- South African Open (golf)
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South African Open Tournament information Location 
Ekurhuleni, South AfricaEstablished 1903 Course(s) Serengeti Golf Club Par 72 Length 7,761 yards (7,097 m) Tour(s) European Tour
Sunshine TourFormat Stroke play Prize fund €1,000,000 Month played November Tournament record score Aggregate 264 Ernie Els (2006) To par -24 (as above) Current champion Ernie ElsThe South African Open Championship is one of the oldest national open golf championships in the world, and is one of the principal tournaments on the Sunshine Tour. Since 1997 it has also been co-sanctioned by the European Tour, and as the flagship event on the Sunshine Tour, the tournament also receives special status from the Official World Golf Ranking, with the winner being guaranteed a minimum of 32 points regardless of the strength of the field.[1]
The first formal event was organised in 1903, following a series of exhibition matches that had been held over the preceding ten years. The championship was initially contested over just 36 holes until 1908, when it was extended to become a 72 hole tournament. Although non-whites had played in the South African Open before, most notably when Papwa Sewgolum finished second in 1963, it was not until 1972 that black golfers were allowed to compete.[2]
The South African Open currently takes place at the Serengeti Golf Club in Ekurhuleni in November
Gary Player has been the most successful player in the tournament's history, with 13 victories over four decades between 1956 and 1981. Bobby Locke won nine titles.
Contents
Winners
Year Season Winner Score Sunshine European South African Open Championship 2010 2010 2011 Ernie Els263 (−25)1 2009 2009 2010 
Richie Ramsay275 (−13)PO 2008 2008 2009 Richard Sterne274 (−14)PO South African Airways Open 2007 2007 2008 James Kingston284 (−4) 2006 2006–07 2007 Ernie Els264 (−24) 20052 2005–06 2006 Retief Goosen282 (−10) 20052 2004–05 2005 Tim Clark273 (−15) 2004 2003–04 2004 Trevor Immelman276 (−12) 2003 2002–03 2003 Trevor Immelman274 (−14)PO Bell's South African Open 2002 2001–02 2002 Tim Clark269 (−19) Mercedes-Benz South African Open Championship 2001 2000–01 2001 
Mark McNulty280 (−8) 2000 1999–00 2000 
Mathias Grönberg274 (−14) Mercedes-Benz – Vodacom South African Open 1999 1998–99 1999 David Frost279 (−5) South African Open 1998 1997–98 1998 Ernie Els273 (−15) 1997 1996–97 1997 
Vijay Singh270 (−18) - 1.^ Not an official record score because the 4th hole was unplayable during the 3rd and 4th rounds due to heavy rain. For scoring purposes, all players were deemed to have recorded a par for the hole.
- 2.^ Two events in 2005 due to rescheduling from January to December.
Prior to European Tour co-sanctioning
Year Winner Score Philips South African Open 1996 Ernie Els275 1995 Retief Goosen275 1994 No tournament due to two events in 1993 Dec 1993 Tony Johnstone267 Feb 1993 
Clinton Whitelaw279 Protea Assurance South African Open 1992 Ernie Els275 1991 Wayne Westner272 1990 
Trevor Dodds285 1989 
Fred Wadsworth278 Southern Suns South African Open Championship 1988 Wayne Westner275 1987 Mark McNulty278 PO 1986 David Frost275 South African Open Championship
Title sponsors unknown prior to 19861985 Gavan Levenson280 1984 Tony Johnstone274 1983 Charlie Bolling278 1982 No tournament due to two events in 1976 1981 Gary Player272 PO 1980 Bobby Cole279 1979 Gary Player279 1978 Hugh Baiocchi285 1977 Gary Player273 1976 Gary Player280 1976 Dale Hayes287 PO 1975 Gary Player278 1974 Bobby Cole272 1973 
Bob Charles282 1972 Gary Player274 1971 Simon Hobday276 1970 
