PGA Tour: Bob Hope Chrysler Classic

Winner: Pat Perez 61-63-67-67-69   327 (beat J. Merrick by 3)
Site: PGA West (Palmer Private course), etc. – La Quinta, CA

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS           INTERVIEWS


European PGA Tour: Commercialbank Qatar Masters

Winner: Alvaro Quiros 69-67-64-69   269 (beat L. Oosthuizen & H. Stenson by 3)
Site: Doha Golf Club – Doha, Qatar

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Sunshine Tour: Dimension Data Pro-Am

Winner: Deane Pappas 65-66-69-68   268 (beat J. Kamte by 8)
Site: Gary Player Country Club – Sun City, South Africa

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Champions Tour: Mitsubishi Electric Championship

Winner: Bernhard Langer 64-66-68   198 (beat A. Bean by 1)
Site: Hualalai Resort Golf Club – Kaupulehu-Kona, HI

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS

PGA Tour: Bob Hope Chrysler Classic

Site: PGA West (Palmer Private course), etc. – La Quinta, CA
Yards: 6,950   Par: 72
Defending: D.J. Trahan 334   (beat J. Leonard by 3)
Field: World Top 25: Anthony Kim (8)   Other Notables: Paul Azinger, Fred Couples, David Duval, Steve Elkington, Brad Faxon & David Toms.

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European PGA Tour: Commercialbank Qatar Masters

Site: Doha Golf Club – Doha, Qatar
Yards: 7,388   Par: 72
Defending: Adam Scott 268   (beat H. Stenson by 3)
Field: World Top 25: Sergio Garcia (2), Robert Karlsson (6), Henrik Stenson (8), Ernie Els (9), Lee Westwood (10), Adam Scott (15), Justin Rose (19), Miguel Angel Jimenez (22) & Martin Kaymer (25)   Other Notables: Paul Casey, Retief Goosen, Colin Montgomerie, Jeev Milkha Singh & Boo Weekley.

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Sunshine Tour: Dimension Data Pro-Am

Site: Gary Player Country Club – Sun City, South Africa
Meters: 7,000   Par: 72
Defending: James Kamte 277   (beat J. Kingston by 3)
Field: World Top 25: None    Other Notables: Desvonde Botes, Darren Fichardt, David Frost & James Kamte.

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Champions Tour: Mitsubishi Electric Championship

Site: Hualalai Resort Golf Club – Kaupulehu-Kona, HI
Yards: 7,053   Par:72
Defending: Fred Funk 195   (beat A. Doyle by 2)
Field: Ranked: The entire 2008 Charles Schwab Cup top 20 except Fred Funk (2), Scott Hoch (9), Nick Price (10), Gene Jones (12) & Scott Simpson (16)   Other Notables: Ben Crenshaw, Hale Irwin, Gil Morgan, Jerry Pate, Gary Player & Craig Stadler.

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PGA Tour: Sony Open in Hawaii

Winner: Zach Johnson 69-65-66-65   265 (beat A. Scott & D. Toms by 2)
Site: Waialae Country Club – Honolulu, HI

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


European PGA Tour: Abu Dhabi Golf Championship

Winner: Paul Casey 69-65-63-70   267 (beat M. Kaymer & L. Oosthuizen by 1)
Site: Abu Dhabi Golf Club – Abu Dhabi, U.A.E.

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Sunshine Tour: Africa Open

Winner: Retief Goosen 66-70-66-65   267 (beat four players by 1)
Site: East London Golf Club – East London, South Africa

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS

PGA Tour: Sony Open in Hawaii

Site: Waialae Country Club - Honolulu, HI
Yards: 7,060   Par: 70
Defending: K.J. Choi 266  (beat R. Sabbatini by 3)
Field: World Top 25: Ernie Els (9), Geoff Ogilvy (11), Kenny Perry (14), Adam Scott (15), Stewart Cink (16), Steve Stricker (17) & K.J. Choi (18)   Other Notables: Paul Azinger, Brad Faxon, Davis Love III, Corey Pavin, Loren Roberts & David Toms.

