• RUGBY Stone on a roll at Leopard Creek
YOU don’t mess with Charl Schwartzel at the Creek. That’s supposed to be the rule at Leopard Creek. After all, he’s the King of Leopard Creek. He’s the man who has won the Alfred Dunhill Championship here a record four times and, certainly at the start of yesterday’s third round, he had the Big Five in mind on this magnificent bushveld course.
Maybe he will still win, but a young gun – 22-yearold Brandon Stone – did mess with the King at the Creek yesterday. Starting the day at the top of the leader board on 11-under-par, one ahead of the 2011 Masters champion, there were no signs of Stone backing off and being intimidated as he shot a sparkling sixunder-par 66 to playing partner Schwartzel’s 68.
This puts the young professional, winner of last summer’s South African Open, on 17-under 199 through 54 holes. Clearly, Stone is on a roll, with Schwartzel in joint second place on 14-under alongside Keith Horne (67 yesterday) and England’s Chris Hanson (68).
If there was pressure on Stone at the outset, it certainly didn’t show as he hit a perfect wedge to a foot from the cup for an opening birdie three.
“That hot start settled any nerves, and I also managed to birdie holes three, four and five,” he said. “So the birdie putts were dropping but, you know, it’s also important for the par putts to go in. Almost more important, actually, because they keep the momentum going. So the par putt I made at 16 was probably the most important putt of the tournament for me.”
Stone was long and left with his tee-shot at this par-three, with its 190m carry over water. With a tough lie, all he could do was to get his next to about 25 feet from the hole. But in went the putt for a par save to remember.
“And then at the last (the par-5 18th), I felt like the hand of God was on my side.”
Here Stone hit a great drive down the middle, but his approach, in a bid to reach the green in two, went sharply left and his ball was headed for the water that surrounds this island green, only to hit a branch of a tree and fall on dry ground, from where he was able to chip on to the putting surface, two putt and save par.
“Paired with a world-class player like Charl, today was special, and we chatted a lot. What he had to say to me was enlightening. Tomorrow, though, there’s 18 tough holes still to play, and I’m not going to let anyone get in my way if I can help it.” The King included. You bet. Schwartzel was only able to play the front nine in level par yesterday, but he started the inward loop with four straight birdies to get back in the mix. A further gain at 15 helped his cause, but he then found water at 16 and did well to escape with a bogey four.
Horne, who plys his trade mostly on the Asian Tour these days, has shot 69, 66 and 67 so far, and is understandably pleased with his good form.
“I’ve struggled a bit with the putter this year, but it’s worked for me this week. I can’t worry about Brandon or Charl or anyone else in the final round. I’ve just got to go out there and do my best and see what happens.”
Horne hasn’t won a tournament in South Africa this year, which was one of his goals, so he’s got this one more chance.
France’s Benjamin Hebert is lying fifth on 12-under, followed by Scotland’s David Drysdale, after a day’s best 64, on 11-under with Richard Sterne, Bryce Easton and Spain’s Pablo Larrazabal all at 10-under.
“I gave myself plenty of chances on the front nine, and felt I could have birdied every hole, but missed a few putts,” said Drysdale, who was out in 30, five under.
“Overall, though, it was a pretty faultless round, other than the second into 18, where I had a difficult downhill lie. I was trying to cut it, but came across it and went into the water.
“So now I was playing four – from 57 yards, but 57 yards on that hole with the pin at the front of the green can be very tricky, and I felt I did well to hit it close enough to save par and keep my day bogeyfree on a fantastic golf course,” added the Scot, who has his wife Vicky caddying for him this week.