Vaughn van Deventer crafted a bogey-free seven-under-par 65 on Monday to take a one-stroke lead in the first round of the Big Easy IGT Challenge Tour’s Big Easy Play Off #2 at Blue Valley Golf and Country Estate.
Van Deventer made four birdies on the front nine and three on his homeward nine to pull one clear of Erhard Lambrechts in second, two ahead of Ian Snyman who leads the Road to the Sunshine Tour rankings, and three ahead of five players on four-under-par 68.
Van Deventer, who had a share of 26th in the opening play-off event last week and had slipped to sixth place on the Order of Merit – the top six players will earn their Sunshine Tour cards after the final play-off – last won back in August last year, but a closing 68 last week heralded a return to the form which has brought him seven top-10s this year, including two in the last four tournaments.
A measure of how good his round was can be gleaned from the fact that there were no other bogey-free rounds on the day. Lambrechts came close, making just one bogey, and eagle and five birdies in his round as befits his position in fourth on the Order of Merit.
Snyman made two bogeys, one on each nine, as he fought his way to a five-under 67. That puts him well in contention to push for a second-successive win in the play-offs. That would put him in a virtually impregnable position at the top of the Order of Merit, sewing up a Sunshine Tour card to go with his Asian Tour card which he will begin to use in the Blue Canyon Phuket Championship, on November 25 when that circuit grinds back into action.
One of the players in a share of fourth was Ryan van Velzen, and he is currently in fourth place on the Order of Merit too. The man in second place on the Order of Merit, Kyle McClatchie, battled his way to a one-under 71. Given the purple patch he has been experiencing, it’s not hard to see him bouncing back into contention in this tournament.
