2018–19 Sunshine Tour
| Duration | 12 April 2018 – 24 March 2019 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 26 |
| Most wins | J. C. Ritchie (3) |
| Order of Merit | Zander Lombard |
| Rookie of the Year | Benjamin Follett-Smith |
← 2017–18 2019–20 → | |
The 2018–19 Sunshine Tour was the 48th season of the Sunshine Tour (formerly the Southern Africa Tour), the main professional golf tour in South Africa since it was formed in 1971.
Schedule
The following table lists official events during the 2018–19 season.[1]
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (R) |
Winner[a] | OWGR points |
Other tours[b] |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 Apr | Zanaco Masters | Zambia | 2,000,000 | J. J. Senekal (2) | 14 | ||
| 22 Apr | Old Mutual Zimbabwe Open | Zimbabwe | 2,000,000 | Bryce Easton (3) | 14 | ||
| 29 Apr | Mopani Redpath Zambia Open | Zambia | US$150,000 | Rourke van der Spuy (2) | 14 | ||
| 12 May | Investec Royal Swazi Open | Eswatini | 1,200,000 | Justin Harding (6) | 14 | ||
| 20 May | Lombard Insurance Classic | Eswatini | 1,000,000 | Justin Harding (7) | 7 | ||
| 7 Jun | Sun City Challenge | North West | 800,000 | Neil Schietekat (2) | 7 | ||
| 22 Jul | KCB Karen Masters | Kenya | 2,000,000 | Michael Palmer (1) | 14 | New to Sunshine Tour | |
| 3 Aug | Royal Swazi Spa Challenge | Eswatini | 800,000 | Andre de Decker (1) | 7 | New tournament | |
| 10 Aug | Sun Carnival City Challenge | Gauteng | 800,000 | J. C. Ritchie (2) | 7 | ||
| 18 Aug | Vodacom Origins of Golf at Zebula | Limpopo | 800,000 | Zander Lombard (1) | 7 | ||
| 25 Aug | Sun Wild Coast Sun Challenge | KwaZulu-Natal | 800,000 | Vaughn Groenewald (6) | 7 | ||
| 1 Sep | Vodacom Origins of Golf at Selborne Park | KwaZulu-Natal | 800,000 | Peter Karmis (6) | 7 | ||
| 16 Sep | Vodacom Origins of Golf at Arabella | Western Cape | 800,000 | Neil Schietekat (3) | 7 | ||
| 29 Sep | Vodacom Origins of Golf at St Francis | Eastern Cape | 800,000 | Alex Haindl (2) | 4 | ||
| 20 Oct | Vodacom Origins of Golf at Parys | Free State | 800,000 | Garth Mulroy (4) | 4 | ||
| 26 Oct | Sun Sibaya Challenge | KwaZulu-Natal | 800,000 | Louis de Jager (4) | 4 | ||
| 3 Nov | Vodacom Origins of Golf Final | Eastern Cape | 800,000 | Steve Surry (1) | 4 | ||
| 2 Dec | AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open | Mauritius | €1,000,000 | Kurt Kitayama (n/a) | 17 | ASA, EUR | |
| 9 Dec | South African Open | Gauteng | 17,500,000 | Louis Oosthuizen (8) | 32 | ASA, EUR | Flagship event |
| 16 Dec | Alfred Dunhill Championship | Mpumalanga | €1,500,000 | David Lipsky (n/a) | 23 | EUR | |
| 3 Feb | Eye of Africa PGA Championship | Gauteng | 2,000,000 | Louis de Jager (5) | 14 | ||
| 10 Feb | RAM Cape Town Open | Western Cape | 2,000,000 | Benjamin Follett-Smith (1) | 14 | ||
| 17 Feb | Dimension Data Pro-Am | Western Cape | 5,050,000 | Philip Eriksson (1) | 14 | Pro-Am | |
| 2 Mar | Team Championship | Gauteng | 1,500,000 | Jaco Prinsloo (2) and J. C. Ritchie (3) |
n/a | Team event | |
| 10 Mar | Limpopo Championship | Modimolle | 1,500,000 | J. C. Ritchie (4) | 14 | New tournament | |
| 24 Mar | The Tour Championship | Gauteng | 2,000,000 | Jean-Paul Strydom (1) | 14 | Tour Championship |
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in South African rand.[2][3]
| Position | Player | Prize money (R) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zander Lombard | 2,119,985 |
| 2 | Justin Harding | 1,467,795 |
| 3 | Bryce Easton | 1,361,129 |
| 4 | Neil Schietekat | 1,206,168 |
| 5 | Philip Eriksson | 1,059,234 |
Awards
| Award | Winner | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| Rookie of the Year (Bobby Locke Trophy) | Benjamin Follett-Smith | [4][5] |
See also
Notes
- ^ The number in brackets after each winner's name is the number of Sunshine Tour events they had won up to and including that tournament. This information is only shown for Sunshine Tour members.
- ^ ASA − Asian Tour; EUR − European Tour.
References
- ^ "2018/19 Tournament schedule". Sunshine Tour. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
- ^ "2018/19 Order of Merit". Sunshine Tour. Archived from the original on 17 April 2023. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
- ^ Damgaard, Peter (26 March 2019). "Zander Lombard vandt Sunshine Tour Order of Merit 2018-19" [Zander Lombard won the 2018-19 Sunshine Tour Order of Merit]. 19hul.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 7 September 2023.
- ^ "2018/19 Rookie of the Year". Sunshine Tour. Archived from the original on 18 April 2023. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
- ^ "Follett-Smith wins in Cape Town to secure maiden Challenge Tour title". Gulf News. 6 February 2023. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
In my first year on the Sunshine Tour I picked up a win and Rookie of the Year...