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Oosthuizen led heading into the final round at Randpark Golf Club in Johannesburg, but Grace (above) made an eagle and three birdies to surge one stroke ahead of Oosthuizen and Englishman Marcus Armitage heading to the par-3 eighth. That was when Oosthuizen made a hole-in-one from 208 yards to send the crowd into a frenzy, and it put him back on top by a stroke.
Oosthuizen’s lead didn’t last long, as Grace birdied the ninth to forge a tie heading to the final nine.
After the pair matched birdies on the 11th, Grace made birdies on Nos. 12-14 to move ahead by three strokes. He never looked back.
Oosthuizen closed with a 68 and Armitage a 69.
“That was remarkable,” said Grace, who at the 2017 Open Championship became the first player to shoot 62 in a major. “I played flawless golf and I can’t remember the last time the putter was that hot.
“This is the one I really wanted. This means so much to any South African, winning on home soil, the guys get so behind you and it’s such an emotional feeling.”
The victory was Grace’s ninth on the European Tour and his first since his Rolex Series triumph at the 2017 Nedbank Golf Challenge. He also added to his haul of South Africa’s biggest golf trophies, having previously won the Joburg Open, the Alfred Dunhill Championship and the Dimension Data Pro-Am.
The victory also secured Grace a place at this summer’s Open Championship at Royal St George’s. Armitage, who finished in third at 16-under 268, and South African Jaco Ahlers, who finished in a tie for fourth place at 15 under, also qualified for the Open by virtue of their finishes.
RESULTS | RACE TO DUBAI
Staff and Wire Reports