A final round 65 at the Memorial Tournament helped Louis Oosthuizen reclaim his number one South African ranking, writes WADE PRETORIUS.
Oosthuizen was inspired on Sunday as he finished his work at Muirfield Village with no less than five tap-in putts for birdie. A cheque of $139 018 or R1 746 219 was not the only good news for Oosthuizen, who’s world ranking stayed put at 33, one above Branden Grace.
Grace limped in with a final round 75 and dropped down to T52 in the process. The 30-year-old dropped three places to 34th ahead of the US Open at Shinnecock Hills in two weeks.
Charl Schwartzel missed the cut this week but dropped just one spot to 44th in the world.
There was no change in the top 10 where Justin Thomas retained his lead over Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose, Jon Rahm and Jordan Spieth. Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler, Jason Day, Brooks Koepka and Hideki Matsuyama round out the top 10.
Only two South Africans in the top 15 showed a green arrow, sign of positive growth, this week with the inactive Justin Harding and Jacques Kruyswijk, the top-performer Saffa at the Italian Open with a T14 finish, providing the silver lining to a slow week across both major tours.
George Coetzee’s missed cut in Italy cost him a place in the top 100.
Top 10 South African rankings:
Louis Oosthuizen – 33
Branden Grace – 34
Charl Schwartzel – 44
Dylan Frittelli – 61
George Coetzee – 103
Dean Burmester – 110
Shaun Norris – 120
Darren Fichardt – 125
Erik van Rooyen – 143
Rory Sabbatini – 149
Photo: Andrew Redington/Getty Images
