DATES: January 11-14

SITE: Glendower GC, City of Ekurhuleni, Gauteng, South Africa

PRIZE MONEY: ZAR15,000,000

Co-sanction: Sunshine Tour

Round 4 – Maiden win for Chris Paisley in SA Open

January 14, 2018

Chris Paisley of England defied the odds near Johannesburg on Sunday to win the South African Open, his maiden European Tour triumph, then hailed his wife for her starring role as his caddie.

The 31-year-old carded a six-birdie final-round 66 at sun-drenched Glendower Golf Club for a total of 267 and a three-stroke victory over Branden Grace of South Africa, who closed with a 68.

It was the first tournament in which Paisley had his bag carried by wife Keri, and he praised her during the prize-giving ceremony.

“Unbelievable! I just cannot say enough about how good a job she did this week,” said the golfer whose only previous professional win was in the second-tier European Challenge six years ago.

“She never put a foot wrong. It is the first time she ever caddied. I just cannot thank Keri enough,” said the native of Hexham, a market town in northeastern England.

“I still cannot believe I have won the SA Open. Going head to head with Branden this afternoon was tough.

“Honestly, I did not think I was capable of playing that well and finishing top of the leaderboard.”

Grace trailed Paisley by one shot entering the final round, but was expected to triumph given his far higher world ranking of 30, much greater experience and huge home support.

Within two holes, eight-time European Tour champion Grace nudged ahead thanks to an eagle three, and many in the gallery believed Paisley would quickly crack under the pressure.

But the Englishman ranked 289 in the world held his nerve and moved into a two-shot lead after the sixth, which the 29-year-old South African double-bogeyed.

By the turn, Paisley had stretched his advantage to three shots and never looked like faltering on the back nine in stamina-sapping heat.

He did find a bunker at 15, but got down in two, effectively closing the door on any chance Grace had of halting a great English run in the South African Open.

Andy Sullivan won the event in 2015 and Graeme Storm triumphed last year, leaving Paisley to make it three victories in four editions for English golfers.

Paisley, who narrowly avoided being relegated to the Challenge Tour for this year, was ultra steady all week, picking up 24 birdies and conceding only three bogeys.

Highlights of his play included an ability to reach greens in regulation and also to get down in two on the odd occasion he did not achieve that feat.

Seeking a first SA Open title, Grace could not match the last-round consistency of Paisley, claiming two eagles and three birdies, but a double-bogey and a bogey stained his card.

The European Tour moves to the Middle East next week for the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and returns to South Africa in March when Pretoria hosts the Tshwane Open.

Pos.	Player	Nat	To Par	R1	R2	R3	R4	Total
1	Chris Paisley	ENG	-21	66	65	70	66	267
2	Branden Grace	RSA	-18	65	71	66	68	270
3	JC Ritchie	RSA	-16	72	70	65	65	272

Click here for full scores.

Round 3 – Paisley takes solo lead of SA Open

January 13, 2018

Chris Paisley leads by a shot from home favorite Branden Grace going into the final round of the South African Open.

Paisley remained calm in a 2-under 70 in the third round on Saturday to move to 15 under overall and took the outright lead after sharing it with Adrien Saddier overnight.

England’s Paisley is in position for his maiden European Tour title but will face a challenge from the in-form Grace on the last day.

Grace won the Nedbank Golf Challenge at Sun City in November, and surged into contention at the South African Open with a third-round 66, with seven birdies and just one bogey to go to 14 under.

”I’m sure the crowd is going to be on his side,” Paisley said. ”I’m just really excited about it.”

Three players are tied for third on 12 under and three shots off the lead. They are Saddier, Chase Koepka and Jacques Blaauw.

Koepka, the younger brother of U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka, put together a 68 on Saturday and is in his first season on the European Tour and also searching for a first victory.

Two-time U.S. Open champion Retief Goosen was tied for fourth after the second round at Glendower Golf Club in Johannesburg but his search for a first win since 2009 took a hit with a 1-over 73 Saturday. Goosen is now tied for 20th.

