DP World Tour : Joburg Open Leaderboard
Dan Bradbury secured a life-changing wire-to-wire victory at the Joburg Open to claim his maiden DP World Tour title in just his third start, and with it a place at The 151st Open Championship.
The 23-year-old Englishman, who only turned professional in the summer, came into the week with no status on any tour but made the most of a sponsor’s invite at Houghton Golf Club, clinching a magnificent three-shot win as the 2023 season got off to a memorable start.
Having gone into the final round with a narrow one-stroke lead, Bradbury produced a brilliant display of frontrunning on Sunday, stretching his lead throughout the day before signing for a closing 67 to finish the tournament on 21 under par.
Bradbury carded five birdies, with his only blemish coming at the final hole, but the highlight of his round was a par-saving chip-in at the sixth which kept the chasing pack at bay at a crucial moment.
Sami Välimäki finished alone in second on 18 under, one shot ahead of Christiaan Bezuidenhout and Daniel van Tonder in a tie for third.
Bradbury said: "It won't sink in for a few days, I don't think.
"It's just a lot of pressure taken off your back - that's nice - but it hasn't sunk in yet and I don't think it will for a while.
"I was a bit worried there on the 15th when Välimäki rolled that monster in but it was kind of the same thing all week, just keep playing my own game and I knew I was playing good enough.
"It turned out that way in the end."
Speaking about his mother being there to witness the win, he added: "It made it a little bit more special."
Despite a closing bogey, Bradbury closed out a phenomenal victory, booking his ticket to The Open at Royal Liverpool in 2023 as part of The Open Qualifying Series, along with Välimäki and Bezuidenhout.
Bradbury was grateful for the invite which enabled him to tee it up this week.
He said: "It means the world, I wouldn't be stood here without it. I wouldn't have anywhere to play this year really without it.
"It's been life-changing now. So hopefully I make the most of it."
europeantour.com
edit Bryan Angus
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