Bezuidenhout and Lombard en route to Chicago

Following a solid showing at the prestigious Porter Cup at the weekend, the South African Golf Association’s top ranked pair, Christiaan Bezuidenhout and Zander Lombard, will fly the flag for South Africa at the 112th Western Amateur in Chicago this week.

Ekurhuleni’s Bezuidenhout carded rounds of 72, 74, 67 and 68 to claim a share of 24th on one-over-par 281 in New York, while Lombard from Gauteng North finished in joint 38th on five over with rounds of 71, 75, 72 and 67.

Tied at six over 146 and well outside the top 60, things were not looking too great for the local pair at the Niagara Falls Country Club near Lewiston. Bezuidenhout had dropped 11 shots through 36 holes, while Lombard suffered two bogeys and a triple bogey in each round.

Bezuidenhout had just one bogey in the third round, though, and the Ernie Els and Fancourt Foundation member reeled in four birdies to negate a lone drop in the final round.

Lombard also dropped just a single shot in the final round.

“We both struggled over the first two rounds, but we were able to improve as we grew more familiar with the layout,” said Bezuidenhout. “We did much better over the last two rounds. The Porter Cup had a very strong field, and is great to know that we can compete against the best.”

Bezuidenhout and Lombard will complete their warm-up for next month’s US Amateur Championship at the Beverley Country Club in Chicago this week.

“Playing against the world’s top amateurs at unfamiliar courses here in the United States is challenging and stressful, but it is also very rewarding when you can turn it around as we during the championship,” said the TuksGolf Academy member.

“We are both learning a lot from this experience. We want to build on this in Chicago, so we can really compete when we get to the US Amateur.”

Written and released by Lali Stander on behalf of the South African Golf Association.

Posted in