David Ravetto clinched his maiden Challenge Tour title with a two-stroke victory at the Dimension Data Pro-Am.
The Frenchman took a two-shot lead into the final round at Fancourt Golf Estate and he never looked like being caught as he posted a three under par round of 69 to reach 15 under par, two ahead of England’s Sam Hutsby who finished second.
The 26-year-old opened with a birdie at the first hole to settle the nerves before further gains at the third and ninth holes put further breathing space between himself and the chasing pack. Ravetto carded a level par back nine to see out victory and move to third place on the Road to Mallorca Rankings.
“It feels amazing,” he said. “I’m so proud of myself because the last six months haven’t been easy for me and I’m so happy with my performance this week.
“I had a discussion with my mental coach and the plan for me was to just hit as many good shots as I could and take each hole at a time. Today I tried to be conservative and take my birdie chances when they arrived. Overall I played some solid golf.
“I got a good draw for the first three rounds but today it got very windy in the afternoon and the pins were tough. I made sure I didn’t panic and starting with a birdie definitely helped.
“The three courses are world class and The Links is one of my favourite courses. I love playing in South Africa because the weather is always great and the greens roll very true.”
Ravetto, who retained his DP World Tour playing privileges at Qualifying School at the end of last year, was delighted to triumph in George and heads into next week’s Magical Kenya Open full of confidence.
“My plan is to play on the DP World Tour and this gives me great confidence heading into the rest of the season,” he said. “This week proves to me that if I’m playing well then I am good enough to win out here.
“The Challenge Tour creates a super opportunity for players to progress their careers and graduate on to the DP World Tour. We are playing such magnificent courses and the quality of players on the Challenge Tour is so high.”
Spaniard Victor Pastor and South African duo Robin Williams and Hennie du Plessis shared third place on 11 under par, while three-time DP World Tour winner Brandon Stone and fellow South African Zander Lombard finished sixth on ten under.
Sweden’s Mikael Lindberg remains in pole position on the Road to Mallorca Rankings on 342 points following his victory at last week’s Bain's Whisky Cape Town Open, while Welshman Rhys Enoch is 11 points behind in second. Ravetto climbs to third on 320 points following his triumph, while Hutsby and South African Louis Albertse make up the top five.
The Road to Mallorca now heads to Port Elizabeth for the NMB Championship, the fourth and final co-sanctioned event with the Sunshine Tour, from February 22-25.
