Home Sweet Home For Coetzee

Post by Sports Writer, Derek Clements

GEORGE COETZEE proved what a special talent he is in winning the Tshwane Open at Pretoria Golf Club. The South African also proved how important local knowledge can be - he is a member of the club and it is where he recorded his first victory.

He has been struggling horribly with his chipping these past few weeks and it is a tribute to the rest of his game that he was able to fire a final round of 65 on his way to his second European Tour title. There will surely be many more to come, especially if he can resolve his short-game issues. Fortunately, he is blessed with a wonderful putting stroke and holes 12-foot putts for fun, whether they be for par, birdie or eagle.

The South African finished one stroke ahead of compatriot Jacques Blaauw at the course where he has been a member since taking up the game and where he won his first junior competition when he was just 10 years old.

Blaauw shot through the field with a sensational closing 61 to equal the course record and set the clubhouse target at 13 under par, with the final groups still having nine holes to play.

However, Coetzee - one of six players sharing the lead overnight - was just one behind after finishing his front nine with three birdies in four holes and he picked up further shots on the back nine to seal victory.

The decisive moment came on the short par-four 17th, where Coetzee attempted to drive the green. His tee shot finished in the trees, short and right of the green but he had a clear path between two bunkers and chipped to five feet before holing out  for a crucial birdie to take a one-shot lead down the last.

“To win at your own club in front of all your friends and family – the crowds were amazing, I could just feel the momentum building and the crowd getting bigger and bigger towards the end. It’s a great experience and a very special day for me,” said Coetzee, whose previous European Tour win also came on home soil at last year’s Joburg Open.

“I think I’ve got this course down after 18 years of playing golf! I think it played to my advantage knowing when to be aggressive and when not to. I threw one club championship away here by playing conservative on 17, so today it was quite an easy decision to hit driver."

He became the third South African winner of the 2015 season after Branden Grace (Alfred Dunhill Championship and Commercial Bank Qatar Masters) and Trevor Fisher Jnr (Africa Open), but nobody will need to tell him that if he wants to move to the next level (and he is certainly good enough to achieve that), then he really has to work out what's gone wrong with his chipping. One moment he will play a wondrous recovery, the next he will fluff the ball three feet.

Image Credit: Twitter @Sunshine_Tour