Ekurhuleni and Western Province A came up trumps on day one of the match play stage at the South African Women’s Inter-Provincial Championship, while the WGSA Invitational Team made a big statement of intend in the promotion battle at Riviera on Vaal Golf and Country Club on Wednesday.
Ekurhuleni scored a clean sweep in the foursomes to lead Boland 3 – 1 and the defending champions racked up four points in the singles to win the opener 7 – 2.
Caitlyn Macnab defeated Megan Streicher 4 & 2 to continue the momentum and the captain was backed up by foursomes partner Nadia van der Westhuizen, who won 2 & 1, Kiera Floyd (2 & 1) and Sarah Bouch (2-up).
Ekurhuleni edged out Western Province for the top spot in the A-Section log with 7 game points to 2 after the 2017 champions had a bit more work to do in the afternoon session against Gauteng.
The Lions won the foursomes in the morning 2 -1, but Cara Gorlei levelled the score with a decisive 8 & 6 result against Samantha Whateley.
Eleonora Galletti (5 & 3) put Gauteng ahead but Vicki Traut (5 & 3) responded for Western Province. The status quo remained at stalemate as Jordan Rothman (4 & 3) won for Western Province and Kera Healy (2 & 1) for Gauteng, captain Kaylah Williams broke the deadlock when she defeated Zethu Myeki 1-up to clinch a 5 – 4 victory for Western Province.
In the A-Section bottom order, Southern Cape routed Gauteng North 6.5 – 2.5 while last year’s B-Section champions Mpumalanga mowed down KwaZulu-Natal 7.5 – 1.5.
Thursday will see Ekurhuleni face off against Gauteng, while Western Province A take on Boland in the top draw. Gauteng North and Mpumalanga go head-to-head and Southern Cape meet KwaZulu-Natal in the bottom draw.
In the B-Section, WGSA Invitational Team Claimed Top Spot
The WGSA Invitational Team shot straight to the top of the B-Section Top Order Log after clinching a commanding victory over Border.
Gauteng pair Kim Turgut and Tebogo Lefifi combined for a 5 & 4 win and Nicole Strydom and Kaylah Boshoff from Ekurhuleni made it 2 – 0 in the foursomes. Boshoff defeated Sanet Pieterse 5 & 4, but Border captain Demi Flanagan hit back, eliminating Turgut 5 & 3. Strydom won 2 & 1 and Lefifi beat Luzan Esterhuizen 1-up to seal a 5 – 1 result for the invitees.
The WGSA Invitational Team will line up against North West in Thursday’s second round, while the seeding round winners Western Province B face Border.
Western Province B and North West drew the foursomes, but Isabella van Rooyen and Bobbi Brown both won 6 & 5 to sway the match in Western Province’s favour. Anita Chen’s 1-up result against Zelane Wessels secured a 4 – 2 win for the side.
In the B-Section Bottom Draw matches, Limpopo just managed to a clean sweep by Free State, who won the match 6.5 – 5.5 and Eastern Province edged out Northern Cape 3.5 – 2.5.
The second-round line-up will see Free State versus Eastern Province, while Northern Cape and Limpopo will chase their first point in this year’s premier team event.
A-Division Top Draw Results:
Ekurhuleni 7 vs Boland 2
Western Province 5 vs Gauteng 4
A-Division Top Draw Log
(Pos-Union-Played-Won-Drawn-Lost-Points-Matches won)
1 Ekurhuleni (1, 1, 0, 0, 2, 7)
2 Western Province A (1, 1, 0, 0, 2, 5)
3 Gauteng (1, 0, 0, 1, 0, 4)
4 Boland (1, 0, 0, 1, 0, 2)
A-Division Bottom Draw Results:
Gauteng North 2.5 – Southern Cape 6.5
KwaZulu-Natal 1.5 – Mpumalanga 7.5
A-Division Bottom Draw Log:
(Pos-Union-Played-Won-Drawn-Lost-Points-Matches won)
1 Mpumalanga (1, 1, 0, 0, 2, 7.5)
2 Southern Cape (1, 1, 0, 0, 2, 6.5)
3 Gauteng North (1, 0, 0, 1, 0, 2.5)
4 KwaZulu-Natal (1, 0, 0, 1, 0, 1.5)
B-Division Top Draw Results:
Western Province B 4 vs North West 2
WGSA Invitational Team vs Border 1
B-Division Top Draw Log:
(Pos-Union-Played-Won-Drawn-Lost-Points-Matches won)
1 WGSA Invitational Team (1, 1, 0, 0, 2, 5)
2 Western Province B (1, 1, 0, 0, 2, 4)
3 North West (1, 0, 0, 1, 0, 2)
4 Border (1, 0, 0, 1, 0, 1)
B-Division Bottom Draw Results:
Free State 5.5 vs Limpopo 0.5
Northern Cape 2.5 vs Eastern Province 3.5
B-Division Bottom Draw Log:
(Pos-Union-Played-Won-Drawn-Lost-Points-Matches won)
1 Free State (1, 1, 0, 0, 2, 5.5)
2 Eastern Province (1, 1, 0, 0, 2, 3.5)
3 Northern Cape (1, 0, 0, 1, 0, 2.5)
4 Limpopo (1, 0, 0, 1, 0, 0.5)
Photo 1 Caption: Ekurhuleni won their match play opener against Boland to keep their title defence on track in the SA Women’s Inter-Provincial at Riviera on Vaal Golf & Country Club. Photo: GolfRSA
With editing by gsport