Arthur, Burnand do SA proud in Argentina

GolfRSA National Squad pair Astin Arthur and Jordan Burnand continued South Africa’s proud record in the prestigious Copa Juan Carlos Tailhade Cup with a superb showing at Los Lagartos Country Club in November 2024; credit GolfRSA

12 November 2024 – GolfRSA National Squad pair Astin Arthur and Jordan Burnand continued South Africa’s proud record in the prestigious Copa Juan Carlos Tailhade Cup with a superb showing at Los Lagartos Country Club in November.

The Protea pair notched a fourth-place finish in the tightly-contested team competition, recording the country’s 10th consecutive top five finish since 2011.

Tomás Restrepo Jaramillo and Esteban Jaramillo secured Colombia’s first victory in the 52nd edition, edging defending champion Canada by three strokes on a winning total of 571. Argentina took third on 578, finishing three strokes ahead of South Africa.

GolfRSA No.1 Arthur led the tournament through 36 holes – rounds of 68 67. He unfortunately dropped out of contention with a third round 77 before closing with a 74 to tie for fourth on two-over 286; seven shots behind Juan Martin Loureiro from Argentina, who took the individual honours.

“You always feel like you could have done better, but we are happy that we kept South Africa’s record alive,” said Arthur, who tied for 12th on two-over.

“I am really proud of how I handled my first appearance in the green and gold outside Africa. I was solid, but I was a little disappointed with my third-round performance. The level of golf played was high, and the course was a great challenge.

Astin Arthur in action during the prestigious Copa Juan Carlos Tailhade Cup at Los Lagartos Country Club; credit Asociacion Argentina de Golf

“Away from the golf course, we had the opportunity to go bicycling around Pilar, and to explore the city and take in the culture; we’ve struck up some new friendships and we enjoyed the Argentinean cuisine. The experience was amazing, and it was an incredible learning curve. Jordan and I are so grateful for this opportunity.”

The next stop on their two-week tour to South America was the Estancias Golf Club in Buenos Aires, which hosted the Argentinean Amateur, the world’s sixth-oldest amateur championship.

No one could catch Brazilian Andrey Xavier Soares Borges, who led by two strokes after four rounds to be declared National Champion. Ranked as the second-best Brazilian in the World Ranking (83), he showed why he must be considered a threat at all times with a great week of golf. Rounds of 66, 69, 69, 67 earned him his second win in Argentina after he won the event at the Jockey Club of Rosario.

Jordan Burnand in action during the prestigious Copa Juan Carlos Tailhade Cup at Los Lagartos Country Club; credit Asociacion Argentina de Golf

Both Burnand and Arthur finished strong with a share of 11th place after ending on 281 (seven under par) for the event.

“The trip overall was a great experience. Spending the time with Astin was cool, we get on well and enjoyed all the elements of the tour. There’s a lot of things that we need to remember going forward … the culture, the kind of tournament and playing against players that we might play against in the pro ranks down the road,” said Burnand.

“It’s a bit of an ‘old school’ tour with us getting hosted by different families. It’s a lovely run of two weeks on great golf courses. It makes it a special experience. Our golf was probably not where we wanted it to be but we did okay. The golf, the travel, the cutlural experience – it will help us in the future no doubt.

“We played well in parts, and of course, we tried our utmost to represent the country with pride on and off the course. My biggest takeaway was the need to adapt – to the new courses, the challenges and I think I’ve banked a lot from the time in Argentina. You learn a lot about yourself when you travel and you add some nice responsibility too.”

Arthur echoed his teammates sentiments, saying; “On reflection, there was so much to take note of and learn through the process. There’s always room for improvement but I’m so grateful to the GolfRSA team … the encouragement and the opportunity for growth helps us in ways that I’m not sure not every young golfer is able to grab hold onto.”

DID YOU KNOW?
Former Masters champion Trevor Immelman & multiple Sunshine Tour winner Ulrich van den Berg romped to victory in 1997, while Ryan Dreyer and JG Claassen was victorious in 2009. Since 2011, South Africa has enjoyed a run of 10 top five finishes in the prestigious Copa Tailhade.
2011 – Jared Harvey & Graham van der Merwe (3rd)
2012 – Drikus Bruyns & CJ du Plessis (T-4)
2014 – Gerlou Roux & Callum Mowat (5th)
2015 – Tristen Strydom & Teaghan Gauche (5th)
2016 – Kyle McClatchie & Aubrey Beckley (5th)
2017 – Matt Saulez & Malcolm Mitchell (4th)
2018 – Luca Filippi &Therion Nel (5th)
2019 – Luca Filippi & Kyle de Beer (4th)
2023 – Jordan Burnand & Ivan Verster (4th)
2024 – Astin Arthur &Jordan Burnand (4th)

*No events were held in 2013 | 2020 | 2021 due to the pandemic and SA did not compete in 2022