Ken Borland

Dean Elgar was the star of the third day of the Sunfoil Series match between the Unlimited Titans and the Dolphins at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Saturday, but his heroic century was not enough to prevent the visitors going into the final day as favourites.

Six golfers put themselves at the top of the leaderboard on Saturday, sharing a one-shot lead as the Tshwane Open enters what will be a thrilling final round at Pretoria Country Club on Sunday.

The Van Wyk name was shining brightly at SuperSport Park on Friday as brothers Morne and Divan dominated the second day of the Dolphins’ Sunfoil Series match against the Unlimited Titans in Centurion.

Morne van Wyk, one of the most prolific batsmen on the domestic circuit, scored 76 not out as he lifted the Dolphins to a commanding 314 for six, already 47 runs ahead of the Titans with four first-innings wickets remaining.

Divan is a lesser-known name in South African cricket, but the younger Van Wyk has been in fine form this season and the opener’s 87 was his fifth half-century of the four-day campaign, taking his tally to 572 runs at an average of 44.

Their heroics come just 10 days after they became only the second pair of brothers to score centuries in the same innings in South African first-class cricket, the famous Kirsten brothers, Gary and Peter, being the first to do it, for Western Province against Eastern Province in Port Elizabeth in 1989/90.

The rest of the Dolphins batsmen did not make full use of their starts, with Imraan Khan adding just four runs to his overnight score of 32 before being caught behind in the second over of the day, bowled by Ethy Mbhalati.

The veteran seamer then bowled Khaya Zondo for one before Cody Chetty and Daryn Smit were both dismissed for 16. Andile Phehlukwayo was then bowled by Roelof van der Merwe for 10, the left-arm spinner having earlier dismissed Divan van Wyk in the same fashion, and it was left to Calvin Savage (36*), hidden down the order, to partner the Dolphins captain, Morne van Wyk, in an unbroken stand of 81 that saw the visitors take the honours for the second day running.

Morne van Wyk made his entrance at a tricky time, coming to the crease midway through the second session with the Dolphins on 149 for four replying to the Titans’ first innings of 267. The veteran wicketkeeper/batsman batted through to the close of a day shortened by a thunderstorm, stroking 10 fours and a six as he batted for three-and-a-quarter hours, facing 122 deliveries.

*In Bloemfontein, Rassie van der Dussen, Dominic Hendricks, Neil McKenzie and Temba Bavuma all scored half-centuries to take the bizhub Highveld Lions to 320 for four, already a lead of 72 runs over the Chevrolet Knights.

Van der Dussen (70) and Hendricks (71) added 103 for the second wicket to set up the Lions’ innings after Duanne Olivier had had Stephen Cook (19) caught in the slips to inflict a rare failure on the skipper.

Van der Dussen fell to Malusi Siboto and when Hendricks edged off-spinner Werner Coetsee to wicketkeeper Rudi Second, the Lions were 189 for three.

But McKenzie and Bavuma (57) would win the battle against the second new ball as they then added 109 for the fourth wicket, before Bavuma edged a delivery from Olivier to Second.

McKenzie had gone to a top-class 72 not out by stumps and with Thami Tsolekile with him on 14 not out, the Lions are in a strong position to record a victory that would give them a massive lead at the top of the Sunfoil Series standings.

*A commanding batting performance by the Nashua Cape Cobras saw them take a stranglehold on their Sunfoil Series match against the Chevrolet Warriors at Newlands.

Rory Kleinveldt took the last two wickets of the Warriors’ first innings quickly on the second morning to bowl them out for 288, preventing Dane Paterson from completing a five-wicket haul, but they both finished with four for 59.

The Cobras then replied to the Warriors’ first innings with 316 for three at stumps.

Richard Levi used his bear-like forearms to club 79 with 14 fours as the Cobras raced away at the start to 131 for one.

The key partnership came, however, from Omphile Ramela (81*) and captain Justin Ontong (75*), who put on an unbeaten 141 for the fourth wicket.

Ontong’s innings was a particularly swift affair, his runs coming off just 98 balls, with nine fours.

