The Jonsson Workwear Open and Glendower Golf Club hold fond memories for several of the professionals competing in this week’s Sunshine Tour and DP World Tour event, which is also the final co-sanctioned tournament in South Africa this season.
Germany’s Nick Bachem returns as the defending champion after making his DP World Tour breakthrough with victory in this event last year, when it was played at Steyn City.
“I’m super excited to be back even if it’s a different golf course,” he said. “But having had a look at Glendower it looks pretty nice. It feels good to come back to a tournament where you have a positive feeling and I’ll be trying to repeat it.”
He comes into this week in good form after finishing tied fourth in last week’s SDC Championship.
“I’ve had a great season with so many good things to learn,” he said. “I played nice last week so I’ve got a lot of confidence coming into this week. But my focus is still the same as it was last year when I won – play golf and have fun.”
South Africa’s Robin Williams also had good memories as he drove through the Glendower Golf Club gates, having won his first Sunshine Tour title here in the Fortress Invitational last October.
“You have to play well around this course,” he said. “There is no hiding here. It’s definitely a driver golf course – if you drive the ball well you can score. That’s what worked for me when I won here last year – my driving was good.”
He returns to Glendower having narrowly lost a playoff for a maiden DP World Tour title in last week’s SDC Championship, but still confident about the week to come.
“There are a lot of positives from last week. Yes it was a shame I couldn’t get the job done, but my time will come. I’m playing good consistent golf and I’m happy to be back at a golf course that suits me and where I’ve had success.”
And England’s Jordan Smith is back at a golf course where he finished third in the 2017 BMW South African Open, missing out by only one shot on a spot in the playoff between Rory McIlroy and Graeme Storm.
“That was back in 2017 but it only feels like yesterday,” said Smith. “It’s great being back and enjoying those good memories.
“This is a challenging golf course off the tee. You hit a lot of driver here and it can get pretty narrow in places. The wind that blew in the pro-am could be interesting, especially for us Europeans getting used to the altitude here in Johannesburg.”
This is the third edition of a tournament that has travelled to some of South Africa’s leading golf courses, starting with Durban Country Club then Steyn City and now Glendower Golf Club.
“We are delighted to bring the third edition of the tournament to the highly rated Glendower Golf Club and look forward to building on the success of our two previous events,” said the chairman and CEO of Jonsson Workwear, Nick Jonsson.
“We’re grateful for the opportunity to welcome world-class golf talent and spectators to another showcase of fantastic golf set against the backdrop of the beautiful Glendower Golf Club. And of course, an opportunity for us to promote peak performance on and off the course.
“As always, we value the time we get to spend here in Gauteng where we operate nine of our stores and our state-of-the-art distribution centre.”
Thomas Abt, commissioner of the Sunshine Tour, said: “The Jonsson Workwear Open has been an immensely valuable addition to our schedule of DP World Tour co-sanctioned events.
“This year signifies another important milestone for this tournament as it will be played at a championship layout such as Glendower that holds an illustrious place in South African golf, having witnessed some of the finest moments in Sunshine Tour history.
“It’s a privilege for us as the Sunshine Tour to work with a brand that is equally forward-thinking and focused on the kind of excellence that golf in this country represents, and which helps us in taking the message that #GreatnessBeginsHere to the world.”
The four-day tournament will be televised live on SuperSport.
Photo: Carl Fourie/Sunshine Tour
