The year 1970 was interesting for me. I spent the first half playing amateur tournaments around the world. I went to Brazil with the Springbok team and played well at that Open. At another tournament in Rio de Janeiro, I played two rounds with the great Roberto de Vicenzo, one of the finest gentlemen I have played with.

I then travelled to Europe and played at the Scottish Amateur, which I won, and then it was on to The Open Championship.

I’d been called up to do my military service which, at that time, was a nine-month stint. I had to report for duty one week before The Open started. Fortunately, they agreed to let me start a few weeks late which allowed me to go to the Old Course at St Andrews for my second Open Championship.

I don’t blame my late start on the Army but I was possibly the worst soldier in the SA Army! I was in One Signal Regiment and was supposed to be a radio operator. I couldn’t even find Springbok Radio, never mind anything that might cause South Africa a security problem!

After a couple of months, I was called into the Captain’s office and he said to me: ‘Hayes, you have been invited to the Sportsman of the Year Awards and I’m giving you permission to go.’ I thanked him and started to leave. As I got to the door, he said, ‘Hayes, wear civvies, you’re a disgrace to the Army!’

Back to The Open. I missed the qualifying but it was a very special week. South Africa had a huge contingent of players, many of them sponsored by Gary Player and George Blumberg. They included Sewsunker ‘Papwa’ Sewgolum, Theo Manyama, Daddy Naidoo, Vincent Tshabalala, Richard Mogoerane and Ismail Chowglay.

Papwa was easily the best player of colour in the 1960s and early ’70s but the other guys could also play. Because of apartheid, they weren’t permitted to play at many of the Sunshine Tour events, which would also change that year.

The Open Championship was won by Jack Nicklaus but only after a lot of drama. Tony Jacklin got off to a wonderful start before a thunderstorm stopped play and his run of birdies. He eventually shot 67 in the first round which trailed Neil Coles by two shots. Harold Henning also shot 67.

After two rounds, Lee Trevino was on eight under par, with Jack Nicklaus and Jacklin, the defending champion, on seven under par. Harold Henning was fourth on five under. The third round saw more of the same with Trevino two ahead of Nicklaus, Jacklin and Doug Sanders.

In the final round, only one player in the top 10 shot par or better. On the final hole, Sanders was 70 yards from the pin after his tee shot and only needed a par to win. He missed a 30-inch putt to allow Nicklaus to tie and force a playoff which he won by a shot. Henning finished third. The only other South African who played all four rounds was Bobby Cole who finished 28th.

Papwa had already won against very strong fields. He won the 1959, 1960 and 1964 Dutch Opens as well as the 1963 and 1964 Natal Opens where he held off Gary Player – in the same year Gary won the US Open and became only the third player in history to achieve the Grand Slam.

At the time no others had won on the Sunshine Tour but considering the restrictions they had, it’s amazing they not only made cuts but also won money.

Dylan Naidoo and Robin Williams

All the professionals I have mentioned in this column would be so proud of the recent results on the Sunshine Tour tournaments – Dylan Naidoo’s win at the Investec SA Open and Robin Williams’ wins at the 2023 and 2024 Fortress Invitational on the Sunshine Tour, along with Keenan Davidse and Heinrich Bruiners both playing high-quality golf.

These successes can all be attributed to GolfRSA’s development programmes and National Squad, which were made a reality by Mr Johann Rupert who has consistently assisted and promoted the sport in South Africa.