Sunshine Ladies Tour primed for sizzling summer
JOBURG - Valentine’s Day will signal a new era in women’s professional golf in South Africa when the champion of the first Chase to the Investec Cup for Ladies tournament is crowned at the Houghton Golf Club.
Top professionals Lee-Anne Pace and Laurette Maritz are among the country’s leading lights set to fly the South African flag with a host of international competitors on 13 and 14 February.
“The Chase to the Investec Cup for Ladies will officially mark the start of the Sunshine Ladies Tour,” said WPGA chairperson, Margie Whitehouse.
The format of the first six tournaments will be a 36-hole stroke play with no cut, and each event will offer prize money of R100 000. The Investec Cup for Ladies, however, is limited to the leading 10 professionals on the Order of Merit and boasts a purse of R300 000.
Former SA Women’s Open champion Tandi von Ruben and Ladies’ European Tour winner Maritz will lead the local candidates in the first Chase to the Investec Cup for Ladies and the Sunshine Ladies Tour Sun International Challenge, which will be played at the Lost City Golf Course a few days later.
The South Africans can expect strong opposition from the likes of England’s Holly Aitchison and Lauren Blease, Hermione Fitzgerald from Switzerland, Italy’s Sophie Sandolo, Maggie Yuan from Australia, Swaziland’s Nobuhle Dlamini and Bonita Bredenhann from Namibia.
The first six tournaments will also offer the country’s top amateurs the unique opportunity to showcase their talent while gaining valuable experience through rubbing shoulders with professional golfers.
