Branden Grace produced a stunning closing 66 to win an eighth European Tour title and delight the home fans at the Nedbank Golf Challenge hosted by Gary Player.
The seventh Rolex Series event of the 2017 season had brought an elite field to Gary Player Country Club and they did not disappoint, with the final group of Grace, Victor Dubuisson and Scott Jamieson producing an enthralling final-day battle.
The trio shared the lead with four holes to play, but a brilliant 40-foot birdie putt on the 16th moved Grace to 11 under and handed him a one-shot victory over Jamieson.
Grace hit all 18 greens in regulation in his final round as he moved alongside Louis Oosthuizen into a tie for fourth on the list of all-time South African European Tour winners, behind only Ernie Els, Retief Goosen and Charl Schwartzel.
The 29 year old became the first home winner of the event since Trevor Immelman in 2007 and moved into the top ten on the Race to Dubai Rankings presented by Rolex.
"This is awesome," he said. "This is the one event that as a South African you want to win. It's Africa's Major for a reason and what a special place it is.
"There's a lot of history and a lot of great winners on the trophy and I'm very glad to be able to put my name on the trophy as well.
"It's a very special week, we found out on Wednesday we're having a boy.
"I had to stay patient and I had to take the chances when they came my way. I missed a couple of short ones but I think the big key was the putt on 16."