Pos.	Player	Nat	To Par	Hole	Today	R1	R2	R3	Total
1	Chris Paisley	ENG	-15	18	-2	66	65	70	201
2	Branden Grace	RSA	-14	18	-6	65	71	66	202
T3	Adrien Saddier	SCO	-12	18	1	68	63	73	204
T3	Chase Koepka	USA	-12	18	-4	65	71	68	204
T3	Jacques Blaauw	RSA	-12	18	-6	68	70	66	204
6	Darren Fichardt	RSA	-11	18	-8	70	71	64	205
T7	Jacques Kruyswijk	RSA	-10	18	-1	68	67	71	206
T7	Jeff Winther	SWE	-10	18	-6	68	72	66	206
T7	Trevor Fisher Jnr	RSA	-10	18	-5	69	70	67	206

Round 2 – Paisley and Saddier take 4-shot lead in Johannesburg

January 12, 2018

Chris Paisley and Adrien Saddier opened up a big lead after two rounds of the South African Open on Friday as they moved to 13 under par and four shots clear of their nearest challengers.

England’s Paisley hit a 7-under 65 to move up from second overnight. France’s Saddier had the round of the day at Glendower Golf Club in Johannesburg, a blistering, course record-equaling 63 with an eagle, seven birdies and no bogeys.

Both Paisley and Saddier are seeking a maiden European Tour title.

Home player Jacques Kruyswijk is alone in second on 9 under, with a group of four players another shot behind him on 8 under and in a tie for fourth.

That group contains overnight leaders Branden Grace and Chase Koepka, Zimbabwe’s Scott Vincent, and Retief Goosen, the two-time U.S. Open champion who hasn’t won a professional tournament since 2009.

The 48-year-old Goosen began this week with a promising 69 and then carded six birdies and an eagle for his 5-under 67 in the second round. It could have been even better if not for a bogey on No. 13 and a double bogey on the last.

Ernie Els, a five-time winner of the South African Open, made the cut after a 70 moved him to 3 under. Defending champion Graeme Storm missed the cut by a shot, though, thanks mainly to his opening-round 75.

Pos.	Player	Nat	To Par	R1	R2	Total
T1	Adrien Saddier	SCO	-13	68	63	131
T1	Chris Paisley	ENG	-13	66	65	131
3	Jacques Kruyswijk	RSA	-9	68	67	135
T4	Branden Grace	RSA	-8	65	71	136
T4	Chase Koepka	USA	-8	65	71	136
T4	Retief Goosen	RSA	-8	69	67	136
T4	Scott Vincent	ZIM	-8	70	66	136
8	Nacho Elvira	ESP	-7	67	70	137
T9	Jacques Blaauw	RSA	-6	68	70	138
T9	Justin Walters	RSA	-6	69	69	138
T9	Renato Paratore	ITA	-6	71	67	138
T9	Rhys West	RSA	-6	72	66	138
T9	Soo-Min Lee	KOR	-6	70	68	138

Round 1 – Grace and Koepka take opening lead in SA

January 11, 2018

Branden Grace launched his bid for back-to-back European Tour victories on home soil by firing a lead-sharing 65 in the South African Open at Glendower Golf Club near Johannesburg Thursday.

The 29-year-old eight-time winner on the circuit won the Nedbank Golf Challenge at Sun City two months ago, his last appearance on the Tour.

Grace, who is ranked 30 in the world, shares first place at seven under with American Chase Koepka, a brother of reigning US Open champion Brooks, who lies 306 places lower on the merit ladder.

They lead by one stroke from Chris Paisley of England after a day that brought relief to officials as predicted seasonal electrical storms did not arrive.

Of the five former Major winners in the field, South Africans Retief Goosen and Charl Schwartzel did best with 69s.

Compatriot Ernie Els fired a 71, Canadian Mike Weir a 73 and Trevor Immelman of South Africa a 79 over the par-72, 6,942-metre/7,594-yard track.

Defending champion Graeme Storm of England, who pipped golf superstar Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland in a play-off last year to win the second oldest national championship after the British Open, carded a 75.

Grace, a South African, had a haywire front nine that included two eagles, two birdies and two bogeys.

A far more settled back nine produced a birdie and another eagle, a record third for Grace during a European Tour round.

“I was a little bit rusty with some of the wedge shots and things like that, but all in all very pleased with the outcome,” said Grace.

“I think I pretty much got the most out of that round. It is a great start to the year. On all the par-fives, I hit great tee shots.”

Koepka matched Grace with halves of 32 and 33 as he recovered from bogeying the first hole of each nine.

The American eagled the second, then birdied three of four holes from the fifth and four of five from the 12th.

“I eagled the second and kind of kept it going from there. I just stayed patient after that first hole setback,” he said.

