| Duration | 12 November 1990 – 2 March 1991 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 12 |
| Most wins | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} John Bland (5) |
| Order of Merit | John Bland |
← 1989–90 1991–92 → | |
The 1990–91 Southern Africa Tour was the 20th season of the Southern Africa Tour, the main professional golf tour in South Africa since it was formed in 1971.
Season outline
The early half of the season was dominated by John Bland and Fulton Allem who alternated between wins for the first six events. The first event of the season was a medal match play event, the Minolta Copiers Match Play, with Bland victorious.[1] Allem won the next event, the Twee Jonge Gezellen Masters with Bland finishing solo third.[2] At the following event, the Bloemfontein Classic, Bland was victorious.[3] Allem returned the favor the following week when he won the Goodyear Classic by two shots from Bland.[4] Bland won the first event after the Christmas break, the Palabora Classic.[5] Allem then won the next tournament, the ICL International.[6]
A variety of golfers played well in the second half of the season, especially South Africans Roger Wessels, Bland and Wayne Westner, as well as American Hugh Royer III and Englishman Mark James. At the seventh event of the year, the Lexington PGA Championship, Royer, James and Wessels were tied at the end of regulation. There was a sudden-death playoff. Royer and James bogeyed the first and second holes of the playoff, respectively, to give Wessels the win.[7] Westner won the next event, the Protea Assurance South African Open, by four shots over James.[8] The following week, the AECI Charity Classic, Westner shot a final round 65 to secure another win.[9] Royer won the subsequent event, the Hollard Royal Swazi Sun Classic.[10] It was Bland, however, that bookended the year with success, winning the final two events, the Bell's Cup and the Trustbank Tournament of Champions.[11][12]
Schedule
The following table lists official events during the 1990–91 season.[13][14]
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (R) |
Winner[lower-alpha 1] | OWGR points |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 Nov | Minolta Copiers Match Play | Transvaal | 280,000 | John Bland (15) | 8 | |
| 24 Nov | Twee Jonge Gezellen Masters | Cape | 350,000 | Fulton Allem (8) | 8 | |
| 15 Dec | Bloemfontein Classic | Orange Free State | 280,000 | John Bland (16) | 8 | |
| 22 Dec | Goodyear Classic | Cape | 280,000 | Fulton Allem (9) | 8 | |
| 12 Jan | Palabora Classic | Transvaal | 280,000 | John Bland (17) | 8 | |
| 19 Jan | ICL International | Transvaal | 280,000 | Fulton Allem (10) | 10 | |
| 26 Jan | Lexington PGA Championship | Transvaal | 280,000 | Roger Wessels (1) | 10 | |
| 2 Feb | Protea Assurance South African Open | Natal | 350,000 | Wayne Westner (3) | 8 | |
| 9 Feb | AECI Charity Classic | Transvaal | 280,000 | Wayne Westner (4) | 8 | |
| 16 Feb | Hollard Royal Swazi Sun Classic | Swaziland | 280,000 |  Hugh Royer III (1) | 8 | |
| 23 Feb | Bell's Cup | Cape | 280,000 | John Bland (18) | 8 | New tournament |
| 2 Mar | Trustbank Tournament of Champions | Transvaal | 280,000 | John Bland (19) | 8 | Tour Championship |
Unofficial events
The following events were sanctioned by the Southern Africa Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (R) |
Winner | OWGR points |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 Dec | Nedbank Million Dollar Challenge | Transvaal | US$2,500,000 | David Frost |
30 | Limited-field event |
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in South African rand.[14]
| Position | Player | Prize money (R) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | John Bland | 333,637 |
| 2 | Fulton Allem | 190,090 |
| 3 | Wayne Westner | 168,158 |
| 4 | Hugh Baiocchi | 155,409 |
| 5 |  Tony Johnstone | 146,918 |
Notes
- ↑ The number in brackets after each winner's name is the number of Southern Africa Tour events they had won up to and including that tournament. This information is only shown for Southern Africa Tour members.
References
- ↑ Lancaster, Alex (19 November 1990). "Floyd and Couples in 'perfect' victory". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. p. 42. Retrieved 27 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Allem makes timely point". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. 26 November 1990. p. 42. Retrieved 27 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Faldo adjusts to pressure for winning finale". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. 17 December 1990. p. 43. Retrieved 27 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Rest of the news in sport | Golf". Sunday Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. 23 December 1990. p. 23. Retrieved 27 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Winter, Grant (14 January 1991). "Local knowledge pays off for Bland". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. p. 39. Retrieved 27 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Allem reaps his third harvest". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. 21 January 1991. p. 38. Retrieved 27 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Lancaster, Alex (28 January 1991). "Henke's 30-foot putt gives him victory". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. p. 39. Retrieved 27 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Lancaster, Alex (4 February 1991). "Azinger is back in first-prize form". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. p. 38. Retrieved 27 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Lancaster, Alex (11 February 1991). "Pavin beats O'Meara at first extra hole". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. p. 38. Retrieved 27 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Royer wins in South Africa". Ledger-Enquirer. Columbus, Georgia. 19 February 1991. p. 8 (B-2 in paper). Retrieved 27 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Sports round-up | Golf". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. 25 February 1991. p. 40. Retrieved 27 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Sports round-up | Golf". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. 4 March 1991. p. 41. Retrieved 27 October 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "1991 Tournament schedule". Sunshine Tour. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
- 1 2 Wilson, Mark (1992). The Royal & Ancient Golfer's Handbook 1992. Macmillan. p. 90. ISBN 0333573765. Retrieved 23 December 2023 – via Archive.org.