Malalane golfer Eddie Wilken recently claimed the first title of the Lowveld golf open season, triumphing by two shots at the Kruger Park Lodge Open.

Held at Kruger Park Lodge’s golf course on the banks of the Sabie River outside Hazyview, the Kruger Park Lodge started the golf open season for the Lowveld Golf Association last week. With a limited field of 48 players, the competition was played on Saturday January 25.

As is the case with every other open on the Lowveld Golf Association calendar, the competition comprised of 36 holes to be played on one day. Golfers teed off for their first round of 18 holes as early as 06:40, with beautiful conditions overhead and underfoot too.

The weather played its part as the sun shone down on some of the Lowveld’s very best golfers. After the first round the standard was set high by Wilken who was in a tie for the lead with Thabo Dube of Kambaku Golf Club at two-over-par.

Both of the leaders had mixed starts to the second nine, with Wilken on even par and Dube two-over after the first four holes. The Nkomazi duo remained the only real contenders for the lead though, as the rest of the field failed to keep within touching distance.

Dube’s two-over front nine would prove to be his undoing though, as he and Wilken both shot three-over on the back nine. This meant Wilken held onto the lead and secured the win by a margin of two shots, courtesy of his one-over-par second round.

Wilken’s second-round 73 was the joint-lowest round of the day as Ruan van Blerk also matched the score in his second round.

Wilken’s day ended at three-over across the two rounds, finishing in first place, while Dube was in second place on five-over. Yet another Kambaku Golf Club golfer, Thami Ngobeni, rounded out the top three for the day on eight-over.