for Ladies.

“I’ll be coming off four rounds in Morocco, so I’ll be fresh and ready to challenge. Just got to make the field, first.”

The final Chase to the Investec Cup for Ladies will be contested at Blue Valley Golf & Country Estate, in Midrand, where after the leading 10 professionals on the Order of Merit will qualify for the Investec Cup for Ladies at the Millvale Private Retreat & Lost City Golf Course from March 21 to 23.

– Sapa