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European PGA Tour: Abu Dhabi Golf Championship

Site: Abu Dhabi Golf Club – Abu Dhabi, U.A.E.
Yards: 7,500   Par: 72
Defending: Martin Kaymer 273   (beat H. Stenson & L. Westwood by 4)
Field: World Top 25: Sergio Garcia (2), Padraig Harrington (4), Henrik Stenson (8), Trevor Immelman (20), Miguel Angel Jimenez (22) & Martin Kaymer (25)   Other Notables: Aaron Baddeley, Michael Campbell, Anders Hansen, Colin Montgomerie & Jeev Milkha Singh.

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Sunshine Tour: Africa Open

Site: East London Golf Club – East London, South Africa
Meters: 6,191   Par: 73
Defending: Shaun Norris 275   (beat N. Henning by 6)
Field: World Top 25: None   Other Notables: Desvonde Botes, Angel Cabrera, Darren Clarke, Darren Fichardt, David Frost, Retief Goosen, James Kingston, Richard Sterne.

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PGA Tour: Mercedes-Benz Championship

Winner: Geoff Ogilvy 67-68-65-68 268   (beat A. Kim & D. Love by 6)
Site: Kapalua Resort (Plantation course) – Kapalua, HI

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


European & Sunshine Tours: Joburg Open

Winner: Anders Hansen 71-68-64-66 269   (beat A. McClardy by 1)
Site: Royal Johannesburg & Kensington GC - Johannesburg, South Africa

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS

It’s that time again.

The PGA and European Tours swing back into action this week, with the American circuit returning to Hawaii for its now-traditional season-opening Mercedes Championship, while the Europeans continue their South African swing, still trying to explain how this can be the sixth event of the 2009 season despite the fact that we’re only entering the second week of January.

In America, the Mercedes continues as the modern incarnation of the old Tournament of Champions, a tropical reward for those players fortunate enough to win an official event in 2008. But while the Coore & Crenshaw-designed Plantation course at the Kapalua Resort remains one of the Tour’s best venues, a disappointing cadre of elite players will not be making the trip this year. Tiger Woods, of course, has a doctor’s note, but world top 5s Sergio Garcia (2), Phil Mickelson (3) and Padraig Harrington (4) will all “be spending time with their families.” Apparently Tim Finchem’s recent video message to players asking them to increase their support for a broader range of events hasn’t hit home just yet. A marquee event, a major sponsor and a top notch venue, and the world’s top four players, all eligible, are staying home.

So much for the Golf Channel’s hype about the adventure beginning here.

Meanwhile, the E Tour’s players continue to grapple with a South African swing which straddles the holidays, the reality being that while many British and Continental stars might be inclined to journey to the Cape once each winter (for the Alfred Dunhill and the South African Open), how many are likely to make a second trip back just for the third playing of the relatively new Joburg Open? We can hardly blame the Sunshine Tour for cobbling together their schedule to squeeze larger events into windows of relative inactivity in America, of course, but one wonders how much longer the E Tour – whose desire to co-sanction a third South African event seems laudable – will continue putting this awkward date on their official calendar. Of course, there is one major beneficiary of this sort of scheduling: homestanding Richard Sterne who, with wins at both the Dunhill and South African Open, now stands a greatly improved chance of becoming the first man since Seve Ballesteros in 1986 to win three consecutive events on the E Tour schedule.

And all without leaving his homeland.

Elsewhere, more bellicose words from the Asian Tour have certainly shelved the OneAsia concept for 2009, but what about beyond? In response to sponsor demand, the Japan Tour has recently indicated a desire to bring American or European events onto their shores should OneAsia not fly (or even if it does?) which may up the ante in subsequent regional discussions considerably. The Asian Tour, for its part, has indicated a willingness to participate in a series of WGC-like, annual Asian events bringing together players from throughout the region, but little more. The Australasian and (one assumes) Chinese circuits are simply clamoring for a larger piece of the regional pie. But in the end, potential Japanese overtures to Europe represent an interesting component in this ever-evolving mix because ultimately, it is surely the E Tour’s vested interests in there not being a OnaAsia circuit (which could ultimately represent serious competition) that gives the current Asian Tour the confidence to hold their ground in nixing the regional super tour concept.

Another party likely rooting against OneAsia: John Daly, now suspended a reported six months by the PGA Tour for general and ongoing buffoonery. Because with his playing status bordering on nonexistent on most inhabited continents, golf’s slowest moving train wreck might need the continued existence of places like the Omega China Tour simply to find somewhere to compete. Daly, after all, doesn’t quite seem the club professional type....

