Ekurhuleni junior Jayden Schaper lifted his third SA Boys trophy on Wednesday when he defeated reigning Sanlam SA Amateur champion Christo Lamprecht in a play-off for the Nomads SA Boys U-19 Stroke Play title on Wednesday.
The 16-year-old Ebotse player returned a final round 73 to lead the field, but Lamprecht from Southern Cape closed with a 69 to end his campaign at Langebaan Golf and Sports Club alongside Schaper at 14-under-par 274.
Playing into the teeth of a harsh south-westerly wind, the pair registered bogeys on the first play-off hole, but Schaper ended the sudden-death shootout with a birdie at the 18th.
He was only 11 when he won the Nomads SA Boys U-13 Championship in Nelspruit and 14 when he collected the U-15 title at the Fish River Sun Country Club. The possibility of a ‘grand slam’ is still on the cards, with the Nomads SA Boys U-17 Championship at Rustenburg Golf Club in July, but for the moment the Benoni teenager has more important matters on his mind.
‘The Match Play Championship starts tomorrow and my first priority is to get past the first round, but I will celebrate a little bit with my friends,’ said Schaper.
After his victory, Schaper chilled out with 2016 champion Deon Germishuys, Wilco Nienaber and Jordan Burnand playing playstation. ‘It will help me to take my mind off things and to reset for my first match against Otto (van Buynder),’ said Schaper. ‘I made some great putts to hang in there and in the end I got my reward. It was extremely windy out there and I am very tired, but it’s a great tired.
‘It would be great to win the double, but match play is a different kind of beast. You have to stay on top of things, because in stroke play you have enough hole to come back from a bad hole, but in match play it can mean the end of your week.’
And Schaper knows exactly what a bad hole can mean. After a third round 66, Schaper led the field at 15 under and held a four-shot lead over Lamprecht. He had the upper hand for the first nine holes, despite a bogey start, and turned level after picking up a birdie at the par five eighth.
The Southern Cape golfer edged closer with a brace of birdies at eight and nine, and a double bogey from Schaper at the par three 11th narrowed the gap to just one shot.
‘The wind was gathering speed and I was between clubs,’ Schaper said. ‘I over-clubbed and my ball pitched at the back of the green and bounced into the water.
Both players birdied 12 and 15, but Schaper’s final bogey at the short 16th tied the pair and the deadlock remained at the end of regulation play.
‘It was a little scrappy down the back nine,’ Schaper said. ‘The wind was pumping when we headed to the play-off. We both hit driver down 10 and was on the green in two, but we both three-putted.’
Schaper and Lamprecht both used irons off the tee at 18 to finish short of the water and laid up with their second shots. On the green for three, the duo had similar lines with Schaper 17 feet short of the hole and Lamprecht inside him at 15 feet.
‘I got the pace and the line of the first putt just perfect and boxed for birdie and Christo also hit a solid putt, but his missed just left,’ Schaper said. ‘It was a nice tussle with Christo and you never know, we might have another go in Saturday’s Match Play final.’
Schaper’s first round opponent Van Buynder edged out Slade Pickering, Dylan Underwood, Eben Spangenberg and Ayden Senger to seal the final spot in the 32-man field for the Match Play Championship.
Picture of Schaper courtesy of Gavin Withers Photography
Final Result
274 Jayden Schaper 68 67 66 73; Christo (Jnr) Lamprecht 66 69 70 69
278 Luke Mayo 70 67 70 71
279 Garrick Higgo 71 69 68 71; Wilco Nienaber 67 68 71 73
280 Andre van Dyk 72 69 70 69; Ruan Groenewald 72 67 72 69; Deon Germishuys 71 68 69 72
281 Luca Filippi 73 67 72 69
283 Martin Vorster 68 69 71 75
285 Tyron Davidowitz 72 69 70 74
286 Werner Deyzel 71 69 76 70; Carlo Heunis 69 75 70 72
288 Chris Woollam 74 72 73 69; Jakub Hrinda 73 75 67 73
289 Marco Massiceti 73 72 72 72
290 Franklin Manchest 71 76 68 75
291 Daniel Cronje 70 71 72 78
292 Alex van Wyk 82 69 69 72; Yurav Premlall 71 74 74 73; Reece Haikney 70 71 77 74
293 Crismar Engelbrecht 76 75 70 72; Kyle Solomon 75 73 72 73; Aidon Willemse 73 77 69 74; Christiaan Burke 73 68 74 78; Kifentse Nukeri 72 73 77 71
294 Bradley de Beer 76 72 73 73; Saul Moss 73 74 77 70; Tyran Snyders 72 72 74 76
295 Wian van Aswegen 72 71 75 77; Gianni Pera 71 73 76 75
296 Slade Pickering 76 70 74 76; Ayden Senger 75 74 72 75; Otto van Buynder 74 76 69 77; Dylan Underwood 72 76 73 75; Eben Spangenberg 71 75 77 73