Paisley, the clubhouse leader for much of an opening round played in warm, partly cloudy conditions, birdied seven holes and bogeyed one.

Four consecutive birdies from the 10th lifted Schwartzel’s round, while the card of four-time Major winner Els was stained by successive bogeys at par fours.

Weir, whose 2003 US Masters triumph was the first by a Canadian and a left-hander, finished one over after a double-bogey six at 12.

Another former Masters champion, Immelman, who has been struggling for a while, bogeyed five holes before a double-bogey on 18 completed a round to forget.

Jamie Donaldson of Wales scored the first hole in one of the tournament at 14 with a nine iron during a round of 70.

Pos.	Player	Nat	To Par	R1
T1	Branden Grace	RSA	-7	65
T1	Chase Koepka	USA	-7	65
3	Chris Paisley	ENG	-6	66
T4	Bradley Neil	SCO	-5	67
T4	Erik Van Rooyen	RSA	-5	67
T4	Nacho Elvira	ESP	-5	67
T4	Richard Sterne	RSA	-5	67
T8	Adrien Saddier	SCO	-4	68
T8	Garrick Higgo	RSA	-4	68
T8	Jacques Blaauw	RSA	-4	68
T8	Jacques Kruyswijk	RSA	-4	68
T8	Jeff Winther	SWE	-4	68
T8	Kyle McClatchie	RSA	-4	68
T8	Matt Wallace	ENG	-4	68
T8	Tyrone Ferreira	RSA	-4	68
T8	Ulrich van den Berg	RSA	-4	68
T8	Tyrone Ferreira	RSA	-4	68
T8	Ulrich van den Berg	RSA	-4	68

 

