Mitchell’s 66 sets him up for Suddards win

MALCOLM Mitchell (22) showed why he is one of the country’s top ranked players with a commanding performance at Durban Country Club last Sunday to win the David Suddards Trophy.

While he has played out of Howick and Maritzburg Golf Club in the past, he is currently a Kloof CC member.

He shot a six-under par 66 in the morning with four birdies and an eagle, on the 14th, to share the lead with Jason Broomhead (Durban CC).

The afternoon rounds weren’t as solid for either, with Mitchell scoring 71 and Broomhead 73.

“It’s the first time I have won here, this course has always been a problem for me,” he said.

Mitchell thanked his coach Shaun Coetzee for helping him take his game to the next level.

“He’s taught me a lot about what playing golf actually means,” he explained.

Previously, Mitchell had been a go-for-broke risk-and-reward type player. Although he has plenty power, it was often his short game saving him.

“Safety wasn’t really in my vocabulary,” he laughed.

At Durban CC last Sunday he adopted a ‘take the trouble out of play’ approach.

“I tried to eliminate the stupid decisions. DCC is the type of course where you have to let the birdies come to you. You get into trouble fast if you try too hard to go and get them,” he said.

Mitchell’s only real blunder on the day came with two holes to go. He sprayed a 2-iron tee shot into the right bush and had to reload. Fortunately he had a four shot lead at the time.

One of the highlights of Mitchell’s day was some praise he received from David Suddards himself.

“He said I was a completely different golfer to what he had seen in the past, that the focus on the shot that I needed to hit was there,” he said.

Coming up, Mitchell is looking forward to a trip to Houghton to play in a Big Easy event, for which he received an invitation.

Then, with a Test match against India at Leopard Creek in August, he’s hoping to be selected for the national team. Currently ranked third in the country, it would be a travesty if he isn’t.

Broomhead, meanwhile, was happy with his result after a tough season. “I’m starting to feel good about my game and it was a solid tournament for me,” he said.

Siyanda Mwandla (Mount Edgecombe CC) produced a small charge in the afternoon and while it wasn’t enough to catch Mitchell, his second round 69 to go with a morning 70 was good enough to tie Broomhead for second place.

Veteran Gavin Sole (Southbroom GC), who has been searching for some decent tournament form, secured fourth place on 70 and 73.

“I was playing well, was four under with eight to go and needed to go three under for the last eight but went three over. The 12th hole caught me big time,” he said afterwards.

Lyall McNeill (Cotswold Downs) was fifth on 76 and 69, and four players tied for sixth on 146 – namely Keith Forde (Durban CC), Byron Coetzee (Cotswold Downs), Derek Scullard (KwaMbonambi) and Greg McKay (Mount Edgecombe CC).