Darren Fichardt bogeyed the 16th hole to drop into a playoff with 2018 winner Matias Calderon but ultimately prevailed to win the Eye of Africa PGA Championship.
Fichardt added his name to the rich history of South African golf; the event is the second oldest professional golf tournament at Eye of Africa Signature Golf Estate.
‘I have always wanted to win the Eye of Africa PGA Championship, and the way I won it was very special. To win in a playoff is always awesome, and then hitting a driver and five iron and making a good putt for birdie was very satisfying,’ said Fichardt.
He now owns a place on a trophy that includes some of the biggest names in South African golf.
Fichardt went into the final round tied for the lead with Jacques Kruyswijk on 16 under, and Calderon four shots adrift of them.
But Calderon came surging through the field with a 64, and Fichardt’s own 68 saw the title decided between these two. Kruyswijk took third place on 19 under par with a 69.
The victory was a timely boost for Fichardt, who admits the tribulations of having to return to the European Tour Qualifying School last year after losing his card took it out of him.
‘I had a tough year last year and decided not to touch a club over December. I came out at the South African Open and was a bit rusty, and missed the cut by one. I was thinking I hope it’s not going to be one of those years again. So to win the week after is awesome.
‘It’s fantastic playing at home and having that support. It can get very lonely on tour and it’s great to hear people calling your name and supporting you.’
Final scores:
268 – Darren Fichardt 65 70 65 68 (Won on the third hole of a sudden-death playoff)
268 – Matias Calderon 70 67 67 64
269 – Jacques Kruyswijk 67 69 64 69
271 – Thriston Lawrence 66 66 69 70
272 – Daniel van Tonder 67 69 66 70
273 – Jaco Ahlers 71 69 64 69
274 – MJ Viljoen 70 68 68 68, JC Ritchie 70 68 68 68
275 – Philip Eriksson 66 70 69 70, Louis de Jager 69 67 68 71
276 – Steve Surry 71 70 67 68
277 – Toby Tree 70 68 70 69, Trevor Fisher Jnr 67 70 69 71, Ulrich van den Berg 69 69 68 71, Andre Nel 71 70 65 71, Jaco Van Zyl 70 66 69 72, Bryce Easton 68 66 70 73, Jake Redman 69 67 68 73
278 – Fredrik From 71 68 70 69, Martin Rohwer 68 70 70 70
279 – Oliver Bekker 69 70 70 70
280 – James Allan 72 70 70 68, Hennie Otto 70 67 73 70, Christiaan Basson 74 67 69 70, Hennie du Plessis 72 66 71 71
281 – Jean Hugo 69 68 74 70, Tyrone Ferreira 67 69 74 71, Garrick Higgo 66 75 69 71
282 – Luke Jerling 71 70 73 68, Deon Germishuys 75 67 70 70, Victor Lange 70 71 68 73, Kyle Barker 70 67 71 74, Peter Karmis 71 68 69 74
283 – Mark Williams 70 67 76 70, Jacques Blaauw 69 67 74 73, Jean-Paul Strydom 70 70 70 73, Gavin Moynihan 67 69 72 75
284 – Juran Dreyer 71 70 73 70, Ruan de Smidt 69 67 77 71, Doug McGuigan 73 69 71 71, Callum Mowat 67 71 72 74, Toto Thimba 68 71 69 76
285 – Ruan Conradie 70 70 72 73, Neil Schietekat 73 68 71 73
286 – Bennie van der Merwe 73 69 74 70, Hayden Griffiths 71 71 72 72
287 – James Hart du Preez 75 67 70 75, Jake Roos 70 71 70 76, Erhard Lambrechts 68 71 71 77
289 – Ockie Strydom 70 70 73 76, David McIntyre 69 71 71 78
290 – Teaghan Gauche 74 68 76 72, Jade Buitendag 69 70 78 73, Andrew van der Knaap 71 69 75 75, Estiaan Conradie 69 65 79 77, Andre De Decker 69 71 70 80
291 – Teboho Sefatsa 68 74 76 73, Dylan Naidoo 70 72 75 74, Hennie O’Kennedy 68 66 80 77, Derick Petersen 70 71 72 78
293 – Divan van den Heever 72 67 79 75, Titch Moore 69 71 77 76
294 – Paul Boshoff 68 72 75 79
295 – Chris Swanepoel 67 69 75 84
296 – Vaughn Groenewald 70 72 77 77
DSQ – Wilco Nienaber 71 66 68 DSQ
Photo: Carl Fourie/Sunshine Tour/Gallo Images
