Laurette Maritz took a trip down memory lane at Parkview Golf Club on Friday on her way to a three-stroke victory in the R200 000 Pam Golding International.
It has been five years since the 39-year-old South African won a tournament on the pro tour - either at home or abroad. So to prevail at the club where she learnt her golf as a teenager - when she was known as the "Princess of the Fairways" - and in front of the home fans was particularly special.
On Friday Maritz stepped across the club's beloved Bobby Locke Bridge - which straddles the stream at the par-five 13th - on her way to a three-birdie 69 and a seven-under-par aggregate of 209 on the superbly manicured course. Germany's dedicated follower of fashion, Elisabeth Esterl, decked out all in pink this time, finished second on 212 after a 71 with fast-finishing South African Mandy Adamson (69) and Denmark's Carina Vagner, after a tournament-best 67, sharing third place on 213.
Two of Maritz's three birdies came at No 16 and No 17 - the first of these a testing, left-to-right four-footer and the second a massive 40-footer from off the green.
"And just as I was lining up my putt at 17, a cellphone rang," said Maritz. "That meant having to regroup, but Reeve (caddie Reeve Nield) just told me to relax and that nothing could upset my concentration because this was one tournament I was meant to win. Then the putt went in and I knew it was pretty much all over."
Maritz, who has won three times on the European Tour as well a bunch of tournaments on home soil, was superb from tee to green all week. A fairly small person, she hits her drives long and straight and yesterday she peppered the flags with her approach shots. "That's my game at the moment - so if I can hole some putts, I can do some damage."
Adamson, who topped the Order of Merit on last year's Nedbank Women's Golf Tour, holed a 40-footer down the hill for a two at the par-three 15th on Friday and also birdied the 16th to get to minus-4. But she bogeyed 18 to fall back from joint second to joint third.
On an historical note, Bobby Locke also learnt his golf at Parkview - in the late 20s and early 30s - and famously won the SA Open at Parkview at age 17 in 1935.