preview
The
KINGMAKER
Houghton Golf Club will once again be the venue for the prestigious co-sanctioned Joburg Open
By BRENDAN BARRATT
Having shifted from its traditional November spot to one in early March, the Joburg Open takes on new significance for the field of 156 international and local stars teeing it up from 6-9 March.
As the final event of the DP World Tour’s International Swing, and the conclusion of the Sunshine Tour’s regular season, there are a number of tournaments within the event that will play out over four days on the South African Highveld. It’s hardly a stretch to proclaim that futures will be made and lost at Houghton.
Former South African Amateur champion Laurie Canter (below) leads the International Swing and the Englishman can wrap up the title with a decent finish at Houghton. His nearest challengers, Haotong Li and Jacques Kruyswijk, will also be teeing up at the Joburg Open, and a win would be enough to secure not only the $200 000 bonus, but also qualification for some of the DP World Tour’s most lucrative tournaments later this season.
The Joburg Open also draws a conclusion to the Sunshine Tour’s regular season, and players will jostle to secure their spot in the top 72 on the Sunshine Tour Order of Merit delivered by The Courier Guy, in order to qualify for the first playoff tournament – the Serengeti Invitational from 20-23 March.
The field for the season-ending DNi Tour Championship will be whittled down to just the top 50 players on the Order of Merit, but those near the sharp end of the ranking will have their eye on some of the spoils on offer. At the end of The Courier Guy Playoffs, the top-three professionals on the final Order of Merit delivered by The Courier Guy will all receive DP World Tour cards for the following season.
Additionally, the season’s Order of Merit winner will receive exemptions into The Open Championship and The PGA Championship, as well as the Nedbank Golf Challenge, and they will pocket a R500 000 cash bonus.
THE COURSE
Steeped in tradition, Houghton Golf Club is one of South Africa’s premier golfing venues. The course has a proud history as a championship facility having hosted no fewer than eight SA Open events, the first of which took place in 1951, and two Joburg Opens (2022 and 2023).
In 2022, it became the third club to host the event, which was played for the 15th time that year.
The parkland layout is dotted with ponds and dams, with an abundance of flowering shrubs providing great variety and colour. Situated adjacent to the greenbelt of The Wilds the site is a perfect extension to Johannesburg’s natural fauna and flora and is a proclaimed bird sanctuary with Egyptian geese, guinea fowl, dikkops, plovers and a variety of waterfowl in being present.
After the conclusion of the South African Open, Dylan Naidoo leapfrogged Daniel van Tonder into top spot, with fellow South African Shaun Norris moving into third place. But there is still an intriguing race that could unfold, with two GolfRSA alumni in the fight for the life-changing bronze-medal spot. Jonathan Broomhead and Yurav Premlall are in fourth and fifth place, with plenty on offer at Houghton.
With so many permutations, you could be forgiven for getting lost in the detail, but at the end of the day, there is a golf tournament to be won – one with a hefty total prize fund of R20.5-million, of which almost R3.5-million will go to the outright winner.
Now in its 17th edition, the Joburg Open has been a mainstay on the co-sanctioned circuit and a feeder event for up-and-coming golfers, many of them from South Africa. Charl Schwartzel and Richard Sterne are both two-time champions, while Branden Grace, George Coetzee, Thriston Lawrence and Haydn Porteous all claimed their maiden DP World Tour titles at this event.
In fact, 10 of the 16 Joburg Opens to date have been won by South African golfers and it would surprise few if another local player were to take the title in 2025. It won’t be reigning champion Dean Burmester, who will sadly be away on LIV Golf duties in Singapore and unable to defend his title, yet you can’t help but wonder if this leaves the door ajar for the next South African hope to swoop in.
Keep an eye out for recent NTT Data Pro Am champion Wilco Nienaber who is trending in the right direction, with fellow former GolfRSA National Squad players Ryan van Velzen and Casey Jarvis hoping to make their breakthroughs after strong seasons on the Sunshine Tour.
WINNER’S CLUB
Check out the final-round highlights from the 2023 Joburg Open at Houghton Golf Club, won by Dean Burmester.
watch now
JOBURG LADIES OPEN
Not to be outdone, the Sunshine Ladies Tour’s co-sanctioned €300 000 Joburg Ladies Open will once again attract a stellar field of international players when it tees off at Modderfontein Golf Club in early April, as part of the Ladies European Tour’s sojourn to the southern tip of Africa.
In 2024, Switzerland’s Chiara Tamburlini (24) reigned supreme at the 10th edition of the Joburg Ladies Open, also held at Modderfontein Golf Club. The rising star entered the final round boasting a commanding six-shot lead. Maintaining her composure throughout, Tamburlini carded a closing 70 to finish on a dominant 17 under par.
Having relinquished the title to foreign players for the past three years, a strong local contingent will be desperate to have a South African name on the trophy once again.
TYRONE WINFIELD/CARL FOURIE/TROY WINFIELD/SUNSHINE TOUR
