Caitlyn Macnab, the 24-year-old rising star of South African ladies golf, and Selwyn Nathan, the 76-year-old 'Godfather' of the Sunshine Tour, were both pictures of sheer delight on the 18th green of Royal Johannesburg's East Course as the Waterfall City Tournament of Champions supported by Attacq and WCMC, came to a thrilling end.

The reason for Macnab's joy was obvious: She had just played the final hole of the mixed tournament almost perfectly to notch an eagle-three and claim the R1- million winner's cheque, one of the biggest prizes on the Sunshine Tour.

For Nathan, watching a member of the Sunshine Ladies Tour beat the previous season's champions on the Sunshine Tour was a wonderful way to mark his last day in office as the Executive Director of the tour. Nathan has been instrumental in building the Sunshine Ladies Tour from its inception in 2014.

Macnab, last season's R&A Rookie of the Year on the Sunshine Ladies Tour, had led the tournament from the first day, but arrived on the 18th tee on the Sunday in a three-way tie for the lead with Luis Carrera, the men's 2025/26 Rookie of the Year, and Pieter Moolman.

She hit a fantastic drive from her forward tee, past the bunkers and landing her further down the fairway than her playing partners Carrera and Justin Walters, and so she hit her approach last. And what a brilliant five-iron it was: from 182 metres out it finished in the middle of the green and below the hole.

Carrera sank a 13-foot putt for birdie as he got up-and-down from the right bunker, so Macnab needed to make her eagle putt from 10 feet for the outright win. The Johannesburg-born golfer showed her resolve with a brilliant putt that never looked like missing.

To confirm the impression that Macnab is the sort of resilient golfer who plays better under pressure, she said after the triumph that she was happy those below her on the leaderboard had pushed her hard on the final day.

'It feels amazing to win in front of my family, but it was tough. I think it was a good thing I had people chasing me, it helped me to stay in the moment. My caddy (former pro and SA amateur star Matt Saulez) also did a great job keeping me going.

'There were obviously nerves coming down 18 and I knew I needed a minimum of a birdie to win. I hit a great drive and then had a perfect number coming in and I was pretty confident with the uphill putt.

'I've worked so hard on my mental game with my coach (Grant Veenstra) just to stay in the moment and let instinct take over. I just let my preparation fill the gap and I'd like to think my win is a big statement for women's golf,' Macnab said.

Nathan has been involved in the administration of South African golf since as far back as 1969, so for him to see a lady golfer win a R1-million prize in a South African event was a moment of pride for all he has done for the development of the game in this country.

We only need to turn our clocks back a dozen years to see how seismic the change has been in making it possible for Macnab to achieve what she did.

'When we started the Sunshine Ladies Tour, the girls would play for R100 000 a week and it was unbelievable for them because they had zero before that,' Nathan said. 'Since then we've had a lot of great winners and a lot of our players competing on the Ladies European Tour and a couple on the LPGA, which for me is wonderful.

'There were a few people crying about pushing their tees forward making the course too short for the ladies, but the point is they're also hitting a 5-iron to the green. All the girls were up there the whole week on the leaderboard and Gabrielle Venter finished fourth.

"The key is the pathway and it starts here on the Sunshine Tour. We'll have half-a-dozen ladies playing next weekend in Europe, which is fantastic. In the past we've only had one player – Lee-Anne Pace. We've followed the model of the guys which has resulted in a bunch of kids getting on the PGA Tour,' Nathan said.

Macnab is one of those players who has now gone to Europe to compete on an equal footing with the many overseas golfers who now come to South Africa to play on the Sunshine Ladies Tour.

'The R1-million will help a lot with my travel expenses, it's expensive being on two tours,' she grinned. 'My focus is on the LET for now and climbing the order of merit. As a rookie on that tour, I've had a bit of a slow start, but this win will help my confidence a lot, it was the best finish possible.

'It's a huge accomplishment, I'm very chuffed. I will just be the best I can be and hopefully I can claw my way to some top-10s now in Europe,' Macnab said at Royal Johannesburg.

TROY WINFIELD | TYRONE WINFIELD | SA PGA