Fun in the Sun
Things have moved with the times over the years and this year we will experience a new Nedbank Challenge format. It now forms part of the European Tour’s Race to Dubai playoffs.
Instead of the usual invited field, the top 70 on the Race to Dubai list have qualified to play. The date has also moved from the early December timeslot to mid-November. I reckon this will change the dynamics of the event quite a bit.
It has always been a very special event for me and I have competed in five previous NGCs. My family always travelled with me and we thoroughly enjoyed the Sun City hospitality with unique player and family functions, boma braais, the seafood extravaganza and fireworks show at the Valley of the Waves. There really is no place like home.
I have fond memories of the fantastic times and special treatment we enjoyed. But, with the earlier timeslot in the calendar this year, my family cannot be with me because my kids are now going to school, so it will be a different experience. I have a feeling the bigger group of players will make it challenging to create a similar experience to what it used to be, with a much more ‘intimate’ field, but perhaps the organisers and Sun City will surprise us. They usually do!
The bigger field will include many of the best players in the world and this will hopefully ensure huge crowds continue supporting the event, even though it’s come forward from December.
I really like the challenge of the Gary Player Golf Course. It has remained in the top five South African golf courses through the years. It is always well maintained and with its quick greens it challenges the best golfers in the world. I’m not sure if the rough will be a huge factor this year as the earlier date might mean the summer rains haven’t started yet and this could lead to very low scoring.
My first appearance was in 2010, which was obviously a special time as I won The Open Championship at St Andrews that year, and South Africa was still buzzing from successfully hosting the 2010 Fifa World Cup. I finished 12th on debut. I skipped 2011 but was back in 2012 where I finished fourth – which, to date, remains my best return. This was the last year before the tournament received full European Tour sanctioning.
In 2013 I was tied 14th and enjoyed a top 10 in 2014 (tied seventh). Last year I wasn’t feeling my best as I had a bug and struggled the longer the event went, with a final-round 73 leaving me one shot outside another top 10. Hopefully I will be feeling a lot different and on top of the world this year to have a great week, playing in the Netbank Golf Challenge and getting a taste of the bushveld, South African food and seeing some of my friends again.
