Ken Borland

Branden Grace produced an addictive blend of power off the tee and precise, risk-free golf as he surged to a seven-stroke victory in the Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek in Malelane on Sunday.

Grace has now led a European Tour event going into the final round on five occasions and has won every time; whatever it is that courses through his veins in those pressure situations, the sports medicine industry would no doubt love to turn it into a drug.

Without detracting from the quality of golf he produced on Sunday in shooting a four-under-par 68, Grace’s task was made easier by his nearest challengers, Lucas Bjerregaard and Danny Willett, both playing the back nine as if they were in a stupor, plummeting down the leaderboard.

Grace dared to take driver off the tee on a course that has plenty of punishing bush to catch the offline shot.

“I was great off the tee, on a course where you really need to be. I felt so comfortable with my driver and the par-fives were the big turnaround today, I played them in one-over yesterday [Saturday], but today I was four-under,” Grace said.

The 26-year-old started well with birdies at the second and fourth holes and even though he bogeyed the par-three seventh after finding the matted grass left of the green, he was out in 34 and was two ahead of Willett.

Bjerregaard had been knocked to the canvas by a triple-bogey six at the seventh. His tee shot was even further left than Grace’s, in thicker grass, but his chip looked like a good one. Unfortunately for the Dane, it just kept rolling on the hard and fast green, past the hole and into the water.

He was probably still upset about his bad luck when he bogeyed the eighth, but then everything fell apart on the back nine as Bjerregaard came home in an astonishing 50 comprising five bogeys, two double-bogeys and a quadruple-bogey on the par-four 11^th. His final round of 89 is surely the worst by a player in the leading group on the last day of a tournament.

Willett was two-under for his round through 15 holes, but his cheeky smile turned into a scowl on 16 when his tee-shot was short of the green and in the water on the par-three. He then bogeyed 17 and was thoroughly disheartened by the time he carded an eight on the 18^th to finish in a tie for fourth on 10-under after a 76.

Their ham-fisted efforts at catching him brought some sympathy from Grace.

“This course does that to you, as soon as you start to push it bites you. Lucas was a bit unlucky on the seventh and after that nothing went his way. But to win so convincingly is nice, it’s a great start to the new season after a hard year,” Grace said.

Just to add to the local flavour of celebration, Louis Oosthuizen shot a fine three-under-par 69 and climbed into second place on 13-under and was waiting to spray his good friend Grace with champagne on the 18^th green.

It was a win to savour for Grace, beating a quality field and returning to the European Tour’s winners’ circle after two years.

“It’s something special being the first player to win wire-to-wire here because this is one of the tournaments every South African golfer wants to win, especially because of what Mr and Mrs Rupert do for golf. My game was spot-on today, there weren’t a lot of misses, maybe two bad shots all day,” Grace said.

Englishman Andrew Johnston, who finished on top of the Challenge Tour rankings, shot a one-over-par 73 on Sunday, but it was enough for him to jump up to third, while South African Trevor Fisher Jnr was on fire on the back nine, carding five birdies to finish with a 69 and tied with Willett in fourth place.

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Defending champion Charl Schwartzel was less than enthusiastic about his chances at the Alfred Dunhilll Championship starting at Leopard Creek in Malelane today, saying his game was still a long way away from being good enough to win the European Tour event, although he does boast a wonderful record here.

Schwartzel was the winner on the highly-rated course next to Kruger National Park last year by four strokes over Englishman Richard Finch, while he ran away with the title in 2012, beating Sweden’s Kristoffer Broberg by a whopping 12 shots – the third biggest winning margin in European Tour history. He also won the title in 2004 and finished runner-up in 2005, 06, 09 and 10.

But the swing troubles that have afflicted South Africa’s highest-ranked golfer all year were in clear view at Sun City last weekend. It was a hugely frustrating week for Schwartzel as there were glimpses of brilliance as he collected 17 birdies and an eagle over the four rounds, but that was undone by 12 bogeys and four double-bogeys as he finished in a tie for 14^th.

“It’s been the pattern the whole year, I’d get my game going, it would look like I was going to contend, and then one or two bad holes would make me fall back. And then I’d do it all over again, it’s a cycle that’s really frustrating. I’m making enough birdies to win, but mistakes are costing me so much.

“It’s just a swing that’s not repeating itself, it’s not consistent enough and I just have to keep working at it. So although this course has treated me very well over the years, it does something for my game, I think I’m still a long way away and my expectations are not very high,” Schwartzel said yesterday.

So the favourite’s tag should probably go elsewhere and Peter Uihlein, awarded the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year prize in 2013, has indicated his liking for the course, while Louis Oosthuizen, if he can solve his problems with the putter that saw him change grip midway through the Nedbank Golf Challenge, says he has unfinished business with Leopard Creek.

Sun City winner Danny Willett comes to Malelane with enormous confidence after that triumph, while other golfers who deserve some fanfare are Northern Ireland’s Michael Hoey, Hennie Otto, Italian star Francesco Molinari and 2008 champion Richard Sterne.

But the South African admitted that he is another local not bringing a great game to Leopard Creek, although Otto is bullish about his chances of getting on to the podium for the second time this year.