Tag: Alfred Dunhill Championship

Louis Oosthuizen claims DP World Tour event in South Africa, continues LIV Golf win streak

LIV players have now won the last four DP World Tour events.

The DP World Tour has hosted five events so far in its 2023-24 season. The last four have been won by players in the LIV Golf League.

Louis Oosthuizen kept the streak alive on Monday by winning the Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek Country Club in Malelane, South Africa. The victory on the European-based circuit was the 10th of his career and first since the 2018 South African Open. Oosthuizen finished at 18 under, two shots clear of Stinger GC teammate, Charl Schwartzel.

Another Stinger, Dean Burmester, got the LIV party started three weeks ago with his victory at the Joburg Open and doubled down with a win last week at the Investec South African Open Championship. Also last week, Joaquin Niemann won the ISPS Handa Australian Open and Oosthuizen made it a fourth consecutive win on Monday after Sunday’s final round was delayed.

“This is one of the tournaments that I’ve always wanted to win,” the proud South African said of winning the event in his home country. “It took me a while. It’s always a great place coming back to.”

The DP World Tour’s “opening swing” ends this week with the 2023 AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open at Heritage La Reserve Golf Club in Heritage Bel Ombre, Mauritius, before beginning its International Swing in Dubai in January.

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Pair of LIV golfers tied for lead on DP World Tour, looking for three-peat in South Africa

The former major champions have opened up a five-shot lead.

It has been a few good weeks on and off the course for LIV Golf.

Dean Burmester has won consecutive DP World Tour events in South Africa. Additionally, last week, Joaquin Niemann won on the DP World Tour in Australia.

This week, the Jon Rahm-to-LIV news shook the golf world and has given the league plenty of momentum in its second offseason.

And it seems as if LIV golfers aren’t done winning on the course, either.

Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel are tied for the lead at 15-under 201 after three rounds at the 2023 Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek Country Club in South Africa. Oosthuizen tied a course record with a 9-under 63 in the third round while Schwartzel, a four-time winner of the event, shot 65. The duo are five shots in front of the field with 18 holes to play.

Oosthuizen’s round included an eagle and seven birdies. Schwartzel had six birdies, an eagle and one bogey.

Andy Sullivan and Christiaan Bezuidenhout are the closest chasers at 10-under 206. Outside of Oosthuizen and Schwartzel, no other golfer shot better than 67 on Saturday.

6-foot-8 amateur Christo Lamprecht has a chance at history in South Africa

Lamprecht sits at 8 under heading to the weekend.

Remember Christo Lamprecht, the 6-foot-8 amateur who held a share of the first-round lead at the 151st Open Championship this summer?

Yeah, he’s still pretty good. And he has a chance at history this weekend in his native South Africa.

Lamprecht, a senior at Georgia Tech, sits at 8-under 136 after Friday’s second round at the 2023 Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek Country Club in Malelane, South Africa. He’s two shots behind solo leader Casey Jarvis.

If Lamprecht were to find a way to win this weekend, he would be the first amateur to win the Alfred Dunhill Championship and the first amateur to win a DP World Tour event since Shane Lowry in 2009.

And he’s in this position without his A-game.

“Tee to green is probably not what I’ve wanted,” Lamprecht said. “I’ve hit a lot of good shots but I’ve hit some really bad ones and I’ve kind of got away with that a little bit. I guess I’ve been a little bit lucky on some holes for sure but I’ve used that luck, I’ve played really smart golf.

“My swing is not where I want it to be right now… but I’ve been scoring really good, making a lot of crucial putts and I’m just missing it in the right places fortunately.”

Lamprecht had six birdies and three bogeys in his second-round 69. During Thursday’s first round, he hit a 418-yard drive in a clip that went viral.

This summer, Lamprecht won the Amateur Championship and then earned low amateur honors at the Open Championship, his highlight that week coming after a 5-under opening round and holding a share of the lead.

This fall, he has two wins at Georgia Tech and sits No. 2 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking.

A win this weekend would be a big springboard into his final college semester. If he won, he would be only the fourth amateur to win a DP World Tour event.

“Last week at the (South African) Open I didn’t play too great, and I didn’t have a chance to play the weekend, so I’m looking forward to playing this weekend and putting a good showing in,” Lamprecht said.

Photos: ‘Water logged courses’ force DP World Tour event to 54-hole Monday finish

More than three inches of rain have fallen since the end of play on Friday.

It’s all too fitting that a DP World Tour event featuring LIV Golf chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan is being shortened to 54 holes.