Scores

Pos.	Player	Nat	To Par	R1	R2	R3	R4	Total
1	Chris Paisley	ENG	-21	66	65	70	66	267
2	Branden Grace	RSA	-18	65	71	66	68	270
3	JC Ritchie	RSA	-16	72	70	65	65	272
T4	Jacques Blaauw	RSA	-14	68	70	66	70	274
T4	Jacques Kruyswijk	RSA	-14	68	67	71	68	274
T4	Scott Vincent	ZIM	-14	70	66	71	67	274
T7	Adrien Saddier	SCO	-13	68	63	73	71	275
T7	Chase Koepka	USA	-13	65	71	68	71	275
T7	Darren Fichardt	RSA	-13	70	71	64	70	275
T7	Renato Paratore	ITA	-13	71	67	69	68	275
11	Charlie Ford	ENG	-12	71	72	67	66	276
T12	Hennie Otto	RSA	-11	71	72	70	64	277
T12	Jorge Campillo	ESP	-11	70	70	67	70	277
T12	Marcus Kinhult	SWE	-11	70	72	66	69	277
T15	Charl Schwartzel	RSA	-10	69	70	69	70	278
T15	Kyle McClatchie	RSA	-10	68	71	68	71	278
T15	Neil Schietekat	RSA	-10	70	72	69	67	278
T15	Ryan Evans	ENG	-10	74	67	68	69	278
T15	Trevor Fisher Jnr	RSA	-10	69	70	67	72	278
T20	Adilson Da Silva	BRA	-9	69	73	67	70	279
T20	Anthony Michael	RSA	-9	71	71	69	68	279
T20	Dylan Frittelli	RSA	-9	70	71	67	71	279
T20	Erik Van Rooyen	RSA	-9	67	72	71	69	279
T20	Nacho Elvira	ESP	-9	67	70	72	70	279
T20	Jeff Winther	SWE	-9	68	72	66	73	279
T20	Mark Williams	RSA	-9	72	70	69	68	279
T20	Ockie Strydom	RSA	-9	75	67	68	69	279
T20	Retief Goosen	RSA	-9	69	67	73	70	279
T20	Richard Sterne	RSA	-9	67	74	69	69	279
T20	Shaun Norris	RSA	-9	71	70	69	69	279
T31	Ernie Els	RSA	-8	71	70	70	69	280
T31	Richard Bland	ENG	-8	69	72	66	73	280
T31	Soo-Min Lee	KOR	-8	70	68	72	70	280
T34	Andy Sullivan	ENG	-7	70	72	69	70	281
T34	Danie van Tonder	RSA	-7	70	70	73	68	281
T34	Jamie Donaldson	WAL	-7	70	72	71	68	281
T34	Matthieu Pavon	FRA	-7	72	67	68	74	281
T38	Jens Dantorp	SWE	-6	72	72	72	66	282
T38	Justin Walters	RSA	-6	69	69	73	71	282
T38	Matt Wallace	ENG	-6	68	74	69	71	282
T38	Oliver Fisher	ENG	-6	69	72	71	70	282
T38	Tyrone Ferreira	RSA	-6	68	74	69	71	282
T43	Keenan Davidse	RSA	-5	76	68	71	68	283
T43	Louis De Jager	RSA	-5	74	69	67	73	283
T43	Pedro Oriol	ESP	-5	71	71	69	72	283
T43	Vaughn Groenewald	RSA	-5	69	72	71	71	283
T47	David Drysdale	SCO	-4	72	72	70	70	284
T47	Jean Hugo	RSA	-4	73	70	72	69	284
T47	Justin Harding	RSA	-4	75	67	68	74	284
T47	Rourke Van Der Spuy	RSA	-4	69	71	69	75	284
T51	Bradley Neil	SCO	-3	67	77	69	72	285
T51	Jbe Kruger	RSA	-3	74	70	70	71	285
T51	Musiwalo Nethunzwi	RSA	-3	72	71	72	70	285
T54	Breyten Meyer	RSA	-2	70	71	72	73	286
T54	Dean Burmester	RSA	-2	77	67	72	70	286
T54	George Coetzee	RSA	-2	72	71	77	66	286
T54	Gregory Bourdy	FRA	-2	75	69	67	75	286
T54	James Kingston	RSA	-2	73	68	72	73	286
T54	Marc Warren	SCO	-2	73	69	74	70	286
T54	Rhys West	RSA	-2	72	66	75	73	286
T54	Ruan De Smidt	RSA	-2	72	69	74	71	286
T54	Ulrich van den Berg	RSA	-2	68	75	72	71	286
T63	Christiaan Bezuidenhout	RSA	-1	69	72	74	72	287
T63	Garrick Higgo	RSA	-1	68	73	76	70	287
T65	MJ Viljoen	RSA	Par	70	73	73	72	288
T65	Marcus Armitage	ENG	Par	72	68	76	72	288
T65	Zack Byrd	USA	Par	69	71	74	74	288
68	Toto Thimba Jr.	RSA	1	73	70	72	74	289
T69	Austin Connelly	CAN	2	70	73	76	71	290
T69	Matt Saulez	RSA	2	69	70	76	75	290
T71	Colin Nel	RSA	4	71	73	74	74	292
T71	Jake Roos	RSA	4	69	72	77	74	292
73	Pontus Widegren	SWE	6	72	71	78	73	294
74	Brett Rumford	AUS	7	71	71	75	78	295
75	Oliver Farr	WAL	8	73	70	75	78	296
