Jaco Ahlers did what he does so well in a challenging third round of the Tour Championship at Serengeti Estates on Saturday. He had a braai the night before the third round, and then he took on a strong wind and a chasing Casey Jarvis and held them both at bay.
A solid 69 kept Ahlers in the lead of this season-ending Sunshine Tour event on 16 under par. Jarvis fought hard for a 71 to remain his nearest challenger on 11 under par, and Pieter Moolman – who finished second in this event last year – moved into third place on seven under with a 71 of his own.
Ahlers’ 18 years of Tour experience certainly counted on Saturday, and it showed as he birdied two of his final three holes for that five-stroke lead.
“It was windy and it was tough. I am very happy with that finish,” said Ahlers.
“Patience was key. It was hard out there. I wasn’t striking my driver very well. It was going straight but I just didn’t feel I was putting a good strike on it. My putter was also cold on the front nine, but then came together on the back. This is a course I like a lot and which I play often, and it helped today. Especially coming down the stretch where there are some pin positions and chip shots where that knowledge helped immensely.”
Jarvis birdied the first to suggest he was going to keep Ahlers busy on Saturday. But Ahlers responded with a birdie at the second and then just focused on his own game.
“I did see the scoreboard every now and then but just played my own game. I’ll do the same in the final round and just stay in my own space. I’ve played this golf course enough to know there are a few birdies out there and you just need to remain patient.”
Jarvis finds himself in contention for the second week in succession on the Tour and was pleased to have come through a tough day when his putter wasn’t quite on form, but with a shot at victory still within sight.
“It was a proper grind out there but I did that pretty well. I just tried to stay patient and I’m very happy to have kept myself in the hunt for the final round.” – Michael Vlismas
Photo Credit: Tyrone Winfield/Sunshine Tour
Scores:
200 – Jaco Ahlers 66 65 69
205 – Casey Jarvis 67 67 71
209 – Pieter Moolman 68 70 71
210 – Keenan Davidse 67 69 74
211 – Hennie Otto 70 70 71, Hennie O’Kennedy 71 69 71, Jacques Blaauw 68 74 69, Jaco Prinsloo 70 71 70, Ryan Van Velzen 70 69 72
212 – Luca Filippi 69 72 71, Heinrich Bruiners 68 73 71, Daniel van Tonder 70 74 68
213 – Martin Rohwer 72 67 74
214 – Kyle Barker 72 70 72, Dylan Naidoo 72 71 71
215 – Wilco Nienaber 70 74 71, Benjamin Follett-Smith 73 71 71, Hennie du Plessis 71 69 75, Jaco Van Zyl 71 68 76
216 – Stefan Wears-Taylor 71 70 75, Brandon Stone 71 75 70, Jean Hugo 71 71 74, Dylan Mostert 72 76 68, JJ Senekal 67 70 79, Ockie Strydom 74 73 69
217 – Wynand Dingle 72 72 73, Jayden Schaper 73 71 73
218 – Albert Venter 76 70 72, Oliver Bekker 68 75 75, MJ Viljoen 75 72 71, Martin Vorster 74 70 74
219 – Bradley Bawden 73 72 74, Malcolm Mitchell 73 73 73
220 – Louis Albertse 72 69 79, Herman Loubser 70 71 79
222 – Thriston Lawrence 72 73 77, Neil Schietekat 76 79 67, Dan Erickson 72 77 73, Keagan Thomas 76 74 72
223 – Combrinck Smit 72 78 73
224 – Lyle Rowe 73 76 75, Jake Redman 71 75 78
226 – Ruan Korb 75 73 78
227 – Sean Bradley 74 72 81, Stephen Ferreira 76 76 75
