1974–75 Southern Africa Tour
| Duration | 13 November 1974 – 9 February 1975 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 10 |
| Most wins |  John Fourie (2) Allan Henning (2) Gary Player (2) |
| Order of Merit | Allan Henning |
← 1973–74 1975–76 → | |
The 1974–75 Southern Africa Tour was the fourth season of the Southern Africa Tour, the main professional golf tour in South Africa since it was formed in 1971.
Season outline
[edit]Dale Hayes and Gary Player had the most success at the beginning of the season. In the inaugural Beck's PGA Championship, Hayes shot a course record 65 (−5) in the second round to take a three shot lead. Player, however, shot a 66 to move into second place.[1] Player again shot a 66 in the final round but Hayes closed with rounds of 69-69 to defeat him by one shot.[2] The following week, Hayes represented South Africa at the unofficial 1974 World Cup in South America. His teammate was Bobby Cole. Their team won the event.[3] Player, meanwhile, won the concurrently played General Motors International Classic, an official event on tour. He defeated Andries Oosthuizen by one shot.[4]
The remainder of the season saw Henning and Fourie gain much success. At the third event, the NCR Western Province Open; Fourie held the lead after the first two rounds. Henning grabbed the 54-hole lead though he was overtaken by American Bill Brask. Henning and Fourie, however, shared second place.[5] At the fifth event, the Rhodesian Dunlop Masters; Henning won, defeating Hayes by two shots. Fourie finished joint third, three back.[6] Fourie came back and won the next week, the Vavasseur Natal Open, defeating Henning and Vin Baker by one.[7] Henning finished runner-up the following week too, at the BP South African Open, only behind Gary Player.[8] At the final event, the Holiday Inns Invitational; Fourie finished joint runner-up with Hayes. They outplayed Henning who finished joint fifth.[9] Due to his slightly more consistent play through the season, though, Henning narrowly won the Order of Merit. Hayes finished second and Fourie third.[10]
Schedule
[edit]The following table lists official events during the 1974–75 season.[10]
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (R) |
Winner[a] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 Nov | Beck's PGA Championship | Transvaal | 35,000 | Dale Hayes (8) |
|
| 23 Nov | General Motors International Classic | Cape | 20,000 | Gary Player (7) |
|
| 30 Nov | NCR Western Province Open | Cape | 15,000 |  Bill Brask (n/a) |
|
| 14 Dec | ICL Transvaal Open | Transvaal | 16,000 | Vin Baker (1) |
|
| 22 Dec | Rhodesian Dunlop Masters | Rhodesia | Rh$10,000 | Allan Henning (1) |
|
| 11 Jan | Vavasseur Natal Open | Natal | 15,000 | John Fourie (5) |
|
| 18 Jan | Rolux Toro Classic | Transvaal | 16,000 | Allan Henning (2) |
New tournament |
| 25 Jan | Dunlop South African Masters | Transvaal | 18,000 | John Fourie (6) |
|
| 1 Feb | BP South African Open | Cape | 20,000 | Gary Player (8) |
|
| 9 Feb | Holiday Inns Invitational | Swaziland | 12,000 |  John O'Leary (1) |
Order of Merit
[edit]The Order of Merit was based on tournament results during the season, calculated using a points-based system.[10][11]
| Position | Player | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Allan Henning |
1,833 |
| 2 | Dale Hayes |
1,747 |
| 3 | John Fourie |
1,671 |
| 4 | Vin Baker |
1,050 |
| 5 | Hugh Baiocchi |
987 |
Notes
[edit]- ^ The number in brackets after each winner's name is the number of Southern Africa Tour events they had won up to and including that tournament. This information is only shown for Southern Africa Tour members.
References
[edit]- ^ "Record 65 Keeps Hayes in Lead". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. 15 November 1974. p. 30. Retrieved 18 December 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Dale Hayes Tops Player". Green Bay Press-Gazette. Greenbay, Wisconsin. 17 November 1974. p. D-8. Retrieved 18 December 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "South Africa Duo Winners of World Cup". The Evening Times. Sayre, Pennsylvania. 25 November 1974. p. 14. Retrieved 18 December 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Gary Player Cops South Africa Classic". Hartford Courant. Hartford, Connecticut. 24 November 1974. p. 10. Retrieved 18 December 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Golf". Sunday Mercury. Birmingham, United Kingdom. 1 December 1974. p. 15. Retrieved 18 December 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Henning is master". Western Daily Press. Bristol, United Kingdom. 23 December 1974. p. 10. Retrieved 18 December 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Fourie's Title Over 54 Holes". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. 27 January 1975. p. 18. Retrieved 18 December 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Player again". Western Daily Press. Bristol, United Kingdom. 3 February 1975. p. 12. Retrieved 18 December 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "O'Leary clinches it with a 67". Western Daily Press. Bristol, United Kingdom. 10 February 1975. p. 11. Retrieved 19 December 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c Simms, George (1976). John Player Golf Yearbook 1976. Queen Anne Press. pp. 141–153. ISBN 0362002576.
- ^ Berkovitz, Anton; Samson, Andrew (1993). South Africa and international sports factfinder. D. Nelson. p. 96. ISBN 1868061019. Retrieved 13 September 2023.