Western Province floored Eastern Province 8-4 on the final day of the SA Mid-Am Interprovincial Tournament at Humewood Golf Club with some late drama ensuring that the sides finished the week level on 9 Log points and 39.5 Game-points to their credit, the first time the trophy has been shared in tournament history.
Western Province made a wonderful start to the title-decider, winning the morning foursomes session 3-1. The only game which didn’t go Province’s way was the top match of David Thompson and Riaan Lewis against Michael Holden and Michael Bezuidenhout. EP made an exceptionally fast start as they birdied the first three holes. Province’s response was spectacular, reeling of three wins in a row of their own from the 5th which included birdies at the 6th and 7th. This back-and-forth theme continued, EP turning 1-Up after winning the 9th before Province squared the match for a second time through a par at 11. Powered by birdies at 12 and 16 while handily aided by pars at the 13th and 14th, EP stormed back into the lead. This time for good as they prevailed 4&2.
After a couple of losses on his own ball at the 18th on Day 4, Geno Belfiore would’ve been delighted that he and Adrian Ford managed to pip Ryno Ferreira and Dillon Germishuys 1-Up courtesy of a final hole birdie. The couples enjoyed a great game, EP a hole to the good at the turn after wins at the 3rd, 6th and 9th while WP’s 4s at the 2nd and 7th meant there wasn’t much in it playing the back-9. Province edged ahead by winning the 11th and 12th in a par and birdie but when EP birdied the 13th they were ahead once more. EP’s win again elicited a positive response from Ford and Belfiore who birdied the 14th to wrestle back the advantage. The match was set for a thrilling conclusion when the 16th went EP’s way and it didn’t disappoint, Province making a birdie at the perfect time to earn their side a full-point.
Province’s dependable duo of Gideon van der Vyver and Phil Taberer rounded off a fantastic week together with a 4&3 win over Naldo Claassen and Christopher van Rensburg courtesy of a back-9 blitz. EP won the 1st and 3rd in 3s while Province’s 3s at the 5th and 9th yielded W’s which meant things were tied up heading into the back-9. Unperturbed by a loss at the 10th, WP strung together an eye-popping Birdie-Birdie-Par-Par-Eagle sequence to floor their opponents and lift their side closer to a session win.
Shaun Le Roux and Wayne Melle rounded off a dominant morning display from WP with a 4&3 win of their own against Gregory Manual and Michael Bosch. Never down in the match, Province won the 1st and although they lost the 2nd to a par, they took the 4th and 7th holes to move 2-Up. Their lead was cut in half by an EP par at the 9th but Le Roux and Melle were determined to finish their foursomes campaign on a winning note, doing just that as they claimed wins at 13 and 15 in 4s while a 2 at the 14th helped cap a superb performance.
Sensational Singles performance propels WP to share of the trophy
Strong singles performances have been the cornerstone of Western Province’s title challenge so it was fitting that a 5-3 win in the singles on the final day sealed their share of the trophy.
Van der Vyver earned the most comprehensive of Province’s afternoon triumphs as he steamrolled Bosch 7&6. Four wins over the first six holes, with 4s at the 1st and 4th and 2s at the 3rd and 6th saw the Strand Golf Club member take a vice-like grip on the match. A grip that a loss at the 7th to a par didn’t weaken. Van der Vyver’s grip grew ever tighter by virtue of wins at the 8th and 9th. A seventh win of the day at 11 was backed up by Van der Vyver’s final act in a superb debut Mid-Am IPT performance, a birdie-2 at the 12th to complete a superb triumph.
Van der Vyver’s foursomes partner Taberer was unable to get anything going against Claassen who notched three unanswered wins on the front-9 and a further three within the first 5 holes of the back-9, condemning Taberer to defeat by a 6&4 margin.
Province kept the scoreboard ticking though as Ford and Melle beat Van Rensburg and Manual 2&1 respectively. Skipper Thompson’s week also ended on a high note as he converted a 1-Up advantage at the turn against Ferreira into a 3&2 victory after winning the 13th and 14th holes on an otherwise halved inward-9.
Lewis fought back from 3-Down through 7 against Holden and did well to take a 1-Up lead by the 14th but a loss two holes later ultimately led to a halved match.
Belfiore was once again the recipient of some late-round heartbreak as he saw his 2-Up advantage evaporate against Bezuidenhout who won the 16th (birdie) and 17th (par) to ultimately square the match.
The 2024 Mid-Am IPT hinged on the outcome of Le Roux’s match with Germishuys and as the pair arrived at the 18th all-square, the margin for error became razor thin. In the end Germishuys holed from 4-feet for par, bettering Le Roux’s bogey and winning 1-Up.
Come week’s end, neither side was better than the other but the small results which ultimately determined the final outcome prove once again that golf is a game of fractions…
Photo: Ernest Blignault/Supershots