We wrap all the action from the final round of the 2024 Western Province Golf Premier League at Parow Golf Club.
Milnerton GC (5) v Westlake GC (7)
In what was effectively the title-deciding clash, 2nd-placed Milnerton GC locked horns with table-toppers Westlake searching for a victory comprehensive enough to erase their opponent’s 31.5-29.5 Match Point advantage.
It was Westlake though who seized the contest by the scruff of the neck with a 3-1 morning foursomes result. That doesn’t tell the story of just how tight things were though: There were three 1-Up results with a Zach Miller/Dan Copeman 6&4 triumph over Cameron Johnston and Kyle Lee the only game which didn’t reach the 18th.
Westlake’s Paul Bezuidenhout and Nic Thompson rallied spectacularly against Adam Johnston and Roux Burger, overturning a 3-hole deficit with five to play by winning four out of the last five holes, punctuated by a par for the win at the 18th to secure victory. Milnerton’s Darren Dunlop and Wesley Du Plessis meanwhile earned victories at the 15th and 18th to win a nip-and-tuck contest with Idrees Saban and Pietie Loubser.
After falling 2-Down after as many holes, Miller and Copeman earned victories in two-hole blocks to slowly squeeze the life out of their opponents. After winning the 5th, 6th, 8th and 9th to turn 2-up, Westlake tightened their grip with further wins at the 10th and 11th before sealing the tie with victories at 13 and 14 to maintain their side’s momentum.
Milnerton held a 2-hole advantage in the anchor-match after Geno Belfiore and Ryan Stopford won the 11th. Shaun Le Roux and Christian Helmbold though chipped away at the deficit with wins at 12 and 14 before taking the lead through a 4 at 16 which proved decisive.
The sides were pretty evenly matched in the afternoon singles. Three of the first four matches were decided by 1-Up margins: Thompson pipped Adam Johnson and his Westlake teammate Loubser beat Burger by the same margin though Milnerton earned a 1-Up win of their own in the form of Dunlop’s win versus Helmbold.
Westlake’s Saban eased to a 5&4 win against Cameron Johnston but they’d need to wait till the anchor match for another point as Le Roux beat Mid-Am IPT teammate Belfiore 1-Up.
Lee edged Miller 1-Up while there were victories for Du Plessis and Stopford, the former winning 2-Up v Copeman and the latter defeating Bezuidenhout 2&1 in what were effectively consolation victories as Westlake won the match and the 2024 Premier League title.
King David Mowbray GC (3.5) v Atlantic Beach Links (8.5)
Atlantic Beach eased to a 8.5-3.5 victory over King David Mowbray.
King David Mowbray’s Jake Tarlie and Cole Williams had a tight game against Joshua Smedema and Craig Jacobs, Atlantic Beach levelling matters through a win at the 14th. AB snuck ahead through a 3 at the 16th and held on over the final two holes to draw first blood in the fixture.
Elton James and Kyran Hawkins though restored parity with a commanding 4&3 win over Conrick Lucas and Tristan Boise. Mitch Phigeland and Chris Strydom’s 3&2 win over Thabang Kutumand and Riaan Lewis edged AB ahead once more and they took a full-point advantage into the afternoon singles when Joshua Wiese and Chris Wicks played out to a halved result against Jaydon Galant and Craig Poulton.
The early singles matches left the fixture in the balance after one win apiece and a halved result over the top three matches. After Jacobs beat Tarlie 5&4, Poulton thumped Lucas 4&3 while youngsters Williams and Boise halved their game.
Atlantic Beach ran the proverbial table from there, highlighted by Strydom’s 8&6 win against Kutumane. Wicks meanwhile was a 5&4 victor over Lewis and Smedema crept by James 1-Up.
The bottom two contests went Phigeland and Wiese’s way by 2&1 margins over Hawkins and Galant respectively, completing AB’s third and final win of the 2024 campaign.
Durbanville GC (8) v Bellville GC (4)
Durbanville GC earned an 8-4 win over near-nighbours Bellville GC but it was ultimately insufficient to stave off relegation to the Premier Reserve League.
Youngsters Jano Stone set the tone for their side as they romped to a 6&4 win over Matthew Van Rooyen and Ryan Van Der Westhuizen. Durbanville began with three wins in as many holes from the 1st before cancelling out a loss to a 4 at the 5th with a 4 of their own at 9 to turn 2-Up. They’d offer Bellville no way back into the contest on the inward-9, winning the 11th and 14th in 4s and the 13th with a 3 to seal an emphatic win.
As emphatic was Ayden Senger and Liam Marais’ 6&5 dispatching of Jurie Groenewald and Jurian Mostert, Durbanville riding a wave of momentum from four wins in the first five holes to a comfortable win punctuated by W’s at the 13th and 14th holes. Travis Procter and Astin Owen were far more slender victors over Werner Theart and Booye Walters but their 2-Up result left Bellville needing to salvage something from the bottom match. Hannes Conradie and Francois Wasserman did just that when they accounted for Nicol Van Wyk and Adrian Ford 3&2.
The afternoon singles presented an opportunity for Bellville to overturn the deficit but they were only able to register two victories, Mostert beating Stone 4&3 while Groenewald trounced Senger 6&5. Province IPT manager Theart though snatched a half-point against Durbanville’s Walters with three wins over the final four holes while Conradie also halved with Procter.
Durbanville though won the lion’s share of the matches, the highlight of which was Van Wyk’s 9&7 demolition of Booye Walters while the scoreboard continued to tick over with a 5&4 Marais victory against Wasserman and a 2&1 Ford victory over Van Rooyen.
A 1-Up win for Owen over Van Der Westhuizen completed a comfortable win for Durbanville.
Despite earning the same number of Log points as Bellville, 2, they were relegated by virtue of accumulating 22.5 Match Points in the season while Bellville amassed 24.5.
A game of the finest margins…
Premier League Log
Who’s In & Who’s Out…
After suffering four defeats during the 5-round season, Durbanville GC have been relegated to the Premier Reserve League.
Their place in the Premier League will be taken by Rondebosch GC who won the Premier Reserve League with a round to spare having enjoyed an unbeaten season, winning all four of their fixtures and accumulating 28.5 Match Points along the way to top the standings.
Photo credit: Westlake Golf Club