Tiger Woods had the Arnold Palmer Invitational and his eight wins there. Jack Nicklaus had an affinity for The Masters with his six victories. Gary Player has his 13 Investec South African Open titles. And Jean Hugo has the Vodacom Origins of Golf series. MICHAEL VLISMAS reports.
With his 12 victories in total, Hugo is the undisputed master of the longest running pro-am series of tournaments on the Sunshine Tour. His wins on this series alone account for over half of his career victories on the Sunshine Tour.
And at Oubaai Golf Estate on Friday, Hugo lined up victory No 13.
Hugo signed for a 64 to head the field on 16 under par overall heading into the weekend of this Vodacom Origins of Golf Final.
He is three strokes clear of Dean Burmester and Sean Bradley. Burmester produced a bogey-free 64, and Bradley signed for a 67.
Oliver Bekker, who led the first round, kept himself in contention on 12 under par overall with a 70 on Friday. And Daniel van Tonder, a two-time winner on the Sunshine Tour this year already, climbed to 10 under par with a 63.
The longevity of Hugo’s success on this Vodacom Origins of Golf series is put into perspective when you consider that his first win on the series in 2006 saw him beat Chris Williams, who is now campaigning on the senior circuit. That’s a year before the first iPhone came out.
Ruan Conradie produced some impressive scoring of his own with a 63 that included a front nine of 29, lifting him to seven under par overall.
The Sunshine Ladies Tour professionals put in a strong performance on Friday, with three of the four who are participating this week making it through to the weekend.
Gabrielle Venter leads this charge in tied 15th place on seven under par following a second round of 65. Danielle du Toit signed for a 67 to come through 36 holes on six under par, while Cara Gorlei is at two under par after a 73.
Photo: Tyrone Winfield/Sunshine Tour
