Local hero Nethunzwi seals home victory in Soweto

Musiwalo Nethunzwi took full advantage of his knowledge of his home club, the historic Soweto Country Club, when he defeated Luke Mayo in a playoff to win the sixth tournament of the Betway Big Easy Tour, much to the delight of the attending crowd, on Thursday.

It was his second Sunshine Tour-sanctioned tournament win here after he beat James Kamte in the 2029 Vusi Ngubeni tournament, also in a playoff. He needed two extra holes, however, against Mayo unlike when he only needed one against the veteran Kamte.

Nethunzwi was six-under and a shot behind overnight leader, Tyrone Davidowitz, when he came into the final round and within arms-length of making history as the first Sunshine Tour professional to win twice on the Soweto Country Club layout. His final round 70 took his total to eight-under par to tie the first spot with Mayo who was already in the clubhouse after a second successive round of 68.

“It was a good day out there,” said a happy Nethunzwi. “I know I have been playing well but it was not showing in the numbers. It’s good to finally win again and it is certainly a confidence-booster going forward.”

While Tuesday’s leader, Drikus Joubert (seven-under), Ryan Van Der Klis (seven-under) and Andre De Decker (six-under) looked threatening in the later stages of the final round, they all fell short of making the playoff.

It was Mayo versus Nethunzwi to decide the victor.

Both players made brilliant par-saves on 18 to necessitate a second extra hole. Mayo made bogey and Nethunzwi solidify his status as king of Soweto golf with a par, throwing the local patrons into a frenzy of excitement.

“I knew I had a chance when I came into this final round,” said an elated Nethunzwi. “Even when I made that up-and-down on 18^th to get into the playoff, I told my caddie that if we make par and go into the playoff, we will win this thing.

“It’s a great day for Soweto. I hope this can show others, even in other townships, that if I can win at this level, they can also win. All that is needed is to work hard and never lose the belief that you can do it. It means a lot to me to win again, especially at home.”

A hero in Soweto, Nethunzwi is a member of the Sunshine Tour’s transformation initiative, the Papwa Sewgolum Class, which provides players of colour with more support to ensure they compete at the highest level.

Sewgolum, who hailed from Durban, became the first golfer of colour to win a title in South Africa after he won the Natal Open in 1963. In 1965, Sewgolum defeated the great Gary Player to win his second Natal Open title but his victory was overshadowed by the unfortunate incident in which he was forced to accept his trophy outside of Durban Country Club, since people of colour were not allowed in the clubhouse.