Astin Arthur secured victory at the GolfRSA International Amateur Championship with a determined birdie on the first extra hole of a sudden-death playoff, edging out Charl Barnard at the Royal Johannesburg Golf Club’s East Course.
In the final round, the two competitors battled closely on one of South Africa’s premier championship courses. Arthur’s flawless bogey-free 68 proved just enough to surpass Barnard’s three-under-par 69, with Barnard left regretting a lone bogey on the par-five seventh hole.
Arthur had an opportunity to seal the win in regulation play. “Coming down 18, I was one ahead,” he recalled as they approached the closing par-five at Royal Johannesburg East. “I hit a solid tee shot and had a four-iron in, but the wind shifted as I played it, and I ended up double-crossing it, leaving myself in a terrible position. To be honest, I thought Charl was going to make the eagle putt because he had been putting brilliantly down the stretch.”