Andy Sullivan will tee it up in the Africa Open from Thursday looking to make it a hat-trick of victories in co-sanctioned events this year, but home hero Jaco van Zyl will hope to overhaul the Englishman and convert his resurgent form into a win at East London Golf Club.
Van Zyl has arrived in Buffalo City as one of the favourite, alongside last week's Joburg Open winner, and will be looking to extend South Africa’s stranglehold on the €1 million event when the pair line up as part of a world class field this week.
“I’m definitely gunning for a podium finish this year,” said Van Zyl, following a third-place finish in the Dimension Data Pro-Am two weeks ago and a tie for second last week in Joburg.
In his six starts at East London Golf Club, the 13-time Sunshine Tour winner has broken par in 21 of his 24 rounds, en route to a tie for fifth in 2014, while he also finished fourth in 2011 and 2012, before recording a runner-up in 2013.
Van Zyl has also tasted victory at East London Golf Club, after he defeated Dean Lambert 8 & 6 to claim victory in the South African Amateur Championship in 2000.
Plenty of reasons, therefore, for the 35 year old Dainfern golfer to feel confident of taking the title come Sunday.
He said: “The layout is typical of the old-style courses and I fell in love with it when I first won here in 2000, as the course offers a lot of risk and reward, but it punishes any wayward shots. When the wind is up, it tests every shot in the game and strategy is key, and that’s why the Africa Open has always been my favourite summer event.
“The awesome crowds in East London, their enthusiasm is second to none, and their support is incredible. I think that’s why South Africans have won the past seven Africa Opens.”
Van Zyl was ranked 62nd in the Official World Golf Ranking when his career was interrupted with double knee surgery in April last year, but he returned to the competitive stage in January, teeing it up in the South African Open Championship and the Omega Dubai Desert Classic.
Even after that lay-off, his confidence from tee to green remains high, but the putter is still causing him some headaches. He said: “I only missed one green, but I had 33 putts in my final round of 66 at the Joburg Open.
“I am striking the ball unbelievably well, and the short game is coming along nicely, too, but I was really frustrated with the putter. Hopefully that final aspect of the game falls into place this week and I can finally pull it off in East London.”
Previous winners Thomas Aiken, Darren Fichardt, Retief Goosen, Shaun Norris, Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel have all fiercely protected South African honour in recent years by taking the title at the Africa Open, but there is a two-time European Tour champion in town who hopes to change the course of history.
Barely a month after he defeated 2010 Africa Open champion Schwartzel in a play-off for the South African Open title at Glendower, Sullivan added the Joburg Open title to his tally last weekend.
Now the Englishman is targeting a South African triple in his third trip to East London Golf Club, and the 27 year old Nuneaton professional said one of the reasons he does so well in this country is the crowd support.
“The crowds are very knowledgeable and I really enjoyed them in my two previous visits to East London,” he said.
“The Eastern Cape fans really got behind the golfers, no matter the nationality, and they love being out there with us and getting treated to some great golf. It really feeds the confidence when you have crowd support and I am counting on the fans to give me a fighting chance this week.”
Sullivan, who rose to seventh in The Race to Dubai and rocketed to 58th in the world after his win at Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Golf Club last week, said his game is as good as it has ever been, since turning professional in 2011.
“I just want to get myself into a strong position for Sunday,” he said. “I enjoy the pressure of leading a tournament or chasing a leader on the final day. I can’t get enough of that adrenaline rush. I wish I could bottle it.
“To hold another trophy in South Africa would be fantastic, and to become the first non-South African to lift the Africa Open title would be incredibly special.”
