Honeymoon continues for newly-wed Conradie

Married life agrees with Estiaan Conradie, who a month after his wedding is sharing the lead after the first round of the Blu Label Unlimited Challenge at the Lost City Golf Course.

Conradie and fellow South African Tyran Snyders both collected 17 points under the modified stableford scoring system being used for this tournament, giving them a two-point lead over England’s Joe Sullivan.

Conradie was first in the clubhouse on Wednesday.

“I’m happy with those 17 points. I couldn’t have really asked for a better start than that. It’s a good position to be in,” he said.

“It was a good round. There was just the one bogey on the par five, which is not really what you want to do, especially with this format. I’m glad I could bounce back after that quickly. Overall, it was a good round. I gave myself lots of birdie opportunities and made lots of putts,” Conradie added.

Co-leader Estiaan Conradie (17 points) reflects on his opening round of the Blu Label Unlimited Challenge 🗣️ #sunshinetour #greatnessbeginshere #blulabelunlimitedchallenge https://t.co/5nUchdEhDh
— Sunshine Tour (@Sunshine_Tour) October 14, 2026

The unique format of this tournament invites an aggressive approach, and Conradie certainly enjoyed this.

“It’s a nice format. It’s a bit different and a nice change. I’m enjoying it. Trying to be as aggressive as you can is important, especially in this tournament. You need to be aggressive and give yourself as many birdie opportunities as you can, because you need birdies to make the points.”

Snyders joined him later in the day with a round that included and eagle on the fourth hole.

And behind them, Ricky Hendler had a solid start with his 12 points in a tournament where he finished second in 2024, and at a venue he always enjoys.

“That was an amazing week in 2024. It always gives me a good vibe coming here, and I always enjoy coming to Sun City. The format of this tournament allows you to play more freely and be more aggressive.”

Zimbabwe’s Stuart Krog kept the hole-in-one trend on the Sunshine Tour going for a second week in succession when he aced the par-three 15th, earning himself 100 000 SkyBucks courtesy of Fly Airlink and also joining the Airlink Aces Shoot-Out at the end of the season.

For his ace on 15, Stuart Krog wins 100 000 Skybucks courtesy of @fly_airlink 🛩️ He becomes the tenth player to be entered for the Airlink Aces Shoot-out, at the end of the season.👏 #BluLabelUnlimitedChallenge #GreatnessBeginsHere #SunshineTour https://t.co/jDhqAKLiz5
— Sunshine Tour (@Sunshine_Tour) October 14, 2026

SCORES

17 - Estiaan Conradie

17 - Tyran Snyders

15 - Joe Sullivan

13 - James Mack

12 - Jean-Paul Strydom

12 - Ricky Hendler, Stuart Krog

11 - Warwick Purchase

11 - Kyle Barker, Lyle Rowe

10 - Jean Hugo

10 - Samuel Simpson, Quintin Wilsnach, Martin Rohwer

9 - Nikhil Rama

9 - Dylan Mostert, Pierre Pellegrin, Pierre Viallaneix

8 - Luis Carrera

8 - George Coetzee, Austin Bautista

7 - Hennie O'Kennedy

7 - Malcolm Mitchell, Adam Breen, Luke Brown, Tristen Strydom, Gerhard Pepler, Benjamin Van Wyk, Eric Wowor, Ockie Strydom

6 - Tomas Gana

6 - Cole Stevens, Keenan Davidse, Travis Procter, Rupert Kaminski, Graham van der Merwe

5 - Kyle De Beer

5 - Justin Walters, Morris Schiefner, Agustin Errazuriz, JJ Senekal, Christiaan Burke, Jaco Prinsloo, Jonathan Broomhead

4 - Carlos Bustos

4 - Stals Swart, Jacques Blaauw, Neil Schietekat, Jason Roets, Daniel Cronje, Conner Mackenzie, Gabriel Morgan, Robson Chinhoi, Trevor Fisher Jnr, Altin van der Merwe, Stephen Ferreira

3 - Tristan Leonard

3 - Allen John, Jordan Burnand, Liam Grehan, Daniel van Tonder, Luke Jerling

2 - Doug McGuigan

2 - Charl Barnard, Keelan Africa, Benjamin Kedochim, Tristin Galant, Keagan Thomas

1 - Toto Thimba Jnr

1 - Oliver Goldhill

0 - Herman Loubser

0 - Jaco Van Zyl, Haydn Porteous, Makhetha Mazibuko, Simon du Plooy, Jacques P de Villiers, Rowan Lester

-1 - Albert Venter

-1 - Ruan Korb, Kian Rose

-3 - Matthew Spacey

-3 - Wynand Dingle