JOHANNESBURG – It was on the European Tour that South African players made their mark internationally this week, and Daniel van Tonder’s share of 12th in the BMW International Open saw him climb two places to 77th on the Official World Golf Ranking.
There are still 10 South Africans inside the top 100 in the world, but Van Tonder was the only one of that group to climb. Louis Oosthuizen played that tournament, and his share of 42nd after a closing two-over 72 meant he slipped one place on the rankings to 13th. He remains South Africa’s top-ranked player.
Garrick Higgo and Dylan Frittelli both missed the cut on the PGA Tour, and that meant Higgo dropped one place to 39th as South Africa’s second-best player, and Frittelli slipped two spots to 90th.
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Of the players who did so well in Europe – there were six in the top 25, and 11 players made the cut – Justin Harding had the best improvement on the world rankings. His share of fifth took him up 10 places to 128th on the list. Darren Fichardt was also in a share of fifth, and he climbed eight places to 168th. Shaun Norris climbed eight places too, to 111th with his share of fifth.
South Africa’s top 10:
1. Louis Oosthuizen 13 (down 1)
2. Garrick Higgo 39 (down 1)
3. Christiaan Bezuidenhout 47 (down 1)
4. Branden Grace 61 (down 1)
5. Daniel van Tonder 77 (up 2)
6. Erik van Rooyen 89 (down 2)
7. Dylan Frittelli 90 (down 2)
8. Brandon Stone 92 (down 2)
9. Dean Burmester 93 (down 1)
10. Charl Schwartzel 94 (down 1)
SA Tour Golf