Trevor Reich leads the Canon Kwazulu-Natal Disabled Open by two strokes after an opening round of 78 at Mount Edgecombe Country Club’s The Woods course on Monday, Craig Stirton reports.
The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic forced the restructure of the Canon SA Disabled Open into four regional opens which form part of the Canon Open Series. Four winners from each event drawn from the Physically-Disabled and Deaf divisions – a medal and Stableford winner from each – will earn a spot in the series-ending Champion of Champions event.
Reich began his campaign brightly with an opening nine of 39. After a matching inward half, Reich signed for a 78 on a day which featured a brief stoppage due to the threat of lightning. Though Reich’s round featured just one birdie – at the par-four 18th – he earned a deserved two-shot lead having kept the blemishes to a minimum.
“I had a good day today. I drove the ball really really well, I had a good day. I missed a couple of short putts. I had a good day, the course is in great condition and I look forward to making a couple of good putts tomorrow and hopefully we can take this thing through.”
The King David Mowbray Golf Club member’s nearest challengers are Les Autres golfer Jan Potgieter and Robin Singh, who both returned rounds of 80. Arm-amputee Chris Wood meanwhile is further shot adrift after an 81.
Moorgas earns two-point lead
Among the Physically-Disabled golfers playing Stableford, leg-amputee Craig Moorgas made a promising start to his tournament. While 35 points is certainly nothing to sneeze at, his eventual tally doesn’t quite reflect how well he played as he had three zero-pointers over the 18 holes.
The King David Mowbray member did, however, offset these setbacks with a handful of three-pointers and a superb par on The Woods’ stroke-one, the par-four 16th which yielded a further four points. In all, Moorgas notched 19 points on his second nine to earn a two-point lead over fellow leg-amputee Ian Gielink.
Botha leads Deaf division
Jay-Jay Botha, a deaf golfer who now resides in the United States, seized a five-shot lead in the Deaf Division over First Swing Program Elite squad member Charles Williams. After turning in 43, Botha played some great golf on the second nine which featured five pars. He will certainly fancy his chances of victory heading into the final round.
In the Deaf Stableford category, meanwhile, Shanon van der Berg carded 29 points to surge 11 points clear of Sifiso Mdwebu.
The second and final round of the Canon Kwazulu-Natal Disabled Open takes place on Tuesday.
Photo: Craig Stirton/SA Disabled Golf Association
Leading Round 1 scores
Round 1 scores
Physical Disabled Medal, HI < 18.5
Pos
1. Trevor Reich 78
2. Jan Potgieter 80
3. Robin Singh 80
Physical Disabled IPS, HI > 18.4
1. Craig Moorgas 35 points
2. Ian Gielink 33 points
3. Jodi Schultz 31 points
Deaf IPS, HI > 18.4
1. Shannon Van der Berg 29 points
2. Sifiso Mdwebu 18 points
Deaf Medal, HI < 18.5
1. Jay Jay Botha 83
2. Williams, Charles. 88
3. Maconochie, Mark 101
