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Sports Reporter
When caddies and fellow players call them the golden boys, it is partly in jest. The label is now serious; Scott and Kieran Vincent, Benjamin Follet-Smith and Robson Chinoi are snapping at the bit! Scott Vincent has become only the first player in 24 years of Zimbabwe Open history to finish in the top three.
The last man to achieve such a feat was Mark McNulty, once the most golden of them all. He went as far as winning it in 2000.
And his younger brother Kieran added to the narrative with a polished act that resulted in a fourth place finish when the dust from the fairway settled on the 18th hole green.
Every week you get to spend at the home of golf in Zimbabwe is special, obviously even more so when it’s a Zimbabwe Open. As many of you will have seen, the week began with the pre-qualifier and a few pro-ams, where a huge number of fans turned up to witness local legends of the game in action.
For many, the atmosphere was amazing and it was an honour to play on the hallowed greens and fairways of the world class Royal Harare Golf Club.
What a great course and host And for a pleasant change, as many as FOUR locals were in contention to win the Open title when they teed off for the fourth round on Sunday morning.
Perhaps not ALL looked like winning! Heading into the final round, Robson Chinoi was three under after a third round one over 73. His three under total was 12 shots off overnight leader and eventual 2024 Open winner, Micheal Hollick who was 15 under after a third round four under 68.
At this point, Chinoi was tied for 25th. That aside, Scott Vincent hasn’t so much dealt with expectations as vaulted over them.
Further glances at history endorse the scale of Vincent’s achievement on a sun-kissed afternoon in the capital. At just 21, he is the one of the youngest players to ever place such a major growth spurt beside his name. Suddenly, Vincent as a few strokes towards a career first.
“You can’t win at all if you don’t play well and find some sort of consistency,” he said during an post-tournament interview with B Metro. “So soon we are going to go back onto the LIV Golf Tour looking to keep the momentum gained from the FBC Zimbabwe Open and maybe win an event or two.
I believe we can get it done.” Arrogance? Not a bit of it. The confidence is perfectly justified. Royal Harare is a fine major venue and it produced a stunning performance from Scott; a young man who is finding his groove and showing little regard whatsoever for ceremony when looking to swat aside all before him.
Vincent’s unwillingness to simply compete, his ability to prevail in completely different scenarios, set him apart from those with considerably more Zimbabwe Open experience.
As the Zimbabwean and his many fans celebrated his latest finish, it was impossible not to feel sympathy for his country man, Robson Chinoi who continues to find new ways to pass up Zimbabwe Open opportunities and on this occasion, hitting six shots in the final round .
In what proved a quite incredible Zimbabwe Open denouement, Hollick dropped just one shot to win the championship. As his sixth bogey of the round on the 15th slid past, there was a sad sense of inevitability. He was already in the locker room at two under par when Vincent finished his final round without dropping a shot.
“On the last green, I was thinking, ‘This is why I’m here. This is why I play the game of golf.’ It just didn’t work out,” said an understandably disappointed Chinoi.
Different players had flirted with glory. Scott played the Sunday back nine in just 33 shots for a four under total. The older Vincent will look back ruefully on a second round of 73.
There was more than a little shock attached to the fact that Scott’s younger brother, Kieran watched his challenge peter out. Kieran signed for a 71 and tied for fourth place.
Scott credits playing with some of the world’s best on the LIV Golf Tour as being a key factor in his third place finish this year.
“There is something to being on a world class course, with world class golfers, and competing in a world class tour. Being on the LIV Golf Tour has upped my game and helped me fix some of the bugs in my game.
It is still work in progress but I am a lot more convinced success is at hand,” Scott Vincent shared. The Vincent’s and Chinoi’s compatriot, Benjamin Follet-Smith, showed the benefits of having an intimate knowledge of his home course.
Follet-Smith had magical third round signed off with a tournament best 65 before a final round 71 for a share of sixth with South African MJ Viljoen who was one under 71 in his final round.
The Zimbabwean also managed to stay under par in each of his four rounds. Viljoen came a magical third round, hitting an impressive six under 66, a round in which he fired seven birdies and only dropped one shot.
Online Reporter