RANKING SLIDE
SA golf hits the rough
THE Open Championship, which starts on Thursday, has become a time for South African golf lovers to watch in expectation rather than hope of seeing a local winner.
Louis Oosthuizen, seemingly from nowhere, won the 2010 Open at St Andrews and then, perhaps even more surprisingly, Ernie Els, after years in the doldrums, won the 2012 Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes.
But optimism is low for this year’s event at Royal Liverpool — also known as Hoylake — especially after the latest world golf rankings showed that Charl Schwartzel, at No 25, was the only South African in the world’s top 50.
At the beginning of the year Els and Oosthuizen were also in the top 50. Injuries have hindered Oosthuizen’s season, Els’s form has taken an alarming dip and Schwartzel is also struggling to string four successive good rounds together.
Others, such as Richard Sterne and Branden Grace, have also slipped backwards this season due to a combination of injury and loss of form.
South Africa, given its size, population and geography, produces more of the world’s
Modern players don’t play as much as I did. I loved playing and competing, and I loved travelling to new places and trying to beat people in their own countries
best golfers per capita than any other nation. The golfing public has become spoilt watching the success of SA’s players around the world.
From the major-winning feats of a bygone era by Bobby Locke and Gary Player to modern champions Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, Trevor Immelman and, more recently, Oosthuizen and Schwartzel, South Africa’s haul of 22 majors is impressive. That’s not counting the hundreds of tournaments SA golfers have won around the world over the past 80 years.
That kind of success breeds high expectations, not only from players, but the viewing public as well, which is why there is so little optimism.
“The fact that our golfers have gone backwards this year is not a massive issue,” Player said. “It happens in golf, it happens in other sports and, in fact, it happens in life in general.
“It hasn’t been a good time in recent months. Someone told me Ernie [Els] has missed five of his last seven cuts. It is a bit disappointing that it’s happening, but the great thing about golf is that it can change very quickly.
“I remember playing at Carnoustie when I won the Open in 1968 and, in the practice rounds, I was hitting the ball poorly. At 10pm one night I went on the range by
As quickly as you can lose it in this game, you can find it again, and I hope that’s the case with some of the South Africans this week. I don’t know if they are playing too little
myself with a bucket of balls and I found something in my swing in a matter of seconds — and I went on to win.
“As quickly as you can lose it in this game, you can find it again, and I hope that’s the case with some of the South Africans this week.
“I don’t know if the guys today are playing too little, but I do know that they make so much money that they can play for three weeks and then take ages off the game. The modern players certainly don’t play as much as I did, but they don’t have to, I suppose.
“I loved playing and competing, and I loved travelling to new places and trying to beat people in their home countries. That was the
It happens in golf, it happens in other sports and, in fact, it happens in life in general. It hasn’t been a good time in recent months
passion and drive that I had, but everybody is different and you can’t expect everybody will do it in the same way I did.”
Oosthuizen remains a huge threat on the big occasions, but a persistent back injury is threatening to prevent him from fulfilling his supreme talent, despite a replica Claret Jug displayed at Albertinia Golf Club near Mossel Bay.
“The last year and a half was really frustrating for me with injury on injury,” Oosthuizen said recently. “I've been struggling with lower-back injuries. Now and then I really get issues with my back and can’t get to the bottom of it. I’m working on a few things to see if we can get it sorted out.”
Despite Oosthuizen’s injury problems, Player, who won nine majors, including three Open Championships, believes that he and Schwartzel remain SA’s best contenders for the title this week.
“The best golf swings in the game today belong to Rory McIlroy, Adam Scott, Jason Day, Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel,” Player said.
“It’s not always the golf swing that wins it — it’s the mind and the passion — but it’s a good start to have such a great swing.
“Louis [Oosthuizen] has been nibbling at winning again, so I think he could have a big week. And you can never count Charl out, either.
“They have both won majors so, if they’re in a position to win it come the back nine on Sunday, that experience will be vital for them to draw on.
“The nerves will be bad, but they’re not as bad when you have done it before.”