PGA Tour: Mercedes-Benz Championship

Site: Kapalua Resort (Plantation course) – Kapalua, HI
Yards: 7,411   Par: 73
Defending: Daniel Chopra 274   (beat S. Stricker in a playoff)
Field: World Top 25: Vijay Singh (5), Camilo Villegas (7), Ernie Els (9), Anthony Kim (11), Geoff Ogilvy (12), Kenny Perry (14), Stewart Cink (16), Adam Scott (17), K.J. Choi (18), Tevor Immelman (20) & Justin Leonard (23)   Other Notables: All other 2008 PGA Tour winners.

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European & Sunshine Tours: Joburg Open

Site: Royal Johannesburg & Kensington GC - Johannesburg, South Africa
Yards: 7,590   Par: 71
Defending: Richard Sterne 271   (beat M. Carlsson & G. Mulroy in a playoff)
Field: World Top 25: None   Other Notables: Anders Hansen, James Kingston, Louis Oosthuizen, Charl Schwartzel & Richard Sterne.

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With both the Official World Ranking and the Rolex Golf Rankings publishing their de facto “final” standings this past week, here is a rundown of the world’s best professional golfers, and an assessment of their seasons and present career paths.

First the men:

1) Tiger Woods – The great thing about discussing Tiger is that one doesn’t have to say much; it’s all been covered, ad nauseum, by both the golf and mainstream media already. Suffice to say that while his numerical stranglehold on the #1 spot might be in jeopardy if his comeback is delayed and one of his pursuers starts hot, Tiger remains the best golfer on earth until proven otherwise. Might be a while.

2) Sergio Garcia – Still no Major titles, but it cannot be denied that even with the golfing gods, ancient curses and the whims of the cosmos all conspiring ruthlessly against him, Sergio took a huge step forward in 2008. Of course, he still needs to win more – actually, a lot more – if he’s going to challenge Tiger for #1, but the prodigious talent of his youth seems now to be carrying the day. Does he have one more gear for Major championship play?

3) Phil Mickelson – Though twice a winner in America, Mickelson’s 2008 cannot be seen as a rousing success. His best Major championship finish was a T5 at The Masters, he was twice out of the top 10 in the other three (T18 at the U.S. Open, T19 in Britain) and he relinquished the #2 World Ranking spot to Sergio Garcia. At 38, he should still be very much in his prime – but having admitted that he can’t realistically compare his career to Tiger’s, it’s about beating back challengers like Garcia and Padraig Harrington now.

4) Padraig Harrington – With back-to-back Major wins at the Open Championship and PGA, Harrington clearly enjoyed the biggest worldwide season in golf – though a modest late-season drop in form relegated him to 4th in the year-end ranking. Also very much in his prime at age 37, he looks most capable of pushing both Garcia and Mickelson for the #2 spot...and maybe more if Tiger’s comeback somehow proves unsuccessful.

5) Vijay Singh – What a strange year for the seemingly ageless Singh. Despite indifferent winter form and a terrible Major championship ledger (T14, T65, Cut, Cut), the 45-year-old Fijian rose from the ashes to win three of his final five starts and – future Trivial Pursuit question – capture the FedEx Cup. Some might retire upon carving such an immortal place for themselves in golfing history, but likely not Vijay. We wonder, however, just how much longer anyone over 45 can continue competing at the elite level...

6) Robert Karlsson – It was a breakout year for the 6’5” Swede – albeit about a decade later than many of us expected. Playing remarkably consistent golf, the 39-year-old Karlsson won “only” twice on the European Tour, but logged a boatload of top 5s, finished no worse than 8th in the year’s first three Majors, and led the PGA Championship after the opening 18 before falling to T20 – all of which highlighted a 35-spot jump in the World Ranking. A mercurial personality, so predicting his future is trickier than some – but he certainly looked like he found something in 2008.

7) Camilo Villegas - Another player who experienced a breakout year, climbing from 56th place in the final 2007 ranking. Showed modest form early but blistered the field late, winning twice (in addition to two further top-4s) in his last five official starts. It’s crowded at the top; can he climb significantly higher?

8) Ernie Els – Old friend Ernie bounced through an up-and-down season which included one victory – but also five MCs – in 16 American starts. Given that he ended ’07 ranked #4 in the world, 2008 can hardly be seen as a shining accomplishment, but at age 39, and blessed with top-shelf physical talent, the Big Easy very likely has a good deal of world-class golf left in him.

