Christiaan Maas carded a brilliant bogey-free eight-under-par 64 on Friday at Durban Country Club in the second round of the Investec South African Open Championship as he marched towards his second Freddie Tait Cup.
The trophy named for a young Scottish lieutenant in the famed Black Watch who died in 1900 on South African soil in the South African War is awarded to the leading amateur in the South African Open who makes the cut.
Among the winners are major champions Bobby Locke, Ernie Els, Trevor Immelman and Charl Schwartzel.
21-year-old Christiaan Maas, the only amatuer to make the cut, moves to within two of the lead 🇿🇦#InvestecSAOpen pic.twitter.com/bmtFxKKhK7
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) March 1, 2025
After an opening two-under-par 70, Maas clicked into overdrive, and he made eight birdies without dropping a shot in the second round.
With play suspended due to failing light after delays to the start of the championship because of torrential downpours in the Durban area, Maas is likely to be the only amateur to make the cut, thus ensuring himself of winning one of the most coveted trophies in all of amateur golf.
His superb second round lifted him into a share of seventh when play was called for fading light, with the second round scheduled to resume on Saturday morning.
In a championship such at the South African Open, the difference between a 70 and a 64 is massive, but for Maas, it was just a little more of the same: “I didn’t change much after the first round really,” he said.
“I played the same as yesterday. I played a little further back off the tee just to keep it in play. From there, I just didn’t go at too many flagsticks, made a couple of good putts.”
If he were to be a little hard on himself, he would probably castigate himself for not making birdie on the par-five third, the only par-five on which he didn’t make birdie in the second round.
“I didn’t birdie three, and I was not too happy about that one, but I made a good putt on the par-three after that, and then holed out when I hit a great bunker shot on five,” he said.
“Then it was a good wedge shot on six which left me a shortish putt.”
'BE IN YOUR OWN ZONE'
He birdied eight as well to turn in four-under 32, and then made birdies on 10, 13, 14 and 18 on the back nine to card 32 on that stretch as well.
While his 10-under is four strokes off the lead at 14-under-par which was held by Shaun Norris when play was suspended overnight on Friday, Maas has taken a whole lot on board since his Freddie Tait Cup-winning effort in 2022, when he opened with rounds of 69 and 65, only to close with a 72 in the third round and a 77 in the final round.
“I was in this position when I played pretty well two years ago,” he said.
“On the third day, everything kind of happened very quickly. One thing I have learned in America is to be patient and you’ve got the world’s time. Just stick to what you’re doing and be in your own game, own zone, so I’m excited for the third round tomorrow.”
For Maas, it’s about keeping things as simple as possible and not searching for something that may be out of reach.
“I think you need to find something that works for you and be consistent with it,” he said.
“Don’t change too much. I think I have done that a little bit, where it leads to inconsistencies. You try to change a little too much trying to get better a little too quickly. My college coach says it’s a lot better gradually getting a little better. If you get better quickly, you can get bad pretty quickly.”
Bryan Newman, Astin Arthur, Jordan Burnand, Charl Barnard and Sean Paxton all missed the cut, which fell at four-under-par and left 70 players to contest the weekend.
GolfRSA No 1 Astin Arthur agonisingly missed out by a single shot after following up his opening round of 73 with a second round 72.
Reigning Africa Amateur champion Newman carded successive rounds of 73 in his debut, while 2025 SA Amateur champion Barnard (77, 72) and qualifier Paxton (75-74) tied for 132nd on five-over. Jordan Burnand was a further two strokes adrift after rounds of 72 and 79.
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