CUT	Brandon Stone	RSA	1	75	70	–	–	145
CUT	Christo Lamprecht	RSA	1	73	72	–	–	145
CUT	Christofer Blomstrand	SWE	1	72	73	–	–	145
CUT	Clement Sordet	FRA	1	73	72	–	–	145
CUT	Daniel Greene	RSA	1	70	75	–	–	145
CUT	Edoardo Molinari	ITA	1	76	69	–	–	145
CUT	Graeme Storm	ENG	1	75	70	–	–	145
CUT	Hennie Du Plessis	RSA	1	71	74	–	–	145
CUT	Jaco Ahlers	RSA	1	73	72	–	–	145
CUT	Jared Harvey	RSA	1	72	73	–	–	145
CUT	Jonathon Agren	SWE	1	74	71	–	–	145
CUT	Julien Guerrier	FRA	1	74	71	–	–	145
CUT	Lasse Jensen	DNK	1	71	74	–	–	145
CUT	Lucas Bjerregaard	DNK	1	74	71	–	–	145
CUT	Matthew Southgate	ENG	1	76	69	–	–	145
CUT	Ross McGowan	ENG	1	75	70	–	–	145
CUT	Scott Fernandez	ESP	1	74	71	–	–	145
CUT	Thomas Detry	BEL	1	75	70	–	–	145
CUT	Chris Swanepoel	RSA	2	72	74	–	–	146
CUT	Christiaan Basson	RSA	2	74	72	–	–	146
CUT	Haydn Porteous	RSA	2	69	77	–	–	146
CUT	Jaco Prinsloo	RSA	2	77	69	–	–	146
CUT	Jordan Smith	ENG	2	73	73	–	–	146
CUT	Jovan Rebula	RSA	2	73	73	–	–	146
CUT	Mike Weir	CAN	2	73	73	–	–	146
CUT	Soren Kjeldsen	DEN	2	79	67	–	–	146
CUT	Titch Moore	RSA	2	70	76	–	–	146
CUT	Aaron Rai	ENG	3	74	73	–	–	147
CUT	Zander Lombard	RSA	2	70	76	–	–	146
CUT	Andrew Curlewis	RSA	3	75	72	–	–	147
CUT	Heinrich Bruiners	RSA	3	73	74	–	–	147
CUT	James Morrison	ENG	3	74	73	–	–	147
CUT	Jin-Ho Choi	KOR	3	74	73	–	–	147
CUT	Malcolm Mitchell	RSA	3	77	70	–	–	147
CUT	Merrick Bremner	RSA	3	72	75	–	–	147
CUT	Morten Orum Madsen	DEN	3	73	75	–	–	148
CUT	Pep Angles	ESP	3	71	76	–	–	147
CUT	Tapio Pulkkanen	FIN	3	72	75	–	–	147
CUT	Thomas Aiken	RSA	3	77	70	–	–	147
CUT	Andre Nel	RSA	4	77	71	–	–	148
CUT	Ashley Chesters	ENG	4	72	76	–	–	148
CUT	Daniel Brooks	ENG	4	74	74	–	–	148
CUT	Peter Karmis	RSA	4	78	70	–	–	148
CUT	Sam Horsfield	ENG	4	73	75	–	–	148
CUT	Toby Tree	ENG	4	75	73	–	–	148
CUT	Andrea Pavan	ITA	5	77	72	–	–	149
CUT	James Kamte	RSA	5	79	70	–	–	149
CUT	Keith Horne	RSA	5	75	74	–	–	149
CUT	Rak Cho	KOR	5	75	74	–	–	149
CUT	Tjaart Van Der Walt	RSA	5	75	74	–	–	149
CUT	Trevor Dodds	NAM	5	75	74	–	–	149
CUT	Alex Haindl	RSA	6	74	76	–	–	150
CUT	Trevor Immelman	RSA	5	79	70	–	–	149
CUT	Garth Mulroy	RSA	6	72	78	–	–	150
CUT	J. J. Senekal	RSA	6	75	75	–	–	150
CUT	Jason Scrivener	AUS	6	74	76	–	–	150
CUT	Josh Geary	NZL	6	72	78	–	–	150
CUT	Madalitso Muthiya	ZAM	7	78	73	–	–	151
CUT	Riekus Nortje	RSA	7	73	78	–	–	151
CUT	Roberto Lupini	RSA	7	75	76	–	–	151
CUT	Chris Wood	ENG	8	75	77	–	–	152
CUT	Martin Scheepers	RSA	8	75	77	–	–	152
CUT	Oliver Bekker	RSA	8	72	80	–	–	152
CUT	Raphael Jacquelin	FRA	8	73	79	–	–	152
CUT	Jacquin Hess	RSA	9	77	76	–	–	153
CUT	Louis Albertse	RSA	9	75	78	–	–	153
CUT	Makgetha Mazibuko	RSA	9	73	80	–	–	153
CUT	Marc Cayeux	ZIM	9	81	72	–	–	153
CUT	Mikko Korhonen	FIN	9	74	79	–	–	153
CUT	Gregory Havret	FRA	10	80	74	–	–	154
CUT	Lee Slattery	ENG	10	75	79	–	–	154
CUT	Mathias Groenberg	SWE	10	75	79	–	–	154
CUT	Ricardo Melo Gouveia	POR	10	75	79	–	–	154
CUT	Tyrone Ryan	RSA	10	71	83	–	–	154
CUT	Wallie Coetsee	RSA	10	81	75	–	–	156
CUT	Jean-Paul Strydom	RSA	13	80	77	–	–	157
CUT	Ryan Tipping	RSA	14	75	83	–	–	158
CUT	Jason Diab	RSA	17	77	84	–	–	161
CUT	Michiel Bothma	RSA	17	78	83	–	–	161
RET	David Howell	ENG	Par	–	–	–	–	0
RET	Doug McGuigan	RSA	Par	79	–	–	–	79