9) Henrik Stenson – It speaks volumes regarding the growing strength of the E Tour that the 32-year-old Stenson went winless there, yet still manages to retain a spot in the year-end top 10. Of course, ten top 10s (including a T3 at the Open Championship and a T4 at the PGA) enable one to rack up a good number of rankings points – particularly with so many stronger European fields. The big question now: can Stenson parlay his obvious talent into a proportional number of victories?

10) Lee Westwood – It’s been a long way back for the 35-year-old Westwood, whose halcyon early days seemed but a vague memory roundabout 2002, when a prolonged slump saw him end the year buried at 181st in the world. Like Stenson, Westwood also went winless in 2008, but his 13 top-10 finishes (including a 3rd at the U.S. Open) racked up countless ranking points. Now, can he kick it up just enough to regain the form that saw him to 12 E Tour titles from 1998-2000?

11) Geoff Ogilvy – After a slow start (three straight MCs in America), it was a solid (if unspectacular) campaign for the 2006 U.S. Open champion, with his one U.S. win coming at the strong-field WGC event at Doral. With so solid a game and a relatively unflappable demeanor, does a multi-win, breakout season lie ahead in 2009?

12) Anthony Kim – The 23-year-old Kim served notice in a big way in 2008, claiming victories at the Wachovia Championship and the AT&T National, and making waves during the U.S. Ryder Cup victory. An imposing young talent. If the notion of anyone actually “challenging” Tiger can be taken seriously, this would seem the most likely candidate to do it. Rising with a bullet.

13) Jim Furyk – With nine top-10 finishes in America, things couldn’t have been too bad for the 2003 U.S. Open champion, but... Furyk was also winless for the first time since 2004 and, save for a T5 at the Open Championship, finished no better than 29th in Major play. Bottom line, when you’ve ended the last two seasons ranked 2nd and 3rd respectively, sitting 13th now means ’08 cannot go down as a hallmark year...

14) Steve Stricker – Began the year ranked 5th and playing well, but a streak of five missed cuts in six springtime starts seemed to take some of the luster off. Save for a T7 at the Open Championship, logged only a single top 10 after March (a T10 at September’s Western Open/BMW Championship). At 41, likely not destined to see the top 5 again – but the way he can roll it, you never know.

15) Kenny Perry – The Steve Stricker of 2008, Perry began the season ranked 92nd but won three times in six late-spring weeks, played himself onto the Ryder Cup team and finished the year comfortably inside the top 20. Of course, he’s also 48 years old, so any future greatness likely will be relegated to the Champions Tour...

16) Stewart Cink – The 35-year-old Cink tore it up through the spring, logging one win, four top 4’s and seven top 10s before the end of June – but never bettered a T33 at the Deutsche Bank Championship thereafter. With five wins and career earnings in excess of $25 million, he is perhaps the quintessential American professional (translation: can he win more or simply bank massive checks?).

17) Adam Scott – Is he becoming a tease? Scott began the year ranked #7, shot a closing 61 to win January’s Qatar Masters, then won the PGA Tour’s Byron Nelson Championship in April. I (like many others) foresaw greatness, a breakout year, a major statement in the Majors... But Scott never even approached an American top 10 after mid-May, and finished T25, T26, T16, MC in the Majors. Undeniably a world-class talent capable of contending anytime, and at age 28, it’s surely not too late, but...when?

18) K.J. Choi – Another player who started like gangbusters, winning the Hawaiian Open and contending regularly into April. A summer slump cooled him considerably however, as did MCs at the U.S. Open and PGA. At 38, Choi should have plenty of good miles left – but can he be consistent enough to reach (and hold) a place in the top 10?

19) Justin Rose – Rose’s career parallels with fellow 28-year-old Adam Scott continue. He too began the year ranked much higher (#6) and struggled a bit in the Majors (T36, MC, T70, T9). Further Rose has logged only one worldwide win (the 2006 Australian Masters) since his breakout season of 2002. Like Scott, many believe Rose possesses another gear and is, at the very least, capable of winning regularly around the globe. But...when?

20) Trevor Immelman – An odd year indeed for the 29-year-old Immelman, who began 2008 ranked 19th, broke through for his first Major championship at the Masters in April....and then, save for a playoff loss in Memphis, largely disappeared thereafter. But his talent is undeniable, making a regular spot among the world top 10 a highly realistic goal.


