South Africa’s Dylan Naidoo earned a maiden DP World Tour title on home soil after holding off England’s Laurie Canter in a tense play-off to win the Investec South African Open Championship.
The fourth round was cut from the event after officials declared it unplayable with parts of the course under water due to torrential rain. With Naidoo and Canter sharing the overnight lead on 14-under, a play-off took place after the rain stopped on Sunday.
Taking place on the par-4 18th hole, both Naidoo and Canter came up short of the green. Canter’s second shot rolled 15 feet from the hole, whilst Naidoo’s came closer. The Englishman had the opportunity to birdie to win, but missed and Naidoo putted from four feet to seal victory.
“It feels like a dream, it’s overwhelming,” said the South African. “I felt like I was Tiger Woods playing out there yesterday with so many people supporting me.”
“That type of shot is my bread and butter, a little low skipper,” Naidoo continued, speaking on the final play-off hole. “The boys who play practice rounds with me know that I do that all the time.
“I didn’t have a lot of fear on the shot, it was actually a really nice shot for me to have in the moment. I was more worried about the putt. That putter went back a little squiggly!”
Canter’s second-place finish means he now leads the Race to Dubai Rankings. England’s Marco Penge finished third, just a shot behind at 13 under while fourth was shared amongst other South Africa-natives Darren Fichardt, Branden Grace, and Christiaan Maas.
WHAT IS THE NEXT EVENT?
The next event on the DP World Tour schedule is the Joburg Open taking place between 6-9 March in Johannesburg, South Africa.