The announcement was made Sunday that, due to water-logged courses, the final round of the 2023 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship would be pushed to Monday, Oct. 9, and that the pro-am event would be reduced to 54 holes, with the top 30 teams and ties making the 36-hole cut. Matt Fitzpatrick currently leads at 13 under, with Grant Forrest and Nacho Elvira T-2 at 12 under.

Weather has been an issue all week for the unique event played annually at Carnoustie, Kingsbarns and St. Andrews, three of the best golf courses in Scotland. The tour reported that about 3.11 inches of rain had fallen since the end of play Friday.

Aside from its trio of stellar hosts, the event made headlines early last week when it was reported that Al-Rumayyan, the governor of Saudi Arabia’s lucrative Public Investment Fund (PIF), would play the pro-am under the pseudonym Andrew Waterman. Not only that, the 53-year-old is alongside LIV Golf’s Peter Uihlein (T-10) and was in the same group as R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers. Fellow LIV players Laurie Canter (T-16), Louis Oosthuizen (T-40) and Talor Gooch (72) are also in the field as non-members playing on sponsor invites.

Texas freshman Christiaan Maas well on his way to be next South African star

“Playing with Ernie was a dream come true.”

Standing on the first tee ahead of the DP World Tour’s Alfred Dunhill Championship last month in South Africa, Christiaan Maas’ eye drew wide. 

Also on the tee was Ernie Els, one of the greatest South African golfers of all time. The former world No. 1 with four major titles is now 53 and is on the decline of his stellar career. Meanwhile, Maas, a freshman at Texas, is only at the beginning of what’s looking to be a promising story. 

Maas played alongside Els the first two days at Leopard Creek in Malelane, topping one of his idols, who’s also a friend and mentor. Maas finished T-17 at the DP World Tour event, capping a stellar fall that included his first semester for the Longhorns. 

“Playing with Ernie was a dream come true,” Maas said. “All in all, probably the best two weeks I’ve had.”

Maas had met Els previously and talked with him on numerous occasions, partially because Maas’ coach and Els are close friends. Maas said Els talked with him about the recruiting process and was supportive of Maas’ choice to go to Texas. 

A week before the Alfred Dunhill, Maas placed T-35 at the DP World Tour’s South African Open. 

Maas’ brilliant play on the professional level at 19 years old is just a glimpse of how talented he is. The 25th-ranked golfer in the World Amateur Golf Ranking was named to the Fred Haskins Award watch list, which is awarded to the best player in college golf, after the fall season. Maas also captured the Brabazon trophy last year at the English Men’s Open Amateur Stroke Play Championship. He has quickly risen to become one of the top amateurs in the world. 

And yet he’s only scratching the surface.

“He has got off to a really good start,” Texas men’s golf coach John Fields said. “He’s an absolutely wonderful kid. Everybody loves him in South Africa.”

Fields was able to go to South Africa and watch Maas compete, which he said was an incredible moment for him. 

It meant a lot to Maas, too, to have his coach come and support him during the couple months off from college golf. 

Maas took a couple weeks off after his appearances on the DP World Tour to rest and refresh before the spring college season. Texas is the defending national champion, and though the Longhorns had a slow start in the fall season, Maas isn’t worried about that carrying over to the spring. 

“Our goal is to win a national championship,” Maas said. “If we can reach the match play at NCAAs, we’ll definitely have a chance.”

On a personal level, Maas said he wants to win a couple college events this spring. He came close in the fall, finishing third at the Ben Hogan Collegiate at Colonial Country Club, where the PGA Tour’s Charles Schwab Challenge is contested. He also placed 12th at the Stephens Cup.

Maas notes the changes and adjustments he had to make to playing golf in the United States mostly compared to at home. There’s a premium on hitting the fairway and avoiding the rough around putting surfaces. Having the ability to practice at Texas has helped him adjust quickly. 

The Longhorns’ spring slate kicks off later this month at the Southwestern Invitational in Westlake Village, California. It’s there Maas will look to continue building off his low amateur honors in South Africa and making a name for himself. 

And he’s got his eyes on a big prize. Doing what Gordon Sargent did last year, winning the NCAA title as a freshman.

“That’s the ultimate goal,” Maas said. “And hopefully that can lead my team into a good position going to match play.”

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Despite greens running almost at 14, this DP World Tour pro tied a course record and shares the lead in South Africa

“When I saw it on the first tee box 13 — I think it was 13.7 or something — I was like, OK, here we go.”

With big names like Louis Oosthuizen and Dylan Frittelli looming in the field, Ockie Strydom wanted to make sure to get off to a fast start during Saturday’s third round of the Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek Country Golf Club in South Africa.

When he looked at the Stimpmeter before starting his round, he knew fast was exactly how the day would play out.