And on the women’s side...

1) Lorena Ochoa – Had her second half mirrored her first, some of Mickey Wright’s single-season records might have been in jeopardy. But as it is, she’s still the world’s best by a wide margin – at least for now.

2) Yani Tseng – The 19-year-old Tseng came out of nowhere as an LPGA Tour rookie, logging an impressive eight finishes among the top 3, and winning a Major, the LPGA Championship. Notably, her form varied little throughout the season, suggesting that this ranking may prove itself something well beyond a fluke.

3) Annika Sorentstam – Hall-of-Famer Sorenstam began her farewell tour in top form, winning thrice by mid-May, but she leveled off noticeably thereafter. This position in the rankings will be short-lived as she is now officially retired. Maybe.

4) Paula Creamer – Four wins and a runner-up finish on the LPGA money list would be considered a banner season by most, but for Creamer, who still yearns for her first Major title, it may ring a shade less satisfying. Perhaps more importantly, at age 22, she has seemingly established for herself a permanent place among the world’s top five – not a bad platform from which to work.

5) Suzann Pettersen – Though twice a winner in Europe, 2008 was a disappointing season for the player who, one year ago, seemed the woman most likely to challenge Lorena Ochoa’s worldwide supremacy. At age 27, it is perhaps too early top know which version of Pettersen will be around for the long haul, particularly as the competition near the top only thickens.

6) Ji-Yai Shin – Though ending the year ranked 6th, Shin is widely viewed as the heir apparent to the Ochoa throne, and why not? The ultra-talented 20-year-old won three 2008 LPGA events (including the Women’s British Open) without even being a member of the Tour, and has proven herself not just successful but dominant at every level. Coming full-time to America in ’09, so look out.

7) Cristie Kerr – Have we seen her best? The 2007 U.S. Women’s Open champion won only once in 2007 (at August’s Safeway Classic) and made very little noise in the Majors. Then again, it’s not so much that her game has slipped as much as a whole cadre of young talent (particularly Tseng and Shin) have rocketed past her during their rapid climbs. At 31, she figures to have some good miles left...

8) Helen Alfredsson – Rising from the ashes, Alfredsson, who had won only once since 1998, claimed two LPGA titles in 2008, launching herself into the world top 10 in the process. At age 43, that position may prove short-lived – but it was a nice late-career rush for the popular veteran.

9) Angela Stanford – Once an LPGA winner in 2003, Stanford shed seven years of relative mediocrity (her previous best money ranking was 17th) to win twice, finish no worse than 6th in her final six starts, and end up 9th in official earnings. Given her amateur and collegiate background, such a performance may not be a fluke. But with stiff competition to retain a spot in the top 10, it will be interesting to see how well she holds up in ’09.

10) Karrie Webb – This Hall-of-Famer was winless in America, and only managed four top 10 finishes in 20 LPGA starts. At a very experienced 34, it seems likely that her days challenging for number one are over – but her game has rebounded from valleys before, so...

11) Seon Hwa Lee – Already a winner in her first two LPGA seasons, Lee added two more titles in 2008, as well as five additional top 10s. Began the year ranked 9th, so not a bad campaign overall.

12) Yuri Fudoh – The world’s highest-ranked player not making regular appearances in America, Fudoh (now age 32) moved up nine spots in 2008 behind four wins on her home JLPGA circuit. Too bad she doesn’t venture out more...

13) Jeong Jang - The 28-year-old ex-Women’s British Open continued her reputation for regularly contending but seldom winning, logging six top-3 LPGA finishes in 27 starts, but failing to claim a victory for the second consecutive season. Ranked 11th a year ago, her career seems locked into a steady (and lucrative) holding pattern.

14) Momoko Ueda – The 22-year-old Ueda never bettered 5th in 19 LPGA starts, but did manage two victories (in 13 starts) back in Japan. An up-and-comer who appears capable of winning in America.

15) Jee Young Lee - This 23-year-old Korean remains winless since coming to America full-time in 2007, but manages to rack up Rolex Ranking points with steady play, including a run of five consecutive top 10’s to close out the LPGA season.

