BULAWAYO Golf Club veteran amateur Barry Panting made a winning return to the local amateur circuit after capturing the Elephant Hills Open title at Elephant Hills Resort in Victoria Falls on Sunday.
BY DANIEL NHAKANISO
With the entire field struggling to post low scores throughout the weekend, the 38-year-old golfer recovered from a slow start to card a solid two-under-par 70 on Sunday to win the coveted title by five shots.
Panting, who had carded rounds of 79 and 83 on Saturday, rallied back to finish well clear of Hwange-based golfer Josphat Phiri, who finished with a 54-hole total at 237.
Phiri had started the final round with a two shot lead after posting scores of 76 and 74 in the first 36 holes on Saturday, but his charge ended after closing with 77 on Sunday, which allowed Panting to romp to victory.
Panting whose participation in local amateur tournaments has become limited due to work commitments represented Zimbabwe at the 2012 edition of the World Amateur Team Championships held in Antalya, Turkey.
Reigning Matabeleland amateur champion, Mayford Sibanda (79, 83 and 76) finished third, a shot behind Phiri on 235, two shots ahead of fourth placed Martin Masvimbo (82, 78 and 89).
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Falcon Golf Club’s John Milazi completed the top five on the leaderboard after closing with a 79 after posting 88 and 82 on Saturday.
Visitor Mapwanya, who was one of the favourites after winning the Bata Open in Gweru, could not continue his winning run as he finished sixth on 249 after carding rounds of 77, 81 and 91.
The 54-hole Elephant Hills Open, which has both national and amateur world ranking points, saw the players completing 36 holes on Saturday before finishing off with the remaining 18 holes on Sunday.
