James Kingston and Hennie Otto, undoubtedly two of the country’s favourite SA Golf Open winners, will join defending champion Henrik Stenson and two-time champion Retief Goosen in the 103rd edition of South Africa’s flagship event, the 103rd South African Open Championship, earmarked for Glendower, on November 21-24.
Ekurhuleni’s own son looked to be cruising to victory, with a three-shot lead and six holes to play, in the 2011 edition.
Then he bogeyed three of the next four holes to drop back to minus-13, equal to the score that Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger had signed for to post the clubhouse lead.
Otto had to finish par-par merely to tie, but the man they call the “Boksburg Bomber” reached for his driver at the 17th and hit a shot so good, it actually ran through the green.
He skilfully chipped to about four feet from the cup and, kneeling as if praying, carefully lined up the putt before rolling it in for birdie.
He knew victory was within his grasp.
After another big drive down the 18th, and a safety-first approach to the right side of the green, away from the water, he two-putted from 40 feet for victory.
Otto was extremely emotional after winning the 101st edition in dramatic fashion.
“To win the SA Open, your own national open, is very special,” he said.
“You just have to look at the names on the trophy – Els, Goosen, Player and Locke – to know you’re in esteemed company.”
Kingston annexed the 2007 SA Open for his first European Tour victory.
After 19 long and frustrating years of trying, often coming close and being told he wasn’t mentally tough enough, he proved everyone wrong at the ripe old age of 42.
“You can’t put a price on what this means to me,” Kingston said after sinking the winning putt.
“This is the greatest day of my career. I’m doubly emotional right now, because, to win this – my own national open against a world-class field – and to follow in the footsteps of a man like Gary Player is massive.”
Kingston and Otto will be in esteemed company for the 103rd edition of the South African Open, on a course that has hosted the tournament on three previous occasions, with American Fred Wadsworth, South Africa’s own Clinton Whitelaw and the legendary Vijay Singh being the respective winners.
This year’s line-up includes two-times US Open champion Retief Goosen, Kingston and Otto, as well as two-times Alfred Dunhill Championship winner Pablo Martin, and no fewer than 29 other Sunshine Tour winners.
The 103rd edition promises to be a cracking tournament, full of emotion, because that’s what winning the South African Open does to the players.
