JOHANNESBURG — Dan Bradbury completed a wire-to-wire victory at the Joburg Open on Sunday to win his first European tour title at Houghton Golf Club.
The Englishman’s 4-under 67 final round proved to be more than enough as his closest challenger, Sami Valimaki of Finland, dropped a further two shots back to finish three behind overall.
Bradbury, who only turned professional in the summer, was playing in just his third tournament on the European tour.
He started his final round with a flourish, just missing out on an eagle, and added five birdies without dropping a shot thereafter until his lone bogey of the day at the last to finish with a 21-under 263.
Bradbury’s maiden victory also secures a place at the British Open.
Two other South Africans — Christiaan Bezuidenhout (66) and Daniel van Tonder (68) — finished another shot back in a tie for third.
The Joburg Open is the first tournament of the European tour’s 2023 season, with two more events in South Africa in December.