South African PGA Championship
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Eikenhof, South Africa |
| Established | 1923 |
| Course(s) | Eye of Africa Signature Golf Estate |
| Tour(s) | Sunshine Tour |
| Format | Stroke play |
| Prize fund | R 1,200,000 |
| Month played | February |
| Tournament record score | |
| Aggregate | 259 David Frost (1994) |
| To par | −28 Louis Oosthuizen (2008) |
| Current champion | |
 Jaco van Zyl | |
The Eye of Africa PGA Championship, as it is currently known for sponsorship reasons, is one of the most prestigious golf tournaments on the Sunshine Tour. It is currently played in February with a prize fund of 1.2 million rand, and is currently held at Eye of Africa Signature Golf Estate in the Johannesburg suburb of Eikenhof.
The current South African PGA Championship was founded in 1965, largely thanks to Gary Player and Brian Henning. New sponsors in 1972 gave the championship a home at The Wanderers Golf Club where it remained until 1995,[1] when it became the first tournament in South Africa to be co-sanctioned by the European Tour. The following year Alfred Dunhill took over from Lexington as title sponsors, breaking a 23-year association with the PGA.
Following the 1999 event, Dunhill decided to end their association with the South African PGA and create their own tournament, the Alfred Dunhill Championship, which also replaced the PGA Championship on the European calendar. As a result, there was no PGA Championship held in 2000, but the tournament returned to the Sunshine Tour the following year with a new sponsor. It is one of the richest sole-sanctioned events on the Sunshine Tour.
The South African PGA Championship, along with the South African Open and the South African Masters form the Triple Crown of South African golf. Winning all three titles in the same season is a feat only achieved by Bobby Locke, Gary Player and Ernie Els.[2]
Winners
* – 1979 and 1996 events reduced to 3 rounds.
Match-play era
| Year | Winner | Runner-up | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960–64 | No tournament | ||
| Dunlop South African Professional Match Play Masters | |||
| 1959 | .svg.png){kind=small} Gary Player | Harold Henning | 3 & 1 |
| 1958 |  Dai Rees |  Ken Bousfield | 3 & 2 |
| 1957 | John Jacobs | Gary Player | 2 & 1 |
| South African Professional Match Play Championship | |||
| 1956 | Ken Redford | Gary Player | 2 & 1 |
| 1955 | Bobby Locke | Brian Ellmore | 7 & 6 |
| 1954 | Jock Verwey |  AN Thomas | 11 & 9 |
| 1953 | Philip Ritson | AJ Bullock | 12 & 11 |
| 1952 | Sid Brews | Philip Ritson | 7 & 6 |
| 1951 | Bobby Locke |  Harry Bradshaw | 4 & 3 |
| 1950 | Bobby Locke | MS Hart | 9 & 8 |
| 1949 | Jock Verwey | GS van Niekerk | 5 & 4 |
| 1948 | Jock Verwey | James Ockenden, Jr. | 5 & 4 |
| 1947 | Sandy Guthrie | James Ockenden, Jr. | 5 & 4 |
| 1946 | Bobby Locke | Sid Brews | 10 & 9 |
| 1941–45 | No tournament due to World War II | ||
| 1940 | Bobby Locke | Bertie Elkin | 11 & 9 |
| 1939 | Bobby Locke | M Goldsmith | 12 & 11 |
| 1938 | Bobby Locke | Sid Brews | 4 & 3 |
| 1937 | John Robertson | AN Thomas | 37th hole |
| 1936 | Sid Brews | John Robertson | 9 & 7 |
| 1935 | J De Beer | G Brews | 5 & 4 |
| 1934 | Sid Brews | Bertie Elkin | 6 & 4 |
| 1933 | Sid Brews | AN Thomas | 6 & 5 |
| 1932 | Charles McIlvenny | Robert Grimsdell | 6 & 5 |
| 1931 | Charles McIlvenny | Jock Brews | 10 & 9 |
| 1930 | Arthur Tomsett | Charles McIlvenny | 37th hole |
| 1929 | Charles McIlvenny | Robert Grimsdell | 8 & 7 |
| 1928 | Sid Brews | Jock Brews | 2 & 1 |
| 1927 | Charles McIlvenny | Robert Grimsdell | 3 & 1 |
| 1926 | Sid Brews | G Brews | 11 & 10 |
| 1925 | Jock Brews | Robert Grimsdell | 3 & 2 |
| 1924 | Jock Brews | Archie Tosh | 4 & 2 |
| 1923 | Bertie Elkin | Jimmy Johnstone | 4 & 3 |
References
- ↑ "The Lexington PGA". The Wanderers Golf Club. Retrieved 12 March 2013.
- ↑ "History of the South African Masters sponsored by Nashua". Sunshine Tour. 30 January 2008. Retrieved 12 November 2008.
External links
- Sunshine Tour – official site
- Professional Golfers Association of South Africa – official site
- Coverage on the European Tour's official site