Wilco Nienaber advanced to the last 16 of the 123rd The Amateur at Royal Aberdeen with Jovan Rebula and Luca Filippi joining him.
Nienaber, who won the strokeplay section to advance as the top seed, was taken to the 18th hole by Switzerland’s Perry Cohen where a par was enough to send the South African through. The young Bloemfontein star was 3 up through seven after birdies at both of the front nine’s par fives but slipped to 1 up after a double at the 9th and a drop at the 10th.
Cohen birdied the 12th and 15th to send the match down the final few holes all square before a bogey by the Swiss helped Nienaber into the last 16, to be played later on Thursday, where he will face England’s Tom Sloman.
Rebula will face Ben Hutchinson (England) after fending off countryman Malcolm Mitchell 1 up.
Mitchell was 1 up after one hole but 2 down on the turn after a birdie by Rebula at the par-three 9th. The pair made just two birdies combined on the back nine but it was Rebula’s birdie two at the 17th which saw him win a closely-fought encounter with both players making four on the last.
The second all-South African clash saw Luca Filippi advance after a 4 up win after a sluggish performance from Therion Nel. Filippi was 5 up through eight after watching his compatriot make four bogeys in that stretch and saw off a mini-fightback. Filippi reduced the gap to 3 down around the turn to book his place in the next stage.
