Five South Africans to keep an eye on in the Nedbank Golf Challenge

It’s time again for the Nedbank Golf Challenge at Sun City, regarded as Africa’s major.

Branden Grace’s victory in 2017 brought back some local pride to the showpiece week on the South African golfing calendar and there’ll be quite a few local fans hoping for a repeat after England’s Lee Westwood broke the pattern again.

Here are the local Saffas to look out for when the action starts on Thursday.

CHRISTIAAN BEZUIDENHOUT

Christiaan Bezuidenhout during day 1 of the 2019 Dimension Data Pro-Am at Fancourt on February 14, 2019 in George, South Africa. EDITOR’S NOTE: For free editorial use. Not available for sale. No commercial usage. (Photo by Thinus Maritz/Sunshine Tour/Gallo Images)

One of the next generation of star South African golfers, the 25-year-old Bezuidenhout enjoyed a breakthrough year on the European Tour as he won the Andalucia Masters. He won by a whopping six shots and to make the triumph even more impressive, he held off tournament host Sergio Garcia and fellow Spaniard Jon Rahm on the final day.

The victory has been backed by excellent consistency as Delmas-born Bezuidenhout is 17^th in the Race to Dubai – the European Tour’s order of merit – and 101^st in the world rankings, the fourth-highest South African.

It has been a dramatic rise to the top of South African golf for the survivor of an accidental rat-poison incident when he was just two, the stammer he picked up as a side effect still being with him to the present day, and the 2016 South African Open runner-up has shown he has the mental toughness to do well despite it being his first appearance in the Nedbank Golf Challenge.

BRANDEN GRACE

Branden Grace of South Africa plays a shot on the 14th hole during the third round of the Bermuda Championship at Port Royal Golf Course on November 02, 2019 in Southampton, Bermuda. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

The winner at Sun City two years ago, ending a decade of overseas winners, Grace will be one of the home town favourites even though he has endured a rotten year that meant he had to be given an invitation to participate in the Nedbank Golf Challenge, having not qualified due to his lowly world ranking of 121^st and his 113^th position in the Race to Dubai.

The only golfer to ever shoot 62 in a Major championship, in the 2017 Open at Royal Birkdale, spends most of his time on the U.S. PGA Tour these days, however, playing in only a dozen events in Europe this year, and he was the runner-up in the Phoenix Open (where he nabbed his third career hole-in-one) as well as finishing in the top-10 of the World Golf Matchplay Championship. But those were only small crumbs of comfort as he finished 77^th on the U.S. moneylist.

So Grace will be super-motivated to head into 2020 with a strong showing at the Gary Player Country Club and the crowds will certainly be behind one of their favourite “biscuits”.

JUSTIN HARDING

Justin Harding of South Africa prepares to play his second shot on the first during Day Four of the Turkish Airlines Open at The Montgomerie Maxx Royal on November 10, 2019 in Antalya, Turkey. (Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images)

The 33-year-old landed in the European Tour winner’s circle for the first time when he won the Qatar Masters in March. It was his fifth win in the last 12 months of playing in various tournaments around the world and the Somerset West product, ranked 66^th in the world, is in 23^rd place in the Race to Dubai.

Harding was in strong contention heading into the weekend at last weekend’s Turkish Airlines Open, another Rolex Series event, as he shot 69-65, which included a front nine of just 29 shots, to be in sixth place just two off the lead. He eventually finished in a tie for 25^th, but clearly he is in form.

If he can putt like he did when he stole the show playing in his first Major at the Masters, being in the lead on the opening day, then he can certainly be in with a shout at Sun City.

LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN

South Africa’s top-ranked golfer (23^rd) and the 2010 Open champion has the strategy to succeed at Gary Player Country Club as he showed in finishing third last year, tied-eighth in 2017, ninth in 2016 and fourth in 2012, and the 37-year-old will be extremely keen to add Africa’s Major to his list of worldwide victories. That he is in the elite group of global golfers is shown by his record in the Major championships – apart from his triumph at St Andrews he has been runner-up four times.

His brilliant ball-striking will stand him in good stead on the murderous Gary Player Country Club course, where he went into the final round last year two shots behind Sergio Garcia before both were overtaken by Lee Westwood. The hard-working man who could make swinging a shovel look beautiful will also have plenty of support at Sun City and it would be crazy not to consider him a strong contender.

ERIK VAN ROOYEN

Erik van Rooyen of South Africa plays his second shot on the first during Day Four of the Turkish Airlines Open at The Montgomerie Maxx Royal on November 10, 2019 in Antalya, Turkey. (Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images)

It’s been a dream year for the 29-year-old Van Rooyen as he claimed his maiden victory on the European Tour by winning the Scandinavian Invitational in August and the same explosive brand of golf almost took him to victory in last weekend’s Turkish Airlines Open, like the Nedbank Golf Challenge part of the tour’s prestigious Finals Series, as he lost out in a six-man playoff.

In 2018 he was the European Tour’s Rookie of the Year and Challenge Tour graduate of the year; this year has just added further grist to the mill as he sits in eighth position on the Race to Dubai and is ranked 51^st in the world. He was also the runner-up in Qatar and Morocco.

The second highest ranked South African golfer has grown tremendously over the last year and can make up for the tough time he had on debut at Sun City last year, when he finished tied-60^th.

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