The Sunshine Tour has announced a summer of world-class international golf that includes six co-sanctioned tournaments and their prime positioning within the newly announced Global Swing schedule of the DP World Tour, offering even greater opportunities and incentives.
The Sunshine Tour also confirmed an increase in its minimum prize money throughout the other tournaments on its 2023/24 schedule.
The six Sunshine Tour and DP World Tour co-sanctioned tournaments will begin with the Joburg Open at Houghton Golf Club from 23-26 November 2023, followed by the Investec South African Open at Blair Atholl Golf and Equestrian Estate from 30 November to 3 December 2023, the Alfred Dunhill Championship at Leopard Creek from 7-10 December 2023, the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open at the spectacular new La Réserve Golf Links from 14-17 December 2023, the SDC Championship (venue to be confirmed) from 29 February to 3 March 2024 and the Jonsson Workwear Open (venue to be confirmed) from 7-10 March 2024.
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In addition to the current four European Challenge Tour events on the Sunshine Tour schedule, these six co-sanctioned tournaments will form part of the DP World Tour’s new Global Swing structure of its schedule which was announced today. The Global Swing will consist of an Opening Swing, International Swing, Asian Swing, European Swing and Closing Swing.
The first four co-sanctioned tournaments (the Joburg Open, Investec South African Open, Alfred Dunhill Championship and AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open) will fall under the Opening Swing. The SDC Championship and the Jonsson Workwear Open will be grouped together with the International Swing.
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Each Swing will have its own Order of Merit, with the leading professional at the conclusion of each Swing winning an extra $200 000 and, if already a member of the DP World Tour, an invitation into the DP World Tour’s next scheduled Rolex Series tournament and a spot in each of the DP World Tour’s Back Nine series of nine tournaments.
Upon the culmination of the Global Swing, the leading 10 professionals on the Race to Dubai Rankings will share in a $1 million bonus pool.
MINIMUM TOTAL PURSES OF R2 MILLION
“This is going to be a summer unrivalled international golf on Sunshine Tour fairways, with world-class fields competing on some of our best golf courses and for major new incentives,” said Thomas Abt, Commissioner of the Sunshine Tour.
“Our alliance with the DP World Tour means we can keep strengthening the global pathway that the Sunshine Tour offers, and these new incentives will further boost our fields and offer immense value to our co-sanctioned events. With our tournaments forming part of both the Opening Swing and International Swing, it’s a double opportunity for our members to benefit from these opportunities.”
The Sunshine Tour also confirmed a significant increase in prize money across the rest of its schedule, with all of its other tournaments set to offer minimum total purses of R2 million.
The second half of the 2023/24 season will feature the longstanding Vodacom Origins of Golf Series and the SunBet Challenge series, which anchors the winter schedule on the Tour.
ADDED INCENTIVES FOR LEADING PROS
The Tour will also continue its tribute to the South African golf legacy of Gary Player, with the Gary and Vivienne Player Challenge and the Gary and Vivienne Player Invitational tournaments featuring prominently on its schedule in the build-up to the co-sanctioned events.
There are further incentives for the leading professionals at the end of this season.
The Sunshine Tour’s Order of Merit points ranking will now be known as the Order of Merit delivered by The Courier Guy, and the top three professionals at the end of the season will receive an added bonus, with R500 000 going to the first-place finisher, followed by R200 000 for second and R100 000 for third place. This will be on top of their season’s earnings.
Golf fans will be able to keep monitoring the progress of the top three vying for honours, with the leading three professionals set to have the official Order of Merit delivered by The Courier Guy logo displayed next to their names throughout the season on the official SuperSport broadcasts, while their caddies will also wear bibs displaying the logo and their players’ positions of first, second or third on the ranking.
And in a further drive to develop the next generation of Sunshine Tour stars, the leading rookie professional at the end of this 2023/24 season will receive a bonus of R200 000 as part of the new Fortress Rookie of the Year award.