It took nearly eight years, but Jacques Blaauw is a Sunshine Tour champion again as he took his sixth title on the tour after a play-off victory on Friday in the SunBet Challenge at Sun City.
“I’m really glad to have got it done,” said an elated Blaauw after the win. “It’s especially nice to have done it against a field that contained one of South Africa’s best players in Thriston Lawrence as well as some of the good young up-and-coming talent in South Africa. And to do it on a course that is no pushover is also very pleasing.
“I’ve waited so long now for this win, so I was like a madman, going crazy on the phone when I spoke to my wife and dad.”
He nearly stumbled at the final hurdle as he bogeyed the 15th and the 18th at Gary Player Country Club, but an eagle and three birdies saw him to a closing three-under-par 69 and a 54-hole total of five-under-par.
That put him level with young Tristen Galant, who carded a closing two-under-par 70 in the final round. Blaauw’s experience was enough to give him the edge on the first extra hole of the play-off which took place on the fabled par-five ninth with its daunting island green.
Blaauw started his final round well with birdies on one and two, and he made pars all the way to the turn which he reached in 34. The gettable par-five 10th gave him a gap as he made eagle there. A birdie on 12 set him up nicely, but he appeared to be struggling coming home with those two late bogeys.
In the end, his ability to soak up pressure was the difference as he emerged triumphant in the play-off with Galant, who, despite losing, will be happy with his second-place finish representing the best of his short career.
“I’ve been putting very well recently and my approach play today was much closer than I’m used to, which gave me more chances for birdies. A lot of hard work has gone into this, especially with my driving, which I’ve struggled with lately. But I worked on it yesterday and changed my settings,” said Blaauw
Yurav Premlall and one of the Sunshine Tour’s new young guns, Jonathan Broomhead, shared third on four-under for the tournament, with Luke Brown and Jaco Ahlers in a share of fifth on three-under.
Blaauw, who last won in September 2016 in Sishen, has looked likely to step into the winner’s circle again after he closed out the previous Sunshine Tour season with a sixth place in the Stella Artois Players Championship and a runner-up spot in the Limpopo Championship.
His third place in last month’s KitKat Cash and Carry Pro-am confirmed a return to form, and, inevitably, the breakthrough came.
