Casey Jarvis called it “My greatest putt in front of my home crowd” as he made an incredible par at the last to wild cheers from the crowd that earned him the lead in the Investec South African Open Championship at Stellenbosch Golf Club on Saturday.
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Jarvis signed for a third round of 64 to claim a one-stroke lead on 11 under par. His nearest challengers are fellow South African Hennie du Plessis, who signed for a 67, and Italian Francesco Laporta, who posted a 70, on 10 under par.
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Jarvis hit his second on the par-four 18th far right and into the hospitality before going on to hole a 23-footer for par that brought an almighty cheer from the crowd.
“It was such a cool moment. The home support is fantastic. I love playing here,” said the young South African, who is hunting back-to-back victories on the DP World Tour after winning in Kenya last week.
The incredible atmosphere on Saturday made an impact on all the players.
“The crowds definitely kept me going. It’s a pity not every event is like this. I’ve never experienced this before,” said Du Plessis.
And Laporta agreed. “The crowd was amazing. It was crazy.”
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They needed every bit of that support on a day when this Stellenbosch Golf Club course again showed itself to be an incredibly fair test, and with a change in wind direction making it even harder.
“It wasn’t easy out there today. It’s not an easy course. I started slowly and was one under through seven holes, and everything changed when I chipped in on eight. Then I said, ‘Ok, let’s go’,” said Jarvis, who birdied four of his next five holes to begin his charge.
Jarvis has put aside the memories of his breakthrough DP World Tour victory last week and says he’s completely focused on the job at hand here in Stellenbosch.
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“Right now I’m focused on winning this tournament. There are a lot of good players up on the leaderboard and I’m just trying to stay patient and we’ll see what happens.”
Behind him, Du Plessis feels a similar sense that he’s peaking at the right time in this championship.
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“I’m in the mix and I’m up for it,” he said.
And Laporta is just as focused, with exemptions into The Masters and The Open up for grabs on Sunday.
“Sunday is a big day. I’m in contention and I’m looking forward to it,” he said.
