10 December 2012
Scott Jamieson needed 165 shots less than par in most tournaments to capture a rain-hit Nelson Mandela Championship at the Royal Durban Golf Club after a playoff against Steve Webster and Eduardo de la Riva.
Rain played havoc with the new event, co-sanctioned by the Sunshine and European Tours, leading to the cancellation of the first two rounds and some holes being reduced in length for the last two rounds, which resulted in a par-65 course.
Jamieson, though, wouldn’t complain. The victory was his first on the European Tour in his third season as a professional, and it came after a stirring second round.
‘A fantastic achievement’
“To get your name on any European trophy is a fantastic achievement,” Jamieson said after claiming the title, “but it’s a little more special when it’s for someone like Nelson [Mandela].
“At the start of the day I probably didn’t think I would be standing here holding the trophy, but I knew I needed a fast start and I was lucky enough to get that.”
The 29-year-old Scot began the last round six shots off the lead, which belonged to South Africa’s Tim Clark and Denmark’s Morten Orum Madsen on five-under-par 60. Webster and De La Riva set the bar high with rounds of 60 and 61 respectively, but Jamieson went even better, firing an eight-under-par 57 to match them on seven-under 123.
Matched
Jaco van Zyl managed to match Jamieson’s heroics, but a first round of three-over-par 68 left him out of the running for the title.
Jamieson left the course after his round, returning to his hotel but, when he realised that he might be in the running, he returned. It was a good thing he did as he tied Webster and De La Rive atop the leaderboard.
It took two extra visits to the 18th hole to decide the title. De La Riva was the first man to fall by the wayside after he failed to get up and down from a greenside bunker, leaving Jamieson and Webster to play the hole again after both posted pars on the first extra hole.
A birdie and victory
The second time around, a poor drive by Webster left him in the thick rough on the left and in trouble. He did superbly to save par after missing the green with his second shot, but Jamieson was bang on with his drive and approach and two-putted for a birdie and victory.
Tim Clark, who was in a four-way tie for the lead after 10 holes, saw his chances slip away at the 17th. Needing a birdie on one of the last two holes to move into the outright lead, he found a bunker and then knocked his next shot over the green on his way to a double-bogey six.
He had to settle for a share of fourth, one shot off the lead, with Germany’s Maximilian Kieffer, England’s Matthew Nixon and the Dane Morten Orum Madsen.
After his superb eight-under-par 57, Jaco van Zyl tied for eighth with five others, including fellow South African Colin Nel, on six-under-par 125.
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