Dodds, Huyshamen share Sperrgebiet Open title

TREVOR Dodds and Ruan Huyshamen were the co-winners of the Namdeb Sperrgebiet Golf Open which was recently held at the Oranjemund Golf Club.

They both shot seven under par after 54 holes and since it was getting dark they could not hold a play-off to determine the winner.

The two players then agreed to share the first prize of N$30 135. It was the first PGA (professional golf association) tournament since 1991 that was held at the Oranjemund Golf Course.

The tournament took place in some extreme weather conditions, including wind and sand storms, and those who teed off first struggled with the elements.

Those players who teed off later, after the wind had subsided, however posted some excellent results, led by Dodds and Huyshamen who posted scores of -6 and -2 respectively for the first 10 holes.

By Saturday the weather got extremely bad with the result that the whole day’s play was cancelled and postponed to Sunday, which forced the tournament committee to schedule 36 holes for the day.

Huyshamen played some brilliant golf on Sunday and managed to catch up with Dodds on the last hole of the tournament to force a play-off.

Due to the poor light, the organising committee however decided that the duo should share the title and the first and second prize money.

At the prize giving ceremony, Namdeb’s chief operating officer, Riaan Burger, expressed his delight at the way the tournament was organised and complimented the tour management for taking the bold step of forming the Namibia Golf Tour, while he reiterated Namdeb’s support of golf in Namibia.

Co-winner Dodds is the most decorated Namibian professional golf player, having won numerous tournaments worldwide. He is currently visiting Namibia as an ambassador for the Windhoek Lager Africa Jacket tournament which will be held in Windhoek from 22 to 24 June.