“When I saw it on the first tee box 13 — I think it was 13.7 or something — I was like, OK, here we go,” said Strydom, a South African who entered the week ranked No. 384 in the Official World Golf Ranking. “And luckily on the first, I had a downhill putt to get a hang of it and I ran it about four feet past. So the greens are there, and you’ve just got to make it and just go with the speed.”

And go he did — kickstarted by an eagle on the second hole, Strydom made the turn at 29 en route to a 9-under 63 that pushed him to 15 under for the tournament and in a tie with Scott Jamieson. And while Strydom tied the course record, it’s the second 63 to be fired in 24 hours — Jamieson did the same during Saturday’s second round. The course, known for its stunning visuals, has played easy all week, despite the quick conditions.

Three other players, including Dean Burmester are two shots back at 13 under while Frittelli and Branden Grace are part of a trio at 12 under.

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‘Acting’s way easier than golf’, says Marvel movie actress Kathryn Newton after playing St. Andrews

Kathryn Newton once skipped a U.S. Women’s Open qualifier after landing the leading role in “Paranormal Activity.”

She grew up on a golf course in Florida and became a standout player on her high school team.

In 2012, she was all set for a U.S. Women’s Open qualifier, according to a 2015 Golf Digest story.

But Kathryn Newton was also a budding actress and when she scored the leading role in the fourth installment of the “Paranormal Activity” movie franchise, she put away the clubs to chase her acting career.

Her next major role is playing Cassie Lang, the daughter of Antman, played by Paul Rudd, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The movie “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” is set for a February release.

Three weeks ago, however, Newton was back on the golf course, at the Old Course at St. Andrews, specifically, to participate in the pro-am ahead of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.

Kathryn Newton
Kathryn Newton at premiere of “Halloween Ends” at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, California, on Oct. 11, 2022. (Photo: Michael Tran/AFP via Getty Images)

Newton was paired with English golfer Matt Wallace, and the pair finished 118th out of 167 teams.

“Acting’s way easier than golf,” Newton told CNN’s The Jazzy Golfer, at the event. “I (don’t) say that lightly because I have respect for my acting and my fellow actors. When I see the pros out here today, I feel like they’re magicians or something.”

Regularly scoring in the 70s when she played a lot, she once shot 69, but said: “I’m pretty blown away by the pros and I think I’m going to stick to acting.”

That’s not to say she doesn’t have thoughts of ‘What if’.

“Oh yes, and then I think, ‘Thank goodness I’m not,'” she told CNN, but was then asked would she rather win an Oscar or a major.

“Win a major, for sure,” she said.

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After claiming move to LIV Golf was to ‘spend time with the kids,’ Patrick Reed will play five events in September, 26 in 2022

When the 2018 Masters champion joined LIV Golf, he insisted he was sick of the constant grind of the PGA Tour.

As a means of deflecting talk that they were making a jump from the PGA Tour to LIV Golf for financial reasons, numerous players insisted a reduced workload was the reason they chose the upstart league backed by Saudi financing.

But with a slip in his Official World Golf Ranking as well as an open window in his schedule, Patrick Reed has been announced as a participant in the upcoming Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, one of the more lucrative events on the DP World Tour.

Reed was ranked No. 25 on Jan. 2, then dipped to No. 38 when he announced he was leaving the PGA Tour for LIV Golf on June 11. With no chance to accumulate OWGR points on the LIV circuit, Reed has dropped to No. 50, a position he has maintained for three straight weeks.

With his inclusion in the Dunhill — a pro-am event played on three courses in Scotland: St. Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns — Reed will have played in five consecutive weeks.

Reed’s September has included:

• LIV Boston (T-31)
• BMW PGA Championship (T-5)
• LIV Chicago (T-12)
• This week’s Cazoo Open de France
• Next week’s Dunhill

When the 2018 Masters champion and nine-time winner joined LIV Golf, however, he insisted he was sick of the constant grind of the PGA Tour.

“It wears on you as an athlete, wears on you as a person, as a father, and this is for me, I feel like this is the best decision ever,” Reed said at the time. “Now I can compete at the highest level, but also prepare and get ready for every single event and be able to be home, and even though I’ll be grinding at home getting ready, I’ll be able to spend time with the kids.”

Yasir Al Rumayyan, Governor of the Public Investment Fund, reacts after a putt on the fifth green during the pro-am before the LIV Golf Invitational – Chicago at Rich Harvest Farms on September 15, 2022, in Sugar Grove, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/LIV Golf via Getty Images)

In the calendar year 2021, Reed played 22 PGA Tour events, including the Olympics. So far in 2022, he played in 16 PGA Tour events, four LIV events, and now two DP World Tour events. With three LIV events left on the schedule and next week’s Dunhill on his docket, Reed will have played 26 events this calendar year, barring injury.