European & Sunshine Tours: South African Open

Winner: Richard Sterne 72-69-67-66   274   (beat G. Maybin in a playoff
Site: Pearl Valley Golf Estate – Paarl, South Africa

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS


Asian Tour: Volvo Masters of Asia

Winner: Chih Bing Lam 69-66-72-67   274   (beat C. Nirat by 2)
Site: Thai Country Club – Bangkok, Thailand

STORY          RESULT          MONEY LIST          STATS          INTERVIEWS

Two interesting events, two interesting winners.

At the Royal Sydney Golf Club, Tim Clark joined legends Gary Player and Bobby Locke as the only South African winners of one of golf’s most time-honored titles, the Australian Open, reeling off an impressive nine Sunday birdies en route to a clinching 67. Of course, rudimentary math tells us that some black numbers also appeared on Clark’s final round card, primarily in the form of a double-bogey, bogey sequence at the 13th and 14th that threatened to snatch potential victory from his grasp. But two late birdies proved enough to force sudden death with homestanding Matthew Goggin, wherein Clark claimed the title on the first extra hole by getting up and down from a greenside bunker, while Goggin (who also finished second at last week’s Australian PGA) missed a six-footer to tie. End of story – though not, perhaps, without mentioning New Zealand’s David Smail, who stood three up with four to play, double-bogeyed the 15th and 16th and ultimately finished one out of the playoff.

Following his triumph, Clark (now the world’s 28th–ranked player) added a few choice words to the effect that the Australian fans made him feel more welcome than do those in his native South Africa – a point underlined by his very presence in Sydney while a fair number of his countrymen were home playing in the E Tour co-sponsored Alfred Dunhill Championship. Clark is returning to the Cape for this week’s South African Open, however, and it will be interesting to see how warmly –or otherwise – he is received.

Meanwhile, at that same Alfred Dunhill Championship, 27-year-old South African Richard Sterne claimed his fourth career European Tour title (along with two separate Sunshine Tour victories), carding four straight sub-70 rounds en route to a 271 aggregate, and a one-shot victory over Sweden’s Johan Edfors and England’s Robert Rock. Sterne clinched the title with a par at the par-5 72nd, a routine accomplishment we might assume – save for the fact that he’d carded an eight and a seven respectively over the same hole in rounds two and three. The victory clinched the 2008 South African Order of Merit for Sterne – also not too surprising until we notice that he did so in only four Sunshine Tour events. Equally interestingly, Sterne finished an uninspiring 75th in the 2008 E Tour Order of Merit, only thrice cracking the top 20 in 22 official starts. The three top 20s? All three of last winter’s stops on the Tour’s South African swing (including the Joburg Open, which he won).

Clearly, Sterne knows how to capitalize on a home field advantage.

His task this week, however, will be somewhat greater as he joins Cark and fellow countrymen Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, Trevor Immelman and Rory Sabbatini, as well as England’s Justin Rose and Lee Westwood, and Northern Ireland’s Darren Clarke in pursuit of the South African Open – another ancient and venerable national championship that goes largely overlooked in North America. Not surprisingly, South Africa’s two greatest golfers, Bobby Locke and Gary Player, have dominated this event, with Locke capturing the title nine times (including a war-interrupted five straight from 1937-1946) and Player an incomparable 13, including victories in four separate decades. Less recalled today, however, are the eight victories (ranging from 1925-1952) claimed by the nation’s first truly great international golfer, Sid Brews, one of the more underrated players in the game’s history. Among contemporary competitors, Ernie Els’ four victories reigns supreme, while such internationally prominent South Africans as Retief Goosen, Tim Clark, Trevor Immelman and David Frost, plus Zimbabwe’s Mark McNulty, have all claimed the title twice.

One more notable fact: whereas last week’s Australian Open boasts a long and illustrious roster of foreign champions, the South African title has remained largely a closed shop. Indeed, not until Englishman Tommy Horton’s triumph in 1970 did a foreigner claim the title, and only six men not from South Africa (or neighboring Zimbabwe) have ever taken the Open title abroad with them. Co-sanctioning by the European Tour figured to shift those percentages a bit, but in the event, little has changed: since co-sanctioning began in 1997, only Fiji’s Vijay Singh (1997) and Sweden’s Mathias Gronberg have successfully invaded.

Almost as an aside, the Asian Tour completes its season with this week’s Volvo Masters of Asia in Bangkok, a prestige event on the Asian schedule but one boasting precious few players of genuine international repute.

All eyes on the Cape...