The 2017 Sunshine Ladies Tour season is heading for the most enthralling of finales after Kim Williams produced a grandstand finish to capture the R500 000 Joburg Ladies Open title.
The Centurion Country Club player overcame an early triple bogey to shoot a five-under-par 67, racing through the back nine at Royal Johannesburg and Kensington in 29 strokes.
Williams won the season-opening SuperSport Ladies Challenge and she locked down the final counting event in the Chase to the Investec Cup for Ladies with a staggering five-stroke victory on 11-under-par 205.
Her second podium finish was worth R70 000, but the real gold for Williams was the 650 points she banked in the points race. With a winner-takes-all prize of R100 000 and a R1-million bonus-pool to play for at the Chase to the Investec Cup for Ladies Final, she couldn’t have peaked at a more opportune time.
‘This win lifted me from seventh to fourth in the Chase to the Investec Cup for Ladies,’ said Williams.
‘I was crushed when I just missed the top 10 last year, and this time I am heading to Millvale Private Retreat with a realistic chance to win the season finale on Sunday. To start and finish the tour on a winning note is incredible. I want to take this feeling and form and bottle it for the last big push.’
Meanwhile Bonita Bredenhann from Namibia played herself into the top 10 for the final, with three successive rounds of 70 and a joint second place finish with England’s Lauren Taylor (73).
Lejan Lewthwaite from Serengeti moved from 12th to ninth in the points standings with a 68, and a share of fourth at five under with Melissa Eaton (67), Morgana Robbertze (68) and Scotland’s Kylie Henry (70).
England’s Kiran Matharu protected her lead in the Chase to the Investec Cup for Ladies with a 68 to finish fifth on her own, and Nobuhle Dlamini from Swaziland nabbed the final spot in the top 10 with a two under 70 and a share of ninth at two under with Tandi von Ruben (69).
The remaining players who will make up the top 10 field for the season finale are Ashleigh Buhai (second), Nicole Garcia (third), Carrie Park (fifth), Lee-Anne Pace (sixth) and Von Ruben (seventh).
Courtesy: Lali Stander
Picture: Sunshine Ladies Tour
