Ockie Strydom shines in Singapore Classic
The South African’s first DP World Tour success came at the Alfred Dunhill Championship in December and he used that experience in a final round that included nine birdies and no lost shots.
“It’s a mindset that’s changing at the moment. If you’ve been in this situation before and you know you can do it again,” he said www.europeantour.com.
His 63 was the week’s lowest round and saw him reach -19, a shot ahead of Sami Valimaki after starting the final round four behind Jeunghun Wang and Alejandro del Rey, both of whom finished at -15 alongside Marcel Schneider.
Del Rey was the first to move, starting with three birdies before his challenge was derailed by a double bogey on the sixth. Wang’s round never really clicked, but six birdies in his first 10 holes saw Valimaki have a lead of three, only for the Finn to bogey by 12 while Strydom collected another birdie a hole ahead of him.
The pair continued to trade blows, but Strydom kept his nerve at 18 to drop a chip stone dead to end with a birdie, meaning Valimaki had to keep up to force a jump-off, but he could only for sign a par.
Reflecting on that shot, Strydom said: “It’s a fun one, I said to Jaris my caddy he’s either going to blow up and land on the edge but if you hit a little bit behind it’s wet.
“I took the safe shot, took a wedge, put it down and it came out absolutely phenomenal. I didn’t even think it would turn out so well. It came out and landed where it was.
“I was thinking about not being here this week. It worked out so badly. My coach flew in and my wife said to me, ‘Listen, maybe this is your week’. And look what happened, it is my week.”
He added: “I don’t know if there are any emotions at the moment. I was thinking after Ras Al Khaimah to go home and train because the momentum isn’t there. I spoke to my coach who flew in my assistant coach, we worked hard to get the swing back to where it was. I’m still speechless how it happened this week.
“The chip on 18 was phenomenal. He was someone who’s either perfect and coming back, or he’s in the pond. I played it exactly the way I wanted to.
More golf content
Play safer
We are committed to safer gambling. Recommended bets are recommended for those over the age of 18 and we strongly encourage readers to only wager what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling please contact the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
For more support and information, see begambleaware.org And Gambling Therapy.org.