ZIMBABWE amateur golf sensation Benjamin Follet-Smith continues establish himself as a rising star in in local junior golf after finishing an impressive third at the prestigious Kenako South African World Juniors Golf Series on Thursday.
REPORT BY DANIEL NHAKANISO
The Wingate Park Club golfer put on a stunning display at the 54-hole tournament which teed off at Kingswood Golf Estate on Tuesday.
Follet-Smith, looked on course to victory as he led the field of 120 players heading into the final round after a firing a stunning three-under par 69 on Wednesday to follow up on his opening level-par 72.
He could only, however, shoot a closing one-under-par 71 on the final day to finish on four-under-par 212 and in a three-way tie for third position together South Africans Philip Kruse and HP van der Merwe.
South African Jade Buitendag from East London won the coveted title after piping England’s Robert Burlison in a playoff after both players had finished two shots ahead on six-under-par 210.
The third place finish in George further illustrates Follet-Smith’s rise to the summit of local amateur golf after recent impressive performances in international tournaments.
The former St John’s College student’s sixth place finish at the annual Junior Orange Bowl International Golf Championship in US was the best performance by a local golfer at the prestigious tournament in recent years.
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With continued exposure on the World Junior Golf Series, Follet-Smith is destined to scale greater heights. Another Zimbabwean, Stuart Krog also fared well in the tournament after settling for a tie for position 27 while Travis Smith was tied for 39th. The duo of Mbogeni Maphosa and Gerald Shwabane were tied for position 63. The World Junior Golf Series is an international tour structure designed to showcase the best junior players (ages 12-19) on the world stage.