There was little for the Warriors to get excited about, although off-spinner Simon Harmer bowled 30 overs for just 74 runs to go with the 94 he scored to rescue the Warriors innings.

Ramela, sent in at number three, has plodded through four-and-a-half hours of batting to post his fourth Sunfoil Series half-century.

Spaniard Adrian Otaegui took advantage of the friendlier conditions available at the start of the second round of the Tshwane Open at Pretoria Country Club on Friday, shooting a superb eight-under-par 62 to claim a two-stroke lead at the halfway stage of the co-sanctioned tournament.

Otaegui was in the first three-ball off at 6.40am and he set the tone for his round with birdies on the par-four second and third holes. Five birdies in a row from the eighth saw him surge up the leaderboard and he then made twos at both of the par-threes on the back nine, before bogeying the last to finish on 11-under for the tournament.

“We were first to tee off this morning and the conditions were perfect. I like playing that early and I did really well. I made a lot of birdies and I’m happy with my round. It was a good round from the beginning.

“The greens were perfect, because we opened the course. They were good yesterday, but when you play first the course is in very good condition and you can take advantage,” Otaegui said after his best round on the European Tour.

South African Merrick Bremner is two shots back at nine-under-par after a typically attacking approach brought him a four-under-par 66. He started his round at the 10^th hole but was level-par for the day after a bogey on the first, but four birdies would come in his last six holes to leave him alone in second place.

While joint overnight leader Morten Orum Madsen would come undone with two double-bogeys in his first four holes and successive bogeys around the turn, leaving him six shots off the pace on five-under, David Horsey kept himself in strong contention.

The Englishman started on the 10^th and put a double-bogey on the fourth behind him as he collected two birdies coming in to finish on eight-under, in a tie for third with South Africans Keith Horne and Trevor Fisher Junior, and Italian Edoardo Molinari.

Sunshine Tour Order of Merit leader Andy Sullivan had an icky round of 71 to miss the cut, while it also all went wrong for Lindani Ndwandwe, who posted a promising 68 in the first round before a run of five successive bogeys from the third hole saw him shoot 79 on Friday and also miss the cut.

The in-form Wallie Coetsee had steadily climbed the leaderboard with four birdies as he stood on the 18^th tee tied with Bremner on nine-under, but then suffered a major blow as his tee-shot found one of the numerous bunkers on a hole that is usually a par-five but is a par-four in this tournament.

The lapse led to a double-bogey which pushed Coetsee back down to seven-under, in a tie for seventh with fellow South Africans Dean Burmester and George Coetzee.

Conditions were definitely trickier on the second day at Pretoria Country Club, with sunny and warm conditions speeding up the greens and a capricious breeze making club selection tricky.

“I found the wind quite tricky. It was really swirling in completely opposite directions and I got a lot of clubs wrong compared to yesterday. You’re trying to make birdies with wedges in your hand and you’re hitting it five or 10 metres short because the wind changes on you. That can get quite frustrating. I think the wind was the biggest factor in why the scores weren’t that low,” Horne said after his 67.

Otaegui, who learnt the game at the same Real Golf Club de San Sebastian as former Ryder Cup captain Jose-Maria Olazabal, who is also his mentor, said Pretoria Country Club suited him.

“I like these type of courses that are old-style and have trees, so that you have to place the ball. You don’t need to hit it far, but rather put it in a place where you can attack the pins. Even if I missed a few tee shots today I hit some good irons and gave myself birdie chances,” the 22-year-old said.

He may be on top of the leaderboard at the moment, but Otaegui is not getting ahead of himself as he eyes his first top-three finish on the European Tour.

“I’m happy, but we still have a lot of way to go. It’s just 50% of the tournament and so many things can happen. I just have to be patient tomorrow. Let’s see if I’ve learnt something from these last two rounds,” he said.

Molinari, a two-time European Tour winner and a former Ryder Cup player, was slow out of the gate as he started on the 10^th, only making his first birdie on the 18^th hole. But he also picked up shots on the first and on his last two holes to put himself amongst the leaders.