Golf Betting
If there’s one thing better than winning a big event on home soil, it’s successfully defending your title. Louis Oosthuizen enjoyed the sweet taste of consecutive victories by claiming the Africa Open with a 27-under-par total, good for a two-shot margin at East London Golf Club in South Africa. The tournament kicked off the European Tour’s 2012 season.
The 2010 Open champion outdueled a pair of countrymen, Tjaart Van der Walt and Retief Goosen, with a Sunday 67. Van der Walt, a 37-year-old non-winner, started hot with three consecutive birdies to grab the lead. Oosthuizen caught him with birdies on the seventh and ninth, then sewed things up with a pair of back-nine birdies as Van der Walt came home in even par.
Van der Walt was solo second on 25-under while Goosen finished third on -24. Jaco Van Zyl and Alastair Forsyth rounded out the top five.
“It was a real dogfight for most of the day,” said Oosthuizen, who offered high praise for the runner-up. “I remember watching Tjaart when I was an amateur, and it was just great seeing him play to his potential today.”
Oosthuizen earned €158,500 with the win, his fourth on the European Tour.
While most of the tour’s big names (Luke Donald, Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer) remain on winter break, the Tour continues its South Africa swing this week at the Joburg Open in Johannesburg. Defending champion and 2011 Masters winner Charl Schwartzel headlines the field.
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!
