Tournament of stars at Randpark Golf Club
RANDPARK – The annual 2020 South African Open Championship, hosted at the Randpark Golf Club teed-off on 9 January.
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Some of the world’s best golfers teed off in the annual 2020 South African Open Championship, hosted at the Randpark Golf Club on 9 January.
The star-studded line up of four balls included Shaun Norris, Charl Schwartzel, Branden Grace, Brandon Stone, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Zander Lombard and Justin Harding among others.
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Golfing heavyweight Louis Oosthuizen returns to the tournament as the defending champion.
The tournament will be played on Randpark’s two golf courses, Firethorn and Bushwillow, with the 240-strong field competing for R17.5 million in prize money.
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Mayor of Johannesburg Geoff Makhubo launched the event and was to first to tee-off in the early morning’s cloudy drizzle.
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He said, “We as the City of Johannesburg are honoured to host a tournament of this standard, and it means a lot. Golf is a growing sport and by hosting tournaments like this at a local level, the aim is to inspire our communities. We hope to make our city a mecca for, not only golf, but various other sports too.
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“I would like to give a give a word of good luck to all the players taking part in the tournament.”
Oosthuizen is also this year’s New Player Host and will be the mentor to a record 11 amateurs who have entered the Open hoping to make a name for themselves against well-known golfing giants in the game.
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The Open made history this year after the official pro-am was hosted at the Soweto Country Club for the first time to promote the sport at an international level on the course designed by Gary Player.
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The first two rounds will be played on both the Firethorn and Bushwillow courses at Randpark. The final two rounds will be played solely on the Firethorn course.
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The SA Open forms part of the Sunshine Tour and is co-sanctioned by the European Tour.
It promises an exhibition of golfing excellence from 9 to 12 January.
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