Investec has transferred its South African Open sponsor’s invitation to Nikhil Rama.
Investec is a patron of the Papwa Sewgolum Class for the Sunshine Tour’s transformation professionals.
Its previous invitee Heinrich Bruiners has now qualified automatically through his own ranking for this championship.
Rama was rewarded with this ‘Out of the Ordinary’ opportunity as the next highest ranked professional in the Papwa Sewgolum Class who was otherwise not exempt for the Investec South African Open to be played at Blair Atholl Golf and Equestrian Estate from Thursday, 30 November to Sunday, 3 December.
This opportunity comes during one of Rama’s most successful seasons on the Sunshine Tour. After starting the season with a tied 10th place in the Zanaco Masters he continued his good form with strong finishes on the Vodacom Origins of Golf Series, including fifth in the opening tournament at Zebula, fourth in the Western Cape leg of the series and fourth in the final. He added a fourth-place finish in the recent Fortress Invitational.
“I’m very grateful to receive this invitation,” said Rama. “It’s an honour to play in our national Open, which is one of the oldest golf tournaments in the world. I’ve been playing really well and I’m very excited to compete at Blair Atholl Golf and Equestrian Estate.
“I’ve been working really hard on my technique with my coach and it’s now becoming more consistent. I can’t thank Investec enough for this invitation at this time. It’s a great reward after playing some good golf this season.”
Peta Dixon, head of sponsorships for Investec, said, “Our drive to ‘never settle for ordinary’ and support the transformation of South African professional golf is given true expression in the awarding of our sponsor’s invitation this year. With Heinrich Bruiners qualifying by virtue of his rankings, it has now allowed us to invite Nikhil Rama to compete and thereby strengthen the presence of the Papwa Sewgolum Class professionals in the Investec South African Open field. This means even more of our young stars will gain invaluable experience playing against international competition.
“Nikhil has had a wonderful season on the Sunshine Tour so far and it’s a privilege for us to be able to give him this opportunity to see if he can now take that next step up in his career.”
Photo: Sunshine Tour
