Cronje goes low to grab slender lead in Big Easy final at Waterkloof

Daniel Cronje will take a slim one-stroke lead into the third and final round of the Betway Big Easy Tour Final, after a near-perfect second round of 64 took his tournament total to 14-under par at Waterkloof Golf Club.

His opening 66 was a solid round by any standard, but Cronje was left with a fair amount of disappointment heading into moving day.

“It was good,” said Cronje of his second round 64. “I was frustrated after yesterday’s finish, so it was nice to come out hot this morning and yeah, I’m happy with the way I played.”

Seven birdies, an eagle and a lone bogey characterised Cronje’s round while his closest challenger and overnight leader, Oliver Goldhill’s 70 consisted of six birdies and four dropped shots. The 23-years-old will once again find himself challenging for that breakthrough victory in the final round on Thursday.

There were some notable big movers on Wednesday, including Jacques van der Merwe who is chasing his fourth win of the season and seeking to etch his name in history as the first player to win four times in a single Betway Big Easy Tour season.

Van der Merwe’s round of 67 took his total to 10-under and placed him in a four-way share of the third spot alongside Leon Visser, Tristan Leonard and Jake Bolton, who is looking for his second win this season as well.

With a packed leaderboard set to guarantee exciting golf action for those who will be watching on the Sunshine Tour’s YouTube channel, Facebook Page and X and for those who will be at Waterkloof on Thursday, the leading Cronje remains calm in the face of the coming challenge.

“I haven’t actually looked at the leaderboard yet,” he said, walking off the 18th green. “I’d not know exactly where I’m lying but hopefully, it’s up there and we’ll give it a run tomorrow.”

Only the top 30 players on the Order of Merit are eligible for the final at Waterkloof and the top 12 players on the Order of Merit, along with the leading six transformation players, will earn their Sunshine Tour cards at the end of this week.

The final round will be streamed live on the Sunshine Tour’s YouTube, Facebook and X platforms from 8am on Thursday.

The Betway Big Easy Tour is the Sunshine Tour’s feeder circuit and enjoys the support of the legendary Ernie Els, among other patrons.

Order of Merit: https://bigeasytour.co.za/oom?id=225S

Scores

130 - Daniel Cronje 66 64

131 - Oliver Goldhill 61 70

134 - Jacques van der Merwe 67 67

134 - Leon Visser 67 67, Jake Bolton 66 68, Tristan Leonard 65 69

135 - Tyrone Ryan 68 67

136 - Bradley De Beer 72 64

136 - Adam Breen 69 67

137 - Joe Sullivan 70 67

137 - Jaden Deltel 68 69, Brandon Gildenhuys 68 69

138 - Matt Millar 71 67

139 - Travis Procter 73 66

139 - Andrew Williamson 69 70, Hannes Strooh 67 72

141 - Kian Rose 72 69

141 - Louis Liebenberg 71 70

142 - Vaughn van Deventer 71 71

142 - Ulrich van den Berg 69 73

143 - Therion Nel 72 71

144 - Philip Geerts 74 70

144 - Brandon Pieters 70 74, LB Boshoff 70 74

146 - Ronald Rugumayo 71 75

147 - Dillon Germshuys 77 70

147 - Richard Joubert 70 77

149 - Lyle Pedro 78 71

156 - Austin Cherichella 81 75

RTD - Harry Konig RTD