SA Juniors start slowly at World Team Champs

The South African team did not get the start they were hoping for in the first round of the Toyota World Junior Team Championships played today at the Chukyo Golf Club Ishino Course just outside Nagoya, Japan. They finished on 214, one over par, eight shots behind the leading country.

With the best three individual scores counting in each team, of four players, defending champions Sweden set the pace with a seven under par 206.

They were followed, one shot adrift, by both Denmark and Argentina.

“This is not exactly the start we hoped for,” said Ann Rycraft, South African Junior Golf Foundation (SAJGF) President and team manager. “The nature of this competition is such that a team that has all it’s members perform on the day can close quickly on the leaders, we hope that will be the case tomorrow.”

Playing in very hot and humid conditions, Dylan Frittelli, the team captain, fared best with a steady 70, one under par.

The other two player’s whose scores counted were that of Andre de Decker, 72, and Leon-Brink Knoll, 72, both on one over par.

Western Province’s and Westlake Golf Club member, de Decker, had a stone cold putter, recording no less than 4 three putts today. Were it not for four birdies recorded at the 4th,8th, 11th and 17th holes, he would have recorded a ‘big’ number.

Knoll, who is a member at Silver Lakes Country Club, Pretoria, had an up and down round. He followed up a bogey with a birdie, in that order, three times and finally bogeying 13th hole to finish on one over par 72.

JG Claasen, from Orkney Golf Club in the North West, struggled to a 80, nine over par. His score did not count for the team competition.

The second round will be played tomorrow. Weather forecasts predict rain which will provide competitors with more testing conditions than that experienced today.

First Round Scores
Chukyo G.C. (Ishino Course) par 71

206 – Sweden
207 – Denmark, Argentina
211 – New Zealand, United States, England
213 – Norway, India, Australia
214 – Korea, Japan, South Africa
216 – Columbia
223 – Mexico, Guatamala
234 – Kenya