Samantha Whateley opened up a four-shot lead in the opening round of South African Women’s Stroke Play Championship at Mount Edgecombe Country Club Estate on Sunday, 19 February 2023.
Whateley dipped into red figures at The Woods Course with a brace of birdies on the fifth and sixth holes but lost the early advantage with drops on nine and 13.
The Country Club Johannesburg golfer got it back to two-under with gains on 14 and 17 but stumbled on the par-four closing hole, however, her one-under-par 71 was four shots better than the six players in joint second.
Her closest challengers are recent Easter Province Border champion Jasmine Furstenburg from Southern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal pair Olivia Wood and Chloe Royston, Casey Twidale and Shannon Berry from Central Gauteng and Boland’s Crystal Beukes.
Whateley was overall satisfied, despite leaving a few shots out on the course.
“I am happy with how I played,” she said, “I putted quite nicely but I did let a few slip. My driving was superb, and I think I hit every fairway,
which was my goal. I like this type of golf course; it’s not too long and it’s narrow, but I am excited to play The Lakes tomorrow, because I prefer the layout. You have to be more precise there, and you have to putt well. That’s my kind of game.”
In the Silver Division (handicap index 6.6 to 15.3) it was local pair Michelle Ray and Charlotte Phipps that not only proved once again that golf
is a great equaliser with no age limit, but also that local course knowledge is worth its weight in gold.
Mid-Amateur Rae, the reigning Mount Edgecombe B-Division Club champion, and 15-year-old Phipps took different routes to arrive at the same number – a 14-over par total that tied them for the lead.
“It was awesome to represent my home club and play this beautiful course,” gushed a smiling Rae after the round. “I was pretty nervous to start, so I’m happy to get the first round behind me. It was a nice and steady round. It’s tough out there. The rough it up, and I’ve never seen it like that. You’re constantly fighting an inner struggle and I am just glad that I got through it to finish among the leaders.
“The Lakes will be a totally different course to The Woods. It’s not always open. It’s very tight and you have to put your ball in the right places; if you don’t, you’re in trouble. But I am up for the challenge and hopefully, I can make the club proud.”
Rae and Phipps lead by one stroke from 2022 South African Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship runner-up Russo Roberts-Gouws, who plays out of The Els Club Copperleaf, while Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Golf Club trio Valentina Sakota, Sarah Gutuza and Stacey-Lee van Gent will start the second round at the par-72 Lakes Course two behind the leader.
WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION
(Woods Course | Par 70)
69 Samantha Whateley
73 Jasmine Furstenburg; Olivia Wood; Casey Twidale; Crystal Beukes; Chloe
Royston; Shannon Berry
74 Cara Ford; Isabella Ferreira; Ame van der Merwe
WOMEN’S SILVER DIVISION
(Woods Course | Par 70)
84 Charlotte Phipps; Michelle Rae
87 Russo Roberts-Gouws
88 Valentina Sakota; Sarah Gutuza; Stacey-Lee van Gent
89 Isabel Verwey
91 Kerry Wood
92 Holly Erler; Jaime Meth
Photo 1 Caption: Samantha Whateley leads the first round of the SA Women’s Stroke Play Championship at Mount Edgecombe Country Club Estate. Photo: GolfRSA
With editing by gsport
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