Ángel Ayora (-17) has completed a great week at the first tournament of the Challenge Tour season. The player from Malaga finished the SDC Open in South Africa in twelfth place with a final round of 70 strokes. The overall balance has to be positive. After all, this is only his third tournament on this circuit, he is 19 years old, he played all four days under par and leaves the Zebula Estates Golf with a scorecard of 65 strokes on the first day and a total of 22 birdies and one eagle.
However, it is inevitable to end up with a somewhat bitter taste, as golf today has been quite cruel to the golfer from Marbella, who was raised in golf terms in La Cañada. He started the day very strong, with two birdies in the first three holes, ready to fight for victory, however he was not able to maintain this rhythm of successes. The day was extraordinarily generous in birdies, so each par almost tasted like a bogey. Pars only served to lose ground against the onslaught of low rounds.
Victory was slipping away, but there was another no less important objective. Ayora was looking to finish in the top five to get into next week’s tournament by right and thus save one of the coveted invitations he is going to receive. With four holes to go, there was a stop in play due to an electrical storm. The suspension did not reach an hour. He needed a great final of three or four under par to secure that brilliant top 5.
Well, his return was sensational. He made a birdie on the 15th, par 5, putting for eagle from three and a half meters. Shot from the right rough of the fairway. He added another birdie on the 16th, one of his black beasts this week and put the objective within reach. One more birdie and top 5 in the pocket. However, a devastating bogey fell on the 17th after a painful three-putt. A pity. There have been several this week. There was no other option but to look for the eagle on the 18th and he went for it. The second shot went a little to the left of the green, to the bunker and the birdie putt made him tie. It would not have reached the top 5, but at least it would have served to achieve a more than deserved top 10.
In any case, as we say, it is very easy to make a positive reading of what Ayora has done this week. For now, he has shown that, making some avoidable mistakes during the four days, he is more than capable of winning any week on the Challenge Tour. It’s not bad to leave with that conviction from the first tournament of the season.
The other two Spaniards who made the cut, Joel Moscatel (-6) and Quim Vidal (-4) did not have their best end of tournament. Rounds over par of 75 and 74 strokes to finish in 58th and 66th places.
As for the tournament, the champion has been the Welshman Rhys Enoch (-24), with four rounds of 66 strokes. Impressive. He is 35 years old and is one of the ‘Vietnam veterans’. It is his second victory in the Challenge. He joins the one he achieved in Slovakia in 2019. He has won with a two-stroke margin over Martin Rohwer and Dean Germishuys. The two leaders after Saturday ended up giving in. Wilco Nienaber, seventh, made 73 strokes and Louis Albertse, outside the top 10, finished with 75 strokes, sixteenth.
