MICKY Hough, the gifted Zimbabwean pro golfer, followed up on his good performance at the Golden Pilsener Zimbabwe Open by capturing his first professional tournament at the Big Easy Tour Observatory tournament in South Africa on Wednesday.
REPORT BY DANIEL NHAKANISO
The tall 29-year-old, who finished tied 63 at Royal Harare Golf Club last week, sank a 12-footer for birdie on the 18th at Observatory Golf Club in Johannesburg to clinch a playoff victory at the Sunshine Big Easy Tour’s Observatory tournament presented by Stonehage.
“It’s a great feeling. It hasn’t really sunk in yet, but it was good to finish with a birdie to win. It’s nice to feel like you’ve won and not been gifted. This was that little bit of belief that you need some times to keep you going,” Hough told the Sunshine Tour website after his breakthrough win.
The final round was fiercely contested, with Hough having to overcome a double bogey at the 10th before starting to chase down the lead.
“I just kept telling myself to deal with the good and the bad, which is something I haven’t really been doing over the last few months. I managed to stay calm and with that the putts just kept dropping,” he said.
Hough birdied his final four holes to finish regulation play on 12-under-par after identical rounds of 66 in the 36-hole tournament and share the lead with South Africa’s Darryn Lloyd. The two entered a sudden-death playoff and had to repeat the 18th until a victor emerged.
Both players made par on the first extra trip down 18. During the second trip Hough managed a birdie, while Lloyd could only manage par to ensure the former claimed the R14 000 prize money.
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By winning on the Big Easy Tour, Hough, who used to caddie for European Tour star Miguel Jimenez, follows in the footsteps of fellow local professional Ryan Cairns.
