Top juniors head for Durbanville

Cape Town - The 2015 South African Juniors International (SAJI) tournament held from 10 to 12 March at the Durbanville Golf Club will see boys and girls from 21 participating countries tee up for top honours over 54 holes.

It is the only junior international tournament in South Africa and the 5^th time the country plays host to some of the best local and international amateur golfers. For a 2^nd time the event is sponsored by Curro.

The 150 competitors include 83 international under 19 boys and girls from Korea, Mexico, USA, Canada, Denmark, Switzerland, Germany, Norway, Spain, Northern Ireland, Reunion, France, Namibia, UAE, Scotland, Austria, Zimbabwe, the Netherlands, Bulgaria and Colombia.   In addition, 67 South African juniors will enjoy the experience of playing against top international players in this opening event on the Global Junior Golf tour.

Included in the field are official national teams from Austria, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, and Zimbabwe.

This is the largest ever international participation of junior golfers to have played a tournament in South Africa.

“This prestigious event is the only fully integrated international amateur event on the local calendar and is endorsed by the Women’s Golf South Africa (WGSA) and the SA Golf Association (SAGA), the local golf governing bodies,” says the Tournament Director, Erica Lefson. This event offers our local golf stars the opportunity to compare themselves with players from outside our borders,” concludes Lefson.

The tournament is for juniors of all age groups under 19. This category of golfer is world recognised and it is from this group that international universities and promoters look to for the players of the future.

The top international player in the event is German Max Schmitt. In 2014, he was a junior Ryder Cup player and won the European Young Masters, while SA Junior Protea player Altin van der Merwe will have his sights set on the trophy after giving golf a break during his matric year in 2014.

From the girls’ side, SA Match Play Champion Ivanna Samu will be challenged by Cara Gorlei and Bianca Theron, both having written matric in 2014 and looking forward to college golf in the United States later this year. Switzerland’s Azelia Meichtry, who won the Western Province Junior Championships earlier this year, is also a strong contender for the title. 

The tournament qualifies for World Junior Rankings and the Royal & Ancient World Amateur Rankings, as well as SAGA and WGSA ranking points. These rankings form the foundation of a fair and accurate world ranking system that opens doors to scholarships that facilitate training at world-class academies. The SAJI is also recognised by golf federations around the world.

Through their involvement Curro shows dedication to create sustainable international platforms for South Africa’s junior golfers. Curro believes it will build the confidence of South African junior golfers, and will at the same time prepare them for a great future.

According to Curro’s Eddie Conradie, “our involvement with golf is not just to produce golfing champions, but to assist juniors in becoming well-rounded, well-educated leaders of tomorrow, whether they are on or off the golf course.

“We believe that golf is the ultimate life tool, teaching self-discipline, etiquette and patience. As we strive for excellence in our curriculum, we are looking towards golf to achieve excellence in our co-curricular programmes in all our schools. Our involvement with the SAJI underlines our commitment to implement golf at each Curro school across South Africa through the Curro Golf Academy programme.”

The organisers of the SAJI also created opportunities to showcase the world of golf to the youth of South Africa who may not otherwise have had the opportunity. In the tournament 10 tee off spots – for 7 boys and 3 girls - are offered to the top South African Development Board players to participate.

For more information, visit the official Curro golf website www.currogolf.com or the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/pages/Curro-Golf