Iván Cantero (-8) has let loose this Thursday in the first round of the Jonsson Workwear Open, the tournament that closes the African tour of the DP World Tour. The Asturian golfer has handed in a card of 64 strokes and has placed himself in the first position tied with the South African Keenan Davidse (-8). It is simply the best round of his life.
Cantero is playing his 149th tournament valid for the world ranking. In the previous 148, he had never signed a round of eight under par. Neither in the DP World Tour, nor in the Challenge, nor in the Alps, nor in the Nordic League. Never. It has been, therefore, a day to remember in his career. Until now, his best result on the European circuit was the 66 he handed in the second round of the Scandinavian Inivitation in August 2019.
The 28-year-old golfer from Llanes has played with his foot on the accelerator from minute one to ninety. He started with a first birdie on the 2nd, another on the 4th and took off definitively with three consecutive birdies on holes 6, 7 and 8. There he presented his candidacy to end the day as leader. But he did not stop. He made two more birdies on the 11th and 12th and, above all, did not let the only mistake of the day on the 13th affect him. He recovered wonderfully from the bogey, chained three straight pars and finished with two more birdies on the 17th and 18th to certify the magnificent result of 64 strokes.
This round of Iván, beyond being the best of his career, at least of his career in professional tournaments that count for the world ranking, is a consequence of what he had been showing in his last appearances. It is true that the year started off on the wrong foot, missing seven consecutive cuts, but something changed in Kenya. He played all four days under par, made the cut and finished in the top 25. Something had awakened.
Last week he again made the cut in the SDC Championship and now comes this round of 64 strokes. Sensational. Cantero is regaining that consistency that gave him such good results last year on the Challenge Tour, the best season of his career in terms of solidity. It’s only the first day and there’s a lot ahead, but Iván has let loose and finally shown, on the big stage, what he’s capable of.
Cantero and Davidse have a two-stroke lead over Jacques Kruyswijck and Robin Williams, the young South African prodigy who played and lost last Sunday’s playoff for victory in Eastern Cape against Jordan Gumberg. In fifth position appears the next Spaniard, Santi Tarrio (-5). Fantastic start for the Galician, who doesn’t seem to be weighed down by consecutive weeks of competition. He has made five birdies, an eagle and two bogeys. Involved in the fight for everything and eager to go on vacation (well deserved) with his first victory in the bag.
Among the main names of the tournament, Rikuya Hoshino (-2), Zander Lombard (-2) and Ewen Ferguson (-2) have had a rather lukewarm start. This week we have four players in the top 100 of the world ranking.
