Latest news with #InvestecSouthAfricanOpenChampionship
RTÉ News
27-04-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Marco Penge claims maiden win as Conor Purcell storms to second successive top-20 finish
Marco Penge claimed his maiden DP World Tour title at the Hainan Classic just two months after returning from a ban for betting. The Englishman was handed a three-month ban with one month suspended in December last year after he "placed bets on multiple golf events" in a breach of the tour's integrity programme. He did not bet on himself. He has since put that behind him, finishing third at the Investec South African Open Championship in March before recording a three-shot victory in China to enter the winner's circle for the first time at this level. Penge started the day in a share of the lead but found himself one shot behind a charging Sean Crocker as he began the back nine on Sunday. The 26-year-old then produced a timely hat-trick of birdies at the 12th, 13th and 14th to race clear of the chasing pack and seal the win. American Crocker finished in a tie for second alongside Norway's Kristoffer Reitan on 14 under par, with Dane Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen another shot further back. Ireland's Conor Purcell, meanwhile, recorded his second top-20 finish in successive weeks with a storming finish on Sunday, posting the low round of the day with a seven-under par 65 at the Blackstone Course. The Dubliner, who achieved his best finish yet in his maiden season on tour with a tied-15th showing in the China Open last week, just squeezed inside the cut-line with a round of 70 on Friday. Beginning the final round on even par, Purcell fired a blemish-free round on Sunday, opening with back-to-back birdies on 1 and 2, adding further birdies on 8, 12, 14, 16 and 18 to finish on seven-under for the week, in a tie for 20th. In the wake of his victory, Penge spoke of his desire to prove himself in the wake of the recent ban. Penge said: "This obviously means the world to me. "It's something that I've always dreamt of achieving – winning on the biggest stage. "After my time off it was the thing that I wanted to really prove to myself and prove to everyone, to show what a player I am. "My caddie, through that time, has been my rock. And my wife and my whole team – I wouldn't be where I am without them. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger." Penge also booked his ticket to the US PGA Championship at Quail Hollow after coming third on the tour's Asian Swing standings. Keita Nakajima topped the rankings after finishing in a tie for 11th at Mission Hills Resort Haikou, while Eugenio Chacarra was second and Penge third, with all three players now heading to the second major of the year next month.
Irish Independent
27-04-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
‘This means the world' – Marco Penge claims maiden DP World Tour title after returning from betting ban
Penge was handed a three-month ban with one month suspended in December last year after he "placed bets on multiple golf events" in a breach of the tour's integrity programme. He did not bet on himself. He has since put that behind him, finishing third at the Investec South African Open Championship in March before recording a three-shot victory in China to enter the winner's circle for the first time at this level. Penge started the day in a share of the lead but found himself one shot behind a charging Sean Crocker as he began the back nine on Sunday. The 26-year-old then produced a timely hat-trick of birdies at the 12th, 13th and 14th to race clear of the chasing pack and seal the win. American Crocker finished in a tie for second alongside Norway's Kristoffer Reitan on 14 under par, with Dane Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen another shot further back. Penge said: "This obviously means the world to me. "It's something that I've always dreamt of achieving - winning on the biggest stage. "After my time off it was the thing that I wanted to really prove to myself and prove to everyone, to show what a player I am. "My caddie, through that time, has been my rock. And my wife and my whole team - I wouldn't be where I am without them. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger." Penge also booked his ticket to the US PGA Championship at Quail Hollow after coming third on the tour's Asian Swing standings. Keita Nakajima topped the rankings after finishing in a tie for 11th at Mission Hills Resort Haikou, while Eugenio Chacarra was second and Penge third, with all three players now heading to the second major of the year next month.
Khaleej Times
04-03-2025
- Sport
- Khaleej Times
Lightning Strikes Twice: Dale Whitnell's ‘bizarre' two-hole-in-one feat on the DP World Tour
Dale Whitnell carved his name into golf's history books with a feat that almost defies belief - two holes-in-one in the same round at the Durban Golf Course. The Englishman stunned the field at the Investec South African Open Championship, acing both the par-three second and 12th holes. Local favourite Dylan Naidoo won the rain-plagued event on the first playoff hole Sunday against England's Laurie Canter. Hole-in-ones are already a special moment for any golfer, but making two in a single round? That's the kind of stuff legends are made of. Whitnell becomes only the second player in DP World Tour history to achieve the feat, following Andrew Dodt's similar accomplishment at the Nordea Masters in 2013. Unlikely Achievement What made the moment even more astonishing was that Whitnell had never recorded an ace in tournament play. 'After shooting level par and coming back in the morning to complete my first round, I knew I needed to play well just to make the cut,' Whitnell said. 'I got off to a hot start, made a birdie at the first, then hit a flush seven-iron on the second. I didn't realize it had gone in until I heard the cheers from down by the green. That was lovely.' His second ace came at the 12th, where he holed out from 128 yards with a 50-degree wedge, pulling off one of golf's most unlikely feats. 'To make one is special, but to make two? It's bizarre,' Whitnell added. 'You don't really know how to react. You're buzzing, the adrenaline is pumping, but at the same time, you've got to focus and keep playing.' Unconventional Round His round was far from a conventional one. Beyond the two aces, he also carded three eagles, seven birdies, two bogeys, a double bogey, and even an air shot - ultimately finishing with a remarkable nine-under-par 63 on a historic day. Whitnell's feat comes in a season already filled with memorable aces. His two additions bring the tally of holes-in-one on the 2025 Race to Dubai to seven, following MK Kim, Daniel Gavins, Adrien Saddier, Pablo Larrazábal, and Eddie Pepperell. While Whitnell didn't take home the win, he now has a permanent place in golf history. Lightning might not strike twice in the same spot, but it sure did for him.
USA Today
02-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Golfer on DP World Tour has not one but two holes-in-one in the same round
Golfer on DP World Tour has not one but two holes-in-one in the same round This might be one of the crazier scorecards you'll see. It might also be one of the few times you'll ever see a golfer record two aces. Dale Whitnell of England opened with a birdie Friday in the second round of the Investec South African Open Championship at Durban Country Club in South Africa. On his next hole, he recorded a hole-in-one. Three swings, one putt and he was 3 under. On the par-5 third, he made eagle, so he was then 5 under through three holes. Talk about your hot starts. From there, Whitnell made three pars and a bogey before two more birdies, thus making the turn in 30. Then on the par-3 12th, he struck again, making his second ace of the day. According to the National Hole-in-One Registry, the odds of one player making two holes-in-one in the same round are 67-million-to-1. "I got off to a hot start as they say. I birdied the first and then hit a flush seven iron on the second and didn't realise that it had gone in until down the bottom [greenside] they cheered so that was lovely," he said. 'I hit two hybrid, hybrid into the par five and made eagle there so I was five under through three which I have never done before and then managed to get another hole in one at the 12th. It was bizarre." Whitnell also had a late double-bogey and when he signed for a 9-under 63, his scorecard had a 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and a 6. He's also 9 for the tournament, tied for eighth, five shots back of leader Shaun Norris. "I had everything today. An air shot, two bogeys, a double bogey, three eagles and I come out nine under par so I can't complain.' Whitnell says he now has five aces but never before in competition. Andrew Dodt in 2013 was the first player on the DP World Tour to make multiple holes-in-one in the same round. Later in the clubhouse, there was a nice selection of beverages courtesy of Whitnell.
