Ekurhuleni hunt Nomads SA Boys U-13 hat-trick
Ekurhuleni’s finest young prospects lined up a hat-trick of wins in the Nomads South African U-13 Championship after they marched to an overwhelming first round lead at Killarney Country Club on Tuesday.
Twelve months after the side powered their way to a successful title defence at Royal Durban Golf Club, the two-time champions picked up where they left off to open up a yawning gap on the field with a first round total of 389.
Central Gauteng took second place, but lag 17 strokes off the pace, while Gauteng North finished a distant third on 413.
Zamokuhle Nxasana – celebrating his third successive appearance for Ekurhuleni – anchored the side with a 75 that featured a double bogey, two bogeys and a brace of birdies on his front nine and a run of pars on the back nine with a final bogey tucked in at the end.
Kiera Floyd came home in 77 strokes. Christopher Bagnall and Nash de Klerk posted a pair of 78s and Hunter Walker added an 81 to their opening score.
Meanwhile Hannes Strooh from Central Gauteng edged out team-mate Amilkar Bhana and Nxasana for the lowest round honours with a two-over-par 74. The Randfontein Golf Club junior mixed birdies at five, seven, nine and 18 with two double bogeys and a pair of bogeys with to take pole position in the Individual Competition.
The rest of the Central Gauteng team’s total of 406 was made up by Jayson Borcher (84), Joshua Hirsch (86) and Cayden Lasarow (87).
Gauteng North’s Ivan Verster carded 77 and Matthew Dennis 79, while Joshua Koekemoer. Henry Juan Human and Fabrizio de Abreu posted rounds of 90 80, 87 and 90 respectively.
The Nomads SA U-13 Championship is not only about competition, but also how to get better at it and the best way to score is to know the rules. After first round action wrapped up, all the competitors were treated to a Rules Clinic on the basic rules of golf, presented by South African Golf Association Assistant Executive Director Neil Homann.
TEAM LEADERBOARD
389 Ekurhuleni
406 Central Gauteng
413 Gauteng North
421 Western Province
421 North West
437 Free State
440 Border
444 Southern Cape
465 Northern Cape
469 Boland Golf
499 Mpumalanga
513 Limpopo Golf
INDIVIDUAL LEADERBOARD (TOP 20)
74 Hannes Strooh
75 Zamokuhle Nxasana; Amilkar Bhana
77 Ivan Verster; Kiera Floyd
78 Franco Gericke; Caden Chuang; Christopher Bagnall; Nash de Klerk
79 Matthew Keagan Dennis
80 Ockert Brits; Joshua Koekemoer
81 Hunter Walker
82 Renier Stefan Van Rooyen; Cameron Gray; Jonathan Wilsenach; Heinrich Appel
83 Delarey van Tonder; Chaturon Buachan; Jaydon Liddell
Written and released by Lali Stander on behalf of the South African Golf Association.