What a thrill from Oliver
Oliver Bekker produced a magnificent final-round 67 to surge through the field and win the Jonsson Workwear Durban Open by two strokes at Durban Country Club on Sunday. In a tournament shortened to 54 holes because of the weather, Bekker used all of his experience to close with a round of seven birdies and two bogeys for a winning total of 16 under par.
His nearest challenger was Sweden’s Christofer Blomstrand who finished second on 14 under par with a final round of 71. It was a remarkable performance from Bekker, who recently moved to Australia as part of a plan to start slowing down his career. But the problem is, he cannot stop winning. This victory comes four months after he won on the PGA Tour of Australasia.
“It’s a little bit surreal. since we moved to Australia I’ve been moving more furniture than playing golf. I missed the cut last week so came into this event with not too many expectations, and sometimes that’s when you play your best golf, I’ve been working with somebody in Stellenbosch. It’s just small things, and not to fight what I want to do naturally. It’s paying dividends. I’ve been playing well lately without changing too much. I’ve got a wealth of experience behind me now, which also helps. I started slowly, but then started hitting a few quality shots. I thought if I could get to 17 under I’d have shot. As I walked off the 12th green I saw that somebody was on 16 under, so the guys were going low early. I managed to make a few good putts. When I got to 18 I thought I needed to make birdie just to have a chance. I did that, and then I saw the scoreboard and 13 under was in second place. That’s when I knew I might have done it.” said Bekker.
This is Bekker’s second victory on the HotelPlanner Tour amidst what is a rich vein of form for him. It was a thrilling final round as a few players made a run at the lead, including Spain’s Pablo Ereno who was right in contention before an eight on the par-four 17th hole. It was an emotional victory as well, with Bekker’s wife staying up in Australia to watch him win and who he spoke to first on the phone. And with Bekker recently having lost a very close friend.
“It was nice to speak to my wife. And I lost a very close friend recently. It makes you realise just how short life is, and that moments like this are special.” Meanwhile Frank Chirute took top honors as the winning Caddie which was handed over by his Worship the Mayor of Ethekwini Clr Cyril Xaba.
