Veteran Brandon Pieters rolled back the years with a fine performance in round one of the Betway Big Easy Blue Label Invitational, shooting a solid 66 to take a one-stroke lead at Waterkloof Golf Club on Monday.
The 49-year-old made a total of nine birdies, a bogey and a double to sign for six-under-par 66, finishing the round one clear of the closest challengers.
“It was a good day,” said Pieters after his round. “I’ve been working on my physical strength and body work. I was just trying to make it simple out there, with no expectations. I have a dear brother of mine who likes to say to me, ‘Just smile and wave, and no matter what happens, just keep it going.
“Today was one of those days. I had a really solid front nine. Made a couple of mistakes, and I was a bit unlucky on the back nine. But the old dog still has some tricks, and even though I limped home, it’s the first round, and it’s nice to play well and let’s see it through to Wednesday.”
Pieters, who has four Sunshine Tour victories to his name, is also pleased his game has been trending in the right direction lately, stating that it all comes down to solid pre-season preparation.
“I think all the work we did prior to the start of the season is starting to come through. Our preparation; we’re changing a couple of things because us old dogs can’t work as hard as the youngsters, but we have to work smarter. New putter, different length putter; we are looking for any kind of edge we can get on the kids, and I got one up on them today, and it makes me feel good.”
Rookie Oliver Goldhill, Brandon Gildenhuys, Eswatini’s James Pennington, Travis Proctor and Benoni Country Club’s Warwick Purchase lie one stroke off Pieters’ lead and will feel they all have a real chance of unseating the veteran campaigner from the summit of the leaderboard.
Members of the Papwa Sewgolum Class, Lyle Pedro and Keelan Van Wyk are in a six-way share of the seventh spot along with Eric Wowor, Ruan Groenewald, Tiago Jorge Swart and England’s Joe Knox, thanks to scores of four-under 68 on day one.
The Betway Big Easy Tour is the Sunshine Tour’s feeder circuit and enjoys the support of the legendary Ernie Els, among other patrons. The Betway Big Easy Blue Label Invitational is a series which the Big Easy co-hosts with the Bushveld Tour to provide more playing opportunities to members of both tours.