Frenchman David Ravetto will take a two-stroke lead into the final round of the Dimension Data Pro-Am at Fancourt, and with South Africa’s Franklin Manchest chasing a possibly career-defining Sunday for himself.
Ravetto held onto his lead as he signed for a 71 on the challenging Links golf course on Saturday, climbing to 12 under par overall in this Sunshine Tour and European Challenge Tour co-sanctioned tournament.
He is two strokes clear of Manchest who posted his best ever round on the Links of 67. France’s Pierre Pineau and Benjamin Hebert as well as England’s Sam Hutsby are all on nine under par. Pineau signed for a 72 at the Links while Hebert posted a 66 at the Montagu and Hutsby added his 71 on the Links.
In a surprising twist, three of the leading four professionals came from the Links and not, as expected, either the Outeniqua or Montagu courses as the other two possibly more forgiving layouts used for this tournament.
“The Links is the toughest of the three courses here and the pins were also tricky so I knew I had to hit good shots and be patient. I’m pretty happy with my work right now,” said Ravetto.
“On the Links you just need to hang in there and be patient. It’s a really good test of golf.”
Behind him, Manchest worked his way into contention on a golf course he knows well having grown up in George.
“I feel really comfortable here. I had to keep the nerves in tact a bit though. After a solid round in Friday’s bad weather I knew I had a chance and just told myself to keep my head down and go for it. It’s special to shoot a 67 here at the Links, which is my lowest ever score on this course. My putter really delivered today,” he said.
SCORES:
205 - David Ravetto 68 66 71
207 - Franklin Manchest 70 70 67
208 - Pierre Pineau 70 66 72, Benjamin Hebert 65 77 66, Sam Hutsby 72 65 71
209 - Benjamin Follett-Smith 70 70 69, Victor Pastor 66 78 65, Louis Albertse 69 66 74, Robin Williams 70 68 71, Zander Lombard 70 66 73, Hennie du Plessis 67 72 70, Luca Filippi 66 75 68
210 - Soren Broholt Lind 70 72 68, Quim Vidal 72 70 68, Philipp Katich 73 72 65, Brandon Stone 67 78 65
211 - Anton Albers 68 72 71, Kyle Barker 72 69 70
Michael Vlismas Media