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Sport24.co.za | Bridesmaid no more! Strydom wins at Sishen



Kathu – When you’ve been runner-up 11 times, then winning can be a disorienting
experience.

Ockie Strydom had to keep his wits about him as he marched to a
commanding six-stroke win on Saturday in the R1 million Vodacom Origins of Golf
tournament at Sishen Golf Club.

He carded a
bogey-free six-under-par 66 – the best round of the day – to show himself
conclusively that he was a winner.

Thriston Lawrence, who is starting to pick
up a string of runner-up finishes himself, signed for a five-under 67 for
second, while Riekus Nortje, Michael Palmer, Luke Jerling and Chris Swanepoel
shared third on eight-under for the tournament.

“When I
walked towards the green on 18, I was still in the mode of getting the job
finished,” said Strydom.

“When I got to the green, I started getting goose
bumps. I just told myself to take deep breaths, read the putt and see if I
could make it – and it went in.”

That putt,
like much of his game throughout the tournament, typified his dominance.

“My
putting this week was the key to the success,” he said. “I made some crucial
putts. I also didn’t hit much driver, just three-iron, three-wood down the
fairway, hit it on the green and two-putted. I just made sure I secured the par
and I believed birdies would come.

“I kept
myself calm throughout the week, and I ended up making just two drops. Paul
(Keyser), my caddie, just kept talking to me, kept my mind off everything, and
then it just happened. That restraint is very tough for me, but Paul kept on
telling me to stick to the game-plan.

“To keep the
momentum up, there were a few saves that I had to make for par. And then I made
a good birdie on 15 today: I made it up and down from the left. I almost hit it
over the green and made that putt.”

Lawrence
made a concerted charge at Strydom, with six birdies not quite enough to negate
a tough second round of only one-under-par 71. Then a bogey on the final hole
after a drive pulled to the left left Strydom with little to no pressure as he
came up 18.

Nortje and
Palmer each carded four-under 66s, Jerling a 69, and Swanepoel battle his way
to a one-under 71.

For Strydom,
the immediate task is to get used to being a winner.

“I don’t know how it feels
yet,” he said.

“It’s going to sink in some time – I don’t know if it will be
now, or tomorrow on my way back home, but it’s a great feeling. I’ve been
knocking on the door for quite a while.”

The knocking
is over, and, now that he’s in the door, he can gain a degree of redemption for
those 11 runner-up spots.

“My confidence is sky-high now,” he said.

“I’ve been
working hard and my results are rewarding me for that work – and I’m in for the
Mauritius Open now, and I can book a plane ticket in advance, for a change!”

Final scores:

200 – Ockie Strydom 69 65 66

206 – Thriston
Lawrence 68 71 67

208 – Riekus
Nortje 71 69 68, Michael Palmer 70 70 68, Luke
Jerling 70 69 69, Chris Swanepoel 69 68 71

209 – Neil
Schietekat 73 67 69

210 – Estiaan
Conradie 71 73 66, Hennie Otto 71 70 69

211 – Stefan
Wears-Taylor 70 73 68, Herman Loubser 69 72 70, Philip
Geerts 73 67 71, Trevor Fisher Jnr 71 67 73

212 – Rhys
West 72 72 68, Jared Harvey 75 69 68, Hendrikus
Stoop 72 71 69, Michael Hollick 68 74 70, Yubin
Jung 71 70 71, Alex Haindl 72 69 71, Daniel van
Tonder 70 70 72

213 – Keenan
Davidse 69 75 69, Dylan Naidoo 74 70 69, Erhard
Lambrechts 71 72 70, Jacques Blaauw 72 71 70, Louis
Albertse 69 73 71, Victor Lange 71 67 75

214 – Jake
Roos 72 71 71, Deon Germishuys 75 66 73, Toto
Thimba 72 68 74

215 – Heinrich
Bruiners 73 71 71, Jean Hugo 73 70 72, Ryan Tipping 68
74 73, CJ du Plessis 71 70 74, Stephen Ferreira 71 68 76

216 – Doug
McGuigan 73 71 72, Titch Moore 72 72 72, MJ Viljoen 71
72 73, Thato Mazibuko 70 72 74

217 – Clinton
Grobler 73 69 75

218 – Vaughn
Groenewald 69 75 74, DK Kim 71 73 74

219 – Lyle
Rowe 71 73 75, Ruan Botha 73 71 75, Allister de
Kock 70 73 76

220 – Madalitso
Muthiya 69 75 76, Anton Haig 70 73 77

221 – James
Hart du Preez 71 73 77, Kyle McClatchie 73 71 77, Juran
Dreyer 73 70 78

222 – Jonathan
Waschefort 70 74 78





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