Tommy’s back! Glory for Fleetwood in Sun City
Nedbank Golf Challenge report: What happened at Gary Player Country Club?
A second play-off in as many weeks on the European Tour saw Tommy Fleetwood beat Marcus Kinhult for his first win since January 2018.
The pair contested a play-off after completing 72 holes in 12-under and that led to a whole lot more drama on the extra hole.
💰 TWO AND A HALF MILLION DOLLARS 💰@TommyFleetwood1 wins the 2019 Nedbank Golf Challenge!#NGC2019 #RolexSeries pic.twitter.com/T02EMeHPE0
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) November 17, 2019
The Swede teed off first and clattered into a tree of the left side of the hole before chipping his second out onto the fairway.
Fleetwood had the advantage off the tee after just missing the fairway bunker but his second shot finished close to the right-hand grandstand leading to free drop.
Drives:
👈 @TommyFleetwood1
👉 @marcuskinhult #NGC2019 #RolexSeries pic.twitter.com/nnmkDWpDOj— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) November 17, 2019
With Kinhult over the back of the green for three, Fleetwood had a tricky chip but executed it to perfection to leave a make-able putt for par.
Kinhult got up and down for bogey but that was not good enough. Fleetwood rolled his in for par and after 22 months without a win he takes home the title and $2.5 million in prize money.
In regular play Fleetwood’s round was far from standard. His card was colourful featuring four birdies, three bogeys and crucially three eagles which ultimately helped him to the top of the leaderboard.
Kinhult’s was a little less dramatic as he plotted his way round to a closing 68. Four birdies in his opening six had him well in contention and despite a bogey at the 7th he carded a further birdie at 15 that would eventually force the play-off.
Horse-shoe and in!@marcuskinhult ties the lead!#NGC2019 #RolexSeries pic.twitter.com/k0mvc3veRK
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) November 17, 2019
Elsewhere, Zander Lombard began the day with the lead but a final round of 5-over ended his challenge and fellow South African Louis Oosthuizen also struggled to a tie for 4th alongside defending champion Lee Westwood.
Nedbank Golf Challenge report: Anything else?
Joachim Hansen hit a very relatable shot out of a bunker on Saturday, but the outcome was something club golfers everywhere will envy.
Q: When is a shank not a shank?
A: When it results in a tap-in.
— NCG (@NCG_com) November 16, 2019
Hansen wasn’t the only one who had a lucky escape this weekend. Belgian Thomas Detry got what was perhaps the luckiest break of the season earlier in the week, here’s what happened.
And for those of you that missed the final round 65 from Fleetwood or simply want to watch it again. Check out the highlights below.
Extended highlights of Tommy Fleetwood's winning 65, including three eagles and a play-off 🎥 #NGC2019 #RolexSeries pic.twitter.com/zGlZjm3UGS
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) November 17, 2019
Nedbank Golf Challenge report: What’s next?
We move on to the season-ending DP World Tour Championship where the Race to Dubai title will be settled. We’ve rounded up all the permutations which would lead to a champion being crowned.
Joe Hughes
Tour editor covering men's golf, women's golf and anything else that involves the word golf, really. The talk is far better than the game, but the work has begun to change that.
