THE WEEKEND OF THE INVESTEC SA Open at Blair Atholl played out simi- larly to a major championship, such was the difficulty of an exacting course playing firmer and firmer as tempera- tures soared in Gauteng. What an ab- sorbingly different contest, one of the best modern Opens in terms of sus- pense. And we have not been short of memorable ones. Gary Player will have been pleased with the championship emphasis on course setup. Only the new champion, Dean Burmester, finished in double digits under par for the 72 holes, and that was because his 65 on Saturday was something of an anomaly. He had teed off at 7.14 in cooler, softer conditions to the leaders who went off much later. Few golfers have won a big tournament having made the cut on the number (those records are not available for the SA Open), and it also meant Burmester pulled off one of the largest 36-hole comebacks in the history of the championship. He trailed Jesper Svensson by 9 shots, and beat the second-placed Swede by three. The last 9-shot weekend comeback was by Richard Sterne in the 2008 Open at Pearl Valley. The 36-hole leader on that occasion, Spain’s Michael Lorenzo- Vera, had got off to a flier with 67-65, then crashed. Blair Atholl was by no means the toughest SA Open venue in the modern era – that will likely forever remain The Links at Fancourt in 2005 – but coastal venues cannot be compared BLAIR ATHOLL PROVES WORTHY SA OPEN TEST Dean Burmester shows his class with remarkable weekend comeback.
Dean Burmester, right, with the SA Open trophy, and Altin van der Merwe, winner of the Freddie Tait Cup as leading amateur in the SA Open.
became part of the European Tour in 1997. And it has been 30 years since only the winner finished in double digits under par in Gauteng. The sheer length of Blair Atholl at 7 527 metres, and vastness of the greens, played into the hands of the prodigious- hitting Burmester, but it was as much his supreme course management and command of his game that took him to victory. Over the four days he had 21 birdies and 10 bogeys. He played the 20 par-5s in 10-under, and even made a 6 on one of them. Burmester had played in every SA Open going back to 2013, and four top-5 finishes in 2017, 2020, 2021 and 2022 had earmarked him as a potential champion. He is the first Zimbabwean- born golfer to win since Mark McNulty in 2001. Both were roughly the same age, 33-34, in claiming their first Open trophy. (McNulty won his second at age 48.) Note: Since Ernie Els won his fifth SA Open in 2010, there have been 13 consecutive first-time winners.
to championships played in highveld conditions. Blair Atholl averaged an unremarkable 72.9 for the four days, but on the weekend, with the best 71 players left, it still averaged 72.73. There were only 14 rounds in the 60s. That’s the highest weekend average of any highveld Open since the championship
Back to back winners in DP World Tour in Southern Africa
LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN 2023 (Dec) Alfred Dunhill, Mauritius Open DEAN BURMESTER 2023 (Nov-Dec) Joburg Open, SA Open CHRISTIAAN BEZUIDENHOUT 2020 (Nov-Dec) Alfred Dunhill, SA Open CHARL SCHWARTZEL 2010 (January) Africa Open, Joburg Open RICHARD STERNE 2008 (December) Alfred Dunhill, SA Open NICK PRICE 1997 (February) DiData Pro-Am, Alfred Dunhill PGA
94 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2024
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