Keith Horne won the Lowveld Senior Trophy with a score of two under par 140 at Mbombela Golf Club on Tuesday.

The Sunshine Senior Tour-sanctioned tournament was played over 36 holes on Monday and Tuesday.

Horne shot a level par 72 to take the lead after the first round. He held a two-shot lead over Brett Liddle.

Ben Fouchee, Neil Cheetham and Teddy Mathebula were tied for third on +3 after the first 18 holes.

Despite a shaky start to his second round, Horne never relinquished the lead.

He went out in 37 strokes on Sunday, which included a bogey on the seventh hole. He could not make a birdie on the first nine.

But Horne lifted his game and his home nine was pure class. He played the final nine holes in 32 shots, despite a bogey on 13. He birdied 10, 11, 14 and 17.

“I started off okay. I had not played the golf course for 20 years, so I did not know where I was going. I was happy to go three under after 14 holes on day one. Then things did not pan out from there. I struggled until the final nine holes. I managed to keep out of big trouble, but it’s that kind of golf course where if your are missing it, there is a lot of trouble out there. I am happy with my score; under par was good enough to win,” said Horne.

The champion was full of praise for the Mbombela course.

“This time of year is the best time to play. The course plays hard and fast, which makes it difficult, because if you hit it slightly off-line, the ball runs until it finds trouble. It’s the kind of golf course you will not get bored of playing,” he said.

Kenneth Dube, who was tied for sixth after the first round, was on fire on Sunday. His second round of -2 (69) included birdies on the 6th, 16th and 18th, and an eagle three on the 14th hole.

His final shot, a 10-metre chip, four metres from the fringe of the green, was holed to move Dube to second place.

Liddle’s second round of 72 took him to +3 for the tournament, which was good enough for third place.

Cheetham and Mathebula tied for fourth on +6 (148).

A Pro-Am in the format of a better ball Stableford, best score to count, was also played. The senior professional competitors played off a scratch handicap and their amateur partners off their official club handicaps.

Each pro teamed up with an amateur.

Warren Schippers and his pro teammate Mathebula won the competition with a total of 131.

Horne and Jan Steyn, and Dube and Angelo Sebastian tied for second place, both teams scoring 132.

Liddle and Gary Herbert, and Henry Roodt (pro) and CJ Esterhuizen tied for fourth on 135.

Other prizes
Day 1
• Nearest to the pin, hole 3: Kegan van Wyk
• Nearest to the pin, hole 5: Johan Nel
• Nearest to the pin, hole 13: Kegan van Wyk
• Nearest to the pin, hole 17: Jan Steyn
• Longest drive, hole 8: Ryan Brockel.

Day 2
• Nearest to the pin, hole 3: Gary Herbert
• Nearest to the pin, hole 5: Willie de Bruin
• Nearest to the pin, hole 13: Cor Viljoen
• Nearest to the pin, hole 17: Johan Nel
• Longest drive, hole 17: De Bruin.