Freak accident floors Louis
BIG BLOW: WORLD NO 23 INJURES FINGERS AT AIRPORT
Mauritius Open champion knows the Firethorn course well.
Randpark Golf Club was doing its best yesterday afternoon to dry out following all the rain this week ahead of playing host to a massive 240-man field in the Joburg Open starting today, but it is a field shorn of its major drawcard in Louis Oosthuizen.
South Africa’s highest-ranked golfer, at No 23 in the world, withdrew yesterday morning after he jammed his fingers at the airport trolley bay, leaving his appendages bruised and swollen and unable to grip the club. Oosthuizen’s absence opens the way for compatriot Dylan Frittelli, now the highest-ranked player in the field at No 55, to continue his recent purple patch.
The Johannesburg-born 27-year-old has climbed from 96th in the world after the Italian Open in mid-October to just outside the top-50 places that guarantee invites to the Majors, following two top-five finishes in lucrative Rolex Series events and his win in last weekend’s Mauritius Open.
And Frittelli is confident enough to tackle Randpark’s Bushwillow course today without a practice round.
“I have had a few good weeks the last month or so, and definitely have some good form coming into this week. I’ve done some good prep in the weeks prior and I’m excited to get going. It depends on the golf course, and if I’m playing somewhere I have not played, I am always going to do two practice rounds.
“But this is a course I know and I have played before. I know the lines off the tee, so there’s no real need to play beforehand. I just need to get my body in shape and hit some balls and know I’m striking it well. I think some guys maybe lean too much on being familiar with the golf course, but for me, if I walk on to that first tee and I’m feeling fresh, ready to go, and I can hit a drive straight down the middle, that’s really all you need. I’ve got faith in my caddie, I’ve got faith in the yardage book and everything is in front of me, I can do it,” Frittelli said yesterday.
Among South Africa’s other leading golfers who are making Randpark their final port of call for the year are George Coetzee, who will be looking to convert some good recent form into his first win of the year, Dean Burmester, who is keen to build on his solid first full season on the European Tour and another home town favourite in Haydn Porteous, who is aiming to regain the title he won in January 2016.
Darren Fichardt, always comfortable on highveld parklands courses, returns to defend the title he won at a wet Royal Johannesburg and Kensington in February, while Malaysia’s Gavin Green is looking to make the Asian Tour order of merit title safe in the penultimate event.