– Andy Sullivan (-8) is the leader of the Alfred Dunhill Championship after carding a powerful 64 on the first day. A bogey-free round for the Englishman who, without really contending for the win, has been playing very solid golf in recent weeks. And it is well known that in this sport, the technical difference, or the weight, between winning and finishing eighteenth often comes down to just a few small details.
– Nacho Elvira (-4) carded a quadruple bogey on the 7th hole in this first round after sending two balls into the water on this par 3, the most challenging at the Leopard Creek Country Club, and then also a double bogey on the 11th. Two major setbacks. However, he overcame this seemingly insurmountable wall in the only way it could be done: with top-level golf and ten birdies on his card, which is no small feat. In fact, his last six birdies came in the final seven holes of the beautiful Malelane course. If it were up to him, he would have surely continued a bit longer…
The Cantabrian player was on fire, only three bad swings kept him from even leading the tournament. In any case, it won’t be too difficult for Elvira to focus on the positive aspects of this crazy first day. Ten birdies are too significant to be sidelined. And he also made other very good putts that were very close to increasing the birdie count. The aim today was not to make pars… He only made six.
– Casey Jarvis (-7) also had a great day, one of the three players who finished one shot behind the leader (the other two are Marcus Kinhult and Alex Fitzpatrick). The young South African almost seized the top spot, starting his round with a bogey on the 10th hole and a double bogey on the 11th… Then, the festival: Jarvis went on to card two eagles and seven birdies. It was an exuberant day at Leopard Creek, especially in the morning session, with less wind.
– The slow start of the big names in South African golf is noteworthy. Brandon Stone (-5), it’s true, is up there, but this player has been working hard for some time to regain that ‘heavyweight’ status. And Dean Burmester (-3) is also well placed. But Louis Oosthuizen (-1) and Charl Schwartzel (-1), first and second last year, have lost some ground. Worse off are Van Rooyen (PAR), Potgieter (PAR), Fritelli (PAR), and especially Bezuidenhout (+3) and Lawrence (+3). The young Robin Williams (+4), from whom great things are expected, also hasn’t started well.
– Jorge Campillo (-1), Joel Moscatel (PAR) and Manu Elvira (PAR) were looking towards the top ten, more than anything else, with large partials of three under and even four under, in the case of the Extremaduran, but all three fell in the final third of their respective rounds. Pablo Larrazábal (+1) and Álvaro Quirós (+2) will find it even more challenging to, as a first objective, make the cut tomorrow, which could go up to -1.
