One last call for the final Lowvelder Golf Challenge

There is but one round left of the inaugural Lowvelder Golf Challenge, and golfers can consider this their last call to throw their hat in the ring in pursuit of glory at Mbombela Golf Club.

The Lowvelder Golf Challenge teed off for the first time in February this year as a monthly competition at Mbombela Golf Club held on one Wednesday every month. Playing in the individual Stableford format, golfers have taken this golf day to heart and thronged to the club every month in order to take part and stake their claim for the win.

The series of golf days was made possible through partnerships with Du Toit-Smuts & Partners Attorneys and Octopi Smart Solutions. They’ve been a key ingredient in the success of every golf day, which has at times seen more than 100 players take part on a given day.

While the basic premise of every individual golf day is rather simple, the bigger picture is slightly more nuanced. There is a total of 10 monthly golf days (next week’s is the 10th and final) in the series, and in order for golfers to qualify for the overall grand prize at the end of the final day on November 20, they must have played at least five of the 10 days.

And things have been tight at the top of the leaderboard for the last few editions. Denise West and Franchoa Giliomee have been nipping at one another’s heels ever since the end of the seventh round when the two drew level on points.

After the eighth round West took a lead of three points, but in the ninth round Giliomee closed the gap and now the two are tied on 184 points heading into the final round.

Should any players be tied on points come the end of the day next week, there will be a play-off to determine the overall winner of the 2024 Lowvelder Golf Challenge. There is of course also the possibility that the leaders can be caught, as third (Danie Bezuidenhout) and fourth place (JJ van Rensburg) are only three and four points adrift respectively.

If neither West nor Giliomee improve on one of their five best scores, but either Bezuidenhout or Van Rensburg improve on theirs significantly enough, first place could be snatched out from under West and Giliomee’s noses.

A lot will be on the line come next Wednesday, so be sure not to miss out on the action and book your spot in the 10th Lowvelder Golf Challenge for 2024 at Mbombela Golf Club on November 20.