Roets and Viallaneix chasing their own ‘firsts’ at Mopani Zambia Open
- Sunshine Tour
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
Jason Roets will head into Sunday’s final round of the Mopani Zambia Open at the Nkana Golf Club with a two-stroke lead over Frenchman Pierre Viallaneix, with Roets seeking to become a first-time Sunshine Tour winner and Viallaneix seeking to become the first French winner of this historic national Open.
Roets had to dig deep on Saturday as he signed for a round of one-over-par 73 and an overall score of seven under par. It was his highest round of the week.
Roets started the day with back-to-back birdies on the opening holes and quickly climbed to 10-under par as he opened an extensive lead. But then a bogey on the seventh was followed by a double-bogey on the par-four eighth hole.
The South African tried to steady the ship on his way to the clubhouse, but more bogeys followed on the 14th and 16th holes for Roets to draw level with Viallaneix, who took the clubhouse lead on five under par after signing for a round of 70.
An eagle on the par-five 17th hole proved his saving grace however and gave him the two-shot cushion he will carry into the final round.
But his nearest challenger Viallaneix, who missed out on his PGA Tour card and has come to the Sunshine Tour for the opportunities it provides, has his own motivation to win on Sunday.
“Zambia holds a special place for me because one of my closest family friends is from Lusaka. If I can win in him home country it would be incredible,” he said.
“I just fought hard. My ball striking wasn’t the best today but I just stayed steady all day. I made some good momentum putts when I needed to. I’m excited for the final round. It’s a good golf course and very demanding off the tee. You’ve got to hit it straight. But I like it.”
Keagan Thomas impressed with his round of 68 that included five birdies and only one bogey to join the first-round leader Haydn Porteous (71) on four under par and in joint third place.
Scores
209 - Jason Roets 71 65 73
211 - Pierre Viallaneix 69 72 70
212 - Keagan Thomas 74 70 68
212 - Haydn Porteous 67 74 71
213 - Graham van der Merwe 73 73 67
213 - Warwick Purchase 71 71 71
214 - Quintin Wilsnach 75 68 71
214 - Wynand Dingle 72 69 73
215 - Robson Chinhoi 73 72 70
216 - Samuel Simpson 75 70 71
216 - Joe Sullivan 73 72 71, Justin Walters 73 70 73, Rigardt Albertse 69 71 76
217 - Stuart Krog 76 72 69
217 - Lyle Rowe 77 69 71, Cole Stevens 71 74 72, Stephen Ferreira 72 69 76
218 - Jaden Deltel 75 73 70
218 - Rupert Kaminski 74 73 71, Kyle McClatchie 71 75 72, Kyle Barker 71 72 75, James Mack 70 69 79
219 - Albert Venter 74 76 69
219 - Agustin Errazuriz 76 73 70, Pieter Moolman 73 75 71, Nikhil Rama 77 71 71, Toto Thimba Jnr 74 73 72, Daniel Cronje 71 75 73, Charl Barnard 72 73 74, Benjamin Van Wyk 70 74 75
220 - Jordan Burnand 72 77 71
220 - Gabriel Morgan 75 74 71, Simon du Plooy 72 76 72, Luke Brown 73 74 73, Jacques Blaauw 71 75 74, Pierre Pellegrin 74 72 74, Altin van der Merwe 75 70 75, Jaco Prinsloo 75 70 75
221 - Visitor Mapwanya 73 75 73
221 - Tomas Gana 72 75 74, Martin Leon 68 75 78
222 - Luke Jerling 77 73 72
222 - Kyle De Beer 74 75 73, Gustavo Silva 78 70 74
223 - Bradley Kulaisi 74 76 73
223 - Dayne Moore 72 77 74, Ronald Rugumayo 75 73 75, Rhys West 77 71 75, Allen John 73 75 75, Astin Arthur 75 72 76
224 - Brandon-Lee Geere 72 78 74
224 - Drikus Joubert 73 74 77, Carter Rowe 72 75 77
225 - Ryan van der Klis 78 72 75
225 - Stals Swart 74 75 76, Conner Mackenzie 72 74 79
226 - Tristen Strydom 78 69 79
227 - Ethan Smith 79 71 77
227 - Matthew Spacey 73 76 78, Estiaan Conradie 70 79 78
228 - Stalion Daka 79 70 79
230 - Rhys Enoch 73 74 83
233 - Darlington Chikayambidze 75 74 84
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