Paul Boshoff claimed a two-stroke victory over Xander Basson in the seventh tournament of the season at CMR Golf Club on Thursday, ending a six-year trophy drought in the process.
His final-round 67 took his tournament total to 17-under-par 199, two clear of Basson who produced a near-perfect round of 63 to take solo second.
The victory at CMR was Boshoff’s second on this circuit, having one at Randpark Golf Club in 2018. Ironically, that victory also came in the seventh tournament of that season.
There you have it, folks!
— Big Easy Tour (@bigeasytourgolf) November 21, 2024
Paul Boshoff wins the 7th tournament of the season🏆#greatnessbeginshere #betwaybigeasytour pic.twitter.com/R5NsuEgZbk
“I think it’s a lot of relief,” said Boshoff, describing his feelings in the aftermath of his triumph.
“It’s been a lot of hard work and struggles over the last couple of years. So, for it to start getting together; I got the win, so it came together; it’s just relief. I have been playing very nicely for the last six, seven, eight, nine weeks but there’s always a bad round in there or a couple of bad holes that derail me, so I’m just relieved and very happy right now.
“It means a lot to me to win against such a strong field. People tend to underestimate the fields of the Big Easy, but the winning score was 17-under-par to win by two shots. You need to play good golf and every week is sort of a grind. It’s a building block to where you want to be and I think it prepares you for the higher levels of the game.”
Paul Boshoff shares his thoughts after winning the 7th event of he season!#betwaybigeasytour #greatnessbeginshere pic.twitter.com/SOSJ2oXQ2S
— Big Easy Tour (@bigeasytourgolf) November 21, 2024
His win certainly went a long way in boosting his chances of earning his Sunshine Tour card for next season by lifting him to third on the Order of Merit.
It also brought his six-year winless streak to a halt.
“My first victory was in 2018, the year before I got my Sunshine Tour card,” Boshoff recalled.
“It was also a Big Easy event at Randpark but obviously a long time ago. Very different emotions back then. This one means a little bit more, I would say. I think back then I sort of took it for granted a bit but this one means a bit more.
“This win sets me up nicely because, obviously, I want to play on the Sunshine Tour again and move on from there. I want to play all over the world and I think South African golfers have proven that we can compete wherever we want to compete.”
A man fully aware of the impact the Betway Big Easy Tour has had in launching some of the country’s fines golfers’ careers, Boshoff will look forward to the rest of the season with some renewed confidence as destiny beckons.
The top 12 players on the Order of Merit standings will earn their Sunshine Tour cards, come end of the season, and Boshoff has thrown his name in the hat.
The Betway Big Easy Tour is the Sunshine Tour’s development circuit and enjoys the support of South African golfing legend, Ernie Els among other patrons.
SCORES:
199 - Paul Boshoff 64 68 67
201 - Xander Basson 70 68 63
202 - Warwick Purchase 65 68 69, Richard Joubert 66 66 70
203 - Francois Van der Walt 64 71 68, Luke Mayo 66 69 68
204 - Slade Pickering 70 71 63, Thomas Spreadborough 69 69 66, Lwazi Gqira 69 69 66, Mark Maart 67 71 66, Henning du Plooy 72 65 67
205 - Jastice Mashego 70 68 67, Johan Theron 65 71 69
206 - Tyron Davidowitz 68 70 68, Joe Knox 69 67 70
208 - Ulrich van den Berg 67 72 69, Jaden Deltel 69 70 69, Louis Liebenberg 69 70 69, Matthew Rushton 68 69 71, Keelan Africa 69 67 72
209 - Kian Coetzer 71 70 68, Jacques Van der Merwe 70 69 70
210 - Nicholaus Frade 70 71 69, Musiwalo Nethunzwi 71 69 70, Jason Froneman 69 70 71, Erhard Lambrechts 68 70 72, Luke Trocado 68 68 74, Reece Mc Kain 67 69 74
211 - Coert Groenewald 73 68 70, Kyle Lucas 71 68 72
213 - Yusuf Dadoo 67 74 72
215 - Ivan Mare 70 70 75
217 - Jabulane Mabilane 68 72 77
Missed the cut:
142 - William Geach 69 73, Sabelo Xolani Majola 73 69, Tawriq Abrahams 74 68, Eric Wowor 68 74, Ryan van der Klis 72 70
143 - Noel Anderson 72 71, Tyrone Ryan 76 67, Jonathan Waschefort 75 68, Harry Konig 70 73, Khanya Mkhize 70 73, Adriel Poonan 71 72
144 - Eben Spangenberg 70 74, Christiaan Pretorius 70 74, Marcel Steyn Scholtz 71 73, Leon Visser 72 72
145 - Mutahi Kibugu 73 72
146 - Ryan Tipping 74 72, Letsoso Letsai 75 71, Gerard du Plooy 71 75, Thanda Mavundla 75 71
147 - Shalan Govender 75 72, Philip Geerts 71 76, Basil Wright Jr 73 74
148 - Dean Ralphs 73 75, Tiger Adams 74 74
149 - Eugene Du Plessis 74 75, Jonathan Williams 72 77, Lyle Pedro 74 75, Nicholas Adams 71 78
150 - Carlos Losper 73 77, Ricco Motsa 77 73, Kael Strydom 71 79
151 - Muhammad Dadoo 78 73, Llewellyn Leibrandt 79 72
152 - Jules Helary 74 78, Brandon-Jude Rennie 74 78, Shaydon Johnson 73 79
153 - Andre Van Dyk 78 75, Michael Kok 80 73
156 - Boeta Nasie 82 74
158 - Jarryd Govender 80 78
163 - Terence Mogapi 80 83
WDN - Tumelo Molloyi 81 WDN WDN, Slenda Sithebe 70 RTD RTD, Thabang Simon DSQ DSQ