Tommy Horton285 1969 Gary Player273 1968 Gary Player274 1967 Gary Player279 1966 Gary Player278 1965 Gary Player273 1964 No tournament due to two events in 1963 1963 Allan Henning278 1963 Retief Waltman281 1962 Harold Henning285 1961 Retief Waltman289 1960 Gary Player280 1959 Denis Hutchinson282 1958 Arthur Stewart281 1957 Harold Henning289 PO 1956 Gary Player286 Year Winner Score South African Open Championship 1955 Bobby Locke283 1954 Reg Taylor289 1953 Jimmy Boyd302 PO 1952 Sid Brews305 1951 Bobby Locke277 1950 Bobby Locke280 1949 Sid Brews291 1948 Mickey Janks298 1947 Ronnie Glennie293 1946 Bobby Locke285 1941–45 No tournament due to World War II 1940 Bobby Locke293 1939 Bobby Locke279 1938 Bobby Locke279 1937 Bobby Locke288 1936 Clarence Olander297 PO 1935 Bobby Locke296 1934 Sid Brews319 1933 Sid Brews297 1932 Charles McIlvenny304 1931 Sid Brews302 1930 Sid Brews297 1929 Archie Tosh315 1928 Jock Brews297 1927 
Sid Brews301 1926 Jock Brews301 1925 Sid Brews295 1924 Bertie Elkin316 1923 Jock Brews315 1922 Fred Jangle310 1921 Jock Brews316 1920 Laurie Waters302 1919 W. H. Horne320 1915–18 No tournament due to World War I 1914 George Fotheringham299 1913 James Prentice304 1912 George Fotheringham305 1911 
George Fotheringham301 1910 George Fotheringham315 1909 
John Fotheringham306 1908 George Fotheringham294 1907 Laurie Waters146 1906 A. G. Gray151 1905 A. G. Gray1904 Laurie Waters143 1903 Laurie Waters163 Tournament held over 36 holes prior to 1908
Multiple winners
Eighteen men have won this tournament more than once through 2010.
- 13 wins
- Gary Player: 1956, 1960, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1972, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1979, 1981
- 9 wins
- Bobby Locke: 1935, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1946, 1950, 1951, 1955
- 8 wins
- Sid Brews: 1925, 1927, 1930, 1931, 1933, 1934, 1949, 1952
- 5 wins
- George Fotheringham: 1908, 1910, 1911, 1912, 1914
- Ernie Els: 1992, 1996, 1998, 2006, 2010
- 4 wins
- Laurie Waters: 1903, 1904, 1907, 1920
- Jock Brews: 1921, 1923, 1926, 1928
- 2 wins
- A. G. Gray: 1905, 1906
- Harold Henning: 1957, 1962
- Retief Waltman: 1961, 1963
- Bobby Cole: 1974, 1980
- Wayne Westner: 1988, 1991
- Tony Johnstone: 1984, 1993 (Dec)
- David Frost: 1986, 1999
- Mark McNulty: 1987, 2001
- Trevor Immelman: 2003, 2004
- Tim Clark: 2002, 2005 (Jan)
- Retief Goosen: 1995, 2005 (Dec)
References
- ^ "How the System Works". Official World Golf Ranking. January 1, 2007. http://www.owgr.com/about_us/default.sps?iType=425&icustompageid=736. Retrieved 2008-11-18.
- ^ "South African Open Championship History and Highlights". South African Open Championship. http://www.southafricanopen.co.za/new/spectator_information/history_and_highlights/index.php. Retrieved 2008-11-18.
External links
Sunshine Tour events Tournaments in playing orderAfrica Open (E) · Joburg Open (E) · Africom Zimbabwe Open · Dimension Data Pro-Am · Telkom PGA Championship · MTC Namibia PGA Championship · Investec Royal Swazi Open · Nashua Golf Challenge · Vodacom Origins of Golf Tour (Pretoria) · Lombard Insurance Classic · Vodacom Origins of Golf Tour (Arabella) · Vodacom Origins of Golf Tour (Simola) · Vodacom Origins of Golf Tour (Wild Coast) · Vodacom Origins of Golf Tour (Sishen) · Telkom PGA Pro-Am · Northern Cape Classic · Vodacom Origins of Golf Tour Final · Platinum Classic · KMC Zambia Open · Suncoast Classic · BMG Classic · Nashua Masters · Nedbank Affinity Cup · Alfred Dunhill Championship (E) · South African Open (E) · Nedbank Golf Challenge · Gary Player Invitational
(E) - co-sanctioned by the European Tour.Major golf championships Current Past Related See also Categories:- European Tour events
- Golf tournaments in South Africa
- Sunshine Tour events
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