BMW South African Open Power Rankings: Top five at Glendower
It’s kind of a toss-up between Schwartzel and Grace as the home favorite this week, so I’ll give the slight nod to Grace.
He’s won events each of the last four years and five of the last six for 11 total victories.
Grace, 29, doesn’t have to look far back to remember winning on South African soil. He took first in the Nedbank Golf Challenge in November which helped him to a 10th overall finish in the Race to Dubai.
At the South African Open, Grace tied for 15th in 2015 and tied for fourth in 2016. Two weekend rounds in the 70s held him from creeping closer than five strokes from the lead in 2016.
His all-around statistics are solid. Grace, a Pretoria native, was 17th on the European Tour last season in scrambling and 31st in stroke average.
Grace last teed it up at the DP World Tour Championship where he tied for 31st in mid November.
“As a South African this is the one tournament you want to win,” Grace was quoted by Sporting Life.
We like his chances to bring home the title on home soil.