With Reed’s addition, the Dunhill field will have 17 LIV Golf players as well as PGA Tour stars Rory McIlroy, Matt Fitzpatrick, Billy Horschel and Shane Lowry.

As for his round Thursday at the French Open, Reed shot 73 and was eight shots behind early clubhouse leader Paul Barjon.

Reed was displeased with the organizers of the event, who he thinks have snubbed him because of his LIV Golf ties. Reed was not invited to play in the pro-am before the tournament and believes he was left off the marquee pairings due to the LIV connection.

“It’s a slap in the face not to invite me to the press conference, or not to have me play the pro-am and all those things,” Reed said to Journal Du Golf.

“At the end of the day, it’s just my golf that I have control over. I’m here to support the tour, France and all the people who are here. But I don’t see why we can’t move from the LIV to the European Tour (DP World Tour) like we usually move from the PGA Tour to the European Tour.”

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Danny Willett leads Alfred Dunhill Links Championship; Tyrrell Hatton and Shane Lowry in striking distance

Can anyone catch the 2016 Masters champion?

The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship is always one of the most fun events on the European Tour schedule. Players and their partners rotate among three of the best golf courses in the world through the first three days of the event. The Old Course at St. Andrews, Carnoustie, and Kingsbarns are some of Scotland’s finest, with all hosting a round before the final day returns to the home of golf.

Danny Willett, leader after 54 holes, played St. Andrews Saturday without making a bogey, carding a 6-under 66. Through three rounds, Willett has only signed for two scores above par, which have been offset by a pair of eagles.

The 2016 Masters champ was feeling himself out on the links Saturday in some pretty miserable weather.

Tyyrell Hatton, who won this event in back-to-back years in 2016-17, enters the final round three shots behind Willett after a 1 under round at St. Andrews today. Luckily for him, the Old Course will be the host for the final round, so a few early birdies could put him right back in the mix. Hatton is playing with his dad, Jeff, this week.

Shane Lowry was an electrical spark for the European Ryder Cup team last week at Whistling Straits, and some of that energy has carried over this week in Scotland. The Irishman sits three shots back, and is tied with Hatton at 11 under. He, too, played the Old Course on Saturday, and paired six birdies with one bogey for a 5-under 67.

When playing golf in Scotland, you have to expect the worst when it comes to the weather. Billy Horschel has fully embraced that this week.

Click here for the full leaderboard.

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European Tour’s Alfred Dunhill Links Championship offers the best one-week rota of courses of any tour

The Old Course at St. Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns make this a special week for the European Tour and for links lovers.

The European Tour takes a few knocks from golf course aficionados about the layouts the tour frequently plays as it takes events to new coordinates – and sponsors – around the world. Some criticism is fair, some less so.

But it’s all moot this week. Just kick back, turn on the tube and enjoy some of the best golf courses in the world for the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.

St. Andrews Old Course. Carnoustie. Kingsbarns. They make up an incredible Scottish links triumvirate around St. Andrews, the best one-week professional rota in golf.

The Old Course is, of course, the Old Course. This is golf. Old Tom. Young Tom. All the way to Tiger Woods. This is the home of golf, the marketing says – and it’s right. And always exciting to watch.

Carnoustie is no slouch, itself. Home to eight past British Opens – ahem, Open Championships – Carnoustie’s Championship Course presents one of the most challenging and thrilling conclusions in golf. Just ask Jean van de Velde about the dreaded Barry Burn, where his chance at the 1999 British Open title was ingloriously drowned.

Kingsbarns (Golfweek files)

And to people who don’t follow modern golf architecture closely, Kingsbarns might seem like a third wheel in this rota. Trust us, it’s not. The Kyle Phillips design that opened in 2000 has climbed all the various course rankings – including Golfweek’s Best – to become one of the most desirable tee times in Europe.

The only thing that comes close to this rota on the PGA Tour is the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, with Pebble Beach Golf Links, Spyglass Hill and Monterey Peninsula Country Club’s Shore Course hosting celebrities and pros alike each year. Pebble Beach ranks No. 9 on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses list for the U.S., and Spyglass is No. 31 among all Modern U.S. courses. Not bad at all. It’s hard to beat the vibe on this section of California coastline.

But when it comes to elite course rankings, no rota compares to the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. And like the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the Dunhill Links also serves up a celebrity field in a pro-am format to make things a bit more interesting. Each team will play the three courses over the first three days, with teams and individuals that make the cut playing the Old Course on Sunday.

Keep scrolling for more on each of the courses in this week’s rota.