Mixed Fortunes in Wednesday’s SA IPT Foursomes

Western Province launched a comeback, Gauteng North maintained their winning form, Central Gauteng squandered a possible whitewash and Free State and Northern Cape hit back in the morning foursomes on day three of the South African Inter-Provincial at Bloemfontein Golf Club.

Province finally got their groove back to set up their first possible victory in this year’s tournament with a 4-0 lead against Southern Cape.

Werner Theart and Dylan Raubenheimer’s 3&1 win over Ivan Williams and Andrew Light got the defending champions on track before JP Strydom and Delin Erasmus managed to clinch their game against Stafie Barnard and Riekus Nortje at the 18th.

MG Keyser and Lean Boezaart continued the streak, combining for a 3&2 win over Breyten Meyer and Matthew Sutherland and Justin Turner and LeRiche Ehlers tidied up with a 3&2 result over Jacques Cloete and Nicholas Mitchell to force a 4-0 lead.

Gauteng North set up their second successive triumph by limiting Boland to just a half point in the foursomes.

Boland’s Trevor Mahoney and Karl Ochse got a 5&4 hiding from Pedrie Oosthuizen and Zander Lombard, but their team mates Phillip Spies and Anton Oosthuizen managed to force Jacques van Tonder and Coenie Bester all the way to the 18th before conceding the game.

Brandon Stone and Conway Kunneke took Gauteng North’s tally to three with a 4&3 win over Armandt Scholtz and Drikus Bruyns before Francois Haughton and Nathan Scott could halved against Gauteng North captain Herman Minnie and Hendre Celliers.

Meanwhile Central Gauteng was well on their way to set up their third victory in this year’s IPT through the turn.

Central was up in all their matches against KwaZulu-Natal through 14 holes but the gritty coastal side – the champions in 2009 and runners-up last year – showed exactly why they can never be written off.

Central rookies Damian Naicker and Muzi Nethunzwi kept the pressure up for a 4&3 win, but Michael Dixon and Callum Mowat – two up with four to play – lost four holes in a row against KZN veterans Gavin Sole and Ryan de Beer to give KZN their first point.

Ruan de Smidt and Daniel Hammond put Central back on a winning course, beating Steven van Heerden and Gideon Pienaar 2&1, but closers Haydn Porteous and Graham van der Merwe fell foul of Jared Harvey and Michael Hollick, who recovered well from a loose tee shot and wayward approach, to claim the game at the 18th.

Coming off two wins in the B-Section on Tuesday, Mpumalanga are holding strong at 2-all against Ekurhuleni and Eastern Province, while Ekurhuleni forged ahead of Eastern Province 2½-1½.

Meanwhile local favourites Free State and Northern Cape handed Border a 4-0 drumming.

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