EAST LONDON — Darren Fichardt clinched his fourth European Tour victory as his final round of 71 in the Africa Open Golf Challenge at East London Golf Club on Sunday was enough to finish on a 16-under par total of 272 and secure a two-stroke victory over Jaco van Zyl (73) and Frenchman Gregory Bourdy (70).
Report by Supersport
South African Garth Mulroy’s 67 was one of the rounds of the day and saw him wrap up fourth place, a further stroke adrift on 13 under. Desvonde Botes’s final round of 70 elevated him into a share of fifth on 11-under with compatriot Tjaart van der Walt (71), Chile’s Mark Tullo (71) and Englishman Andy Sullivan (68).
Fichardt began the day level with Van Zyl, and the pair both enjoyed comfortable birdies at the par-five first hole.
Van Zyl then edged ahead with a birdie at the second, but Fichardt responded as he holed useful birdie putts on the third and seventh holes.
Van Zyl then suffered bogeys at the ninth and 12th holes and by the time Fichardt birdied the 13th, the 33-year-old Van Zyl had been cut four shots adrift.
Fichardt stuttered though, as a missed putt for par from three feet at the 14th triggered a run of three bogeys in four holes.
Three birdies in a row on the back nine from Bourdy in the group ahead saw him storm into the mix, but a par for Fichardt at the final hole proved to be enough for his first European Tour victory on home soil.
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“It was really tough out there with that wind,” Fichardt said. “I was expecting it to be tough, but on this course the wind comes through valleys, so it’s never directly in front or behind you — it just kind of knocks your ball down and it becomes difficult to judge distances.
“But I hung in there well. I made some really good putts this week and that carried on today. I probably lost a bit of focus on the 14th there and maybe took it for granted. You just can’t do that, and you get punished for it. But I managed to hit a good second shot there on the last hole and luckily that was enough,” he added.
