Russell Knox’s decision not to compete next week in Dubai could leave Scotland staring at the sad prospect for a first occasion of not one Home of Golf player qualifying for the European Tour’s season-ending event.
This is after a poor showing on day two of the Nedbank Challenge and the second of three event Final Series on the Sun City course near Pretoria in South Africa.
Richie Ramsay (76) slumped from one off the lead heading to day two to be sharing 30th place at one over par while Marc Warren (73) is a dozen shots back at three over and David Drysdale (75) is at seven over par and 15 strokes off the lead.
The European Tour confirmed late yesterday (FRD) that Knox, and ranked 31st on the Race to Dubai, will not compete in Dubai and meaning the likelihood now of Ramsay (69th on Race to Dubai), Warren (65th) and Drysdale (82nd) ending this week’s event inside the top-62 on the money list is looking very slim in winning through to Dubai.
A decision by Scotland’s Russell Knox not to contest DP World Tour Championship could leave ‘Home of Golf’ nation without any representative in season-ending event.
If so, it will be the first time since the inaugural 2009 DP World Tour Championship there’s not been one Scot in the Dubai field.
DP World Tour Championship entries will go down to the top-62 as Graeme McDowell also will not travel to Dubai.
No such concern for Sweden’s who Alex Noren muscled his way to a two shot Sun City lead courtesy of five birdies over his closing nine holes in a five under par 67 *for an eight under par tally.
Noren, 34 has already won three times this year since capturing the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open and now the Swede is seeking to become a first player to claim four Tour titles in a season since Rory McIlroy in 2014.
Five players – Former Open Champion Louis Oosthuizen (66) along with Ryder Cup rookie Chris Wood (69), Paraguay’s Fabrizio Zanotti (68) and the South African duo of George Coetzee (69) and Jaco Van Zyl (69) – share second place on six under par.
Zanotti created golfing history in becoming the first player since the inception of the event in 1981 to record a hole-in-one when he aced the par three fourth hole.
“It was very strange when the people from the tournament told me mine was the first hole-in-one, so that makes it extra special for me,” he said.
Remarkably, it has been 35 years and 128 rounds on the Gary Player course before a first ace in the £5.7m event as well as being Zanotti’s first on the Tour.
Ramsay ended his round in darkness, and with organisers turning on floodlights, following an earlier one hour and 45-minute delay due lightning.
However Ramsay looked on in despair as his par putt at the last stopped right in the jaws of the final hole though the Edinburgh golfer’s real concern was five earlier bogeys including back-to-back bogeys at eight and nine.
Ramsay’s only joy was taking birdie at the second hole and for a second day running.
Warren ended his day’s work with back-to-back birdies that helped make-up for taking a double bogey at the 15th while Drysdale enjoyed a roller-coaster round featuring five birdies, three bogeys, a fifth hole double bogey and a third hole treble bogey.
And Race to Dubai leading Henrik Stenson (74) is sharing 17th place at one under while nearest rival Danny Willett (74) is six shots back at five over.
