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What is it?
Based at the Gary Player Country Club in South Africa’s Sun City, the Nedbank Golf Challenge is a European Tour event set on a 7,800-yard course – one of the longest in the world. And with a $7,500,000 prize fund, it’s no wonder the biggest names in golf – from Johnny Miller to Tiger Woods – have tried their hand at it.
When did it start?
The Nedbank Golf Challenge started as a small-field stroke play event in December 1981. An invitation-only event, there were five players: Seve Ballesteros, Lee Trevino, Gary Player, Johnny Miller and Jack Nicklaus. The course was originally known as the Million Dollar Challenge because of the much-coveted prize fund – though that fund has dramatically increased since then.
The first tournament ended with a sudden-death challenge between Miller and Ballesteros, with Miller taking home $500,000 of the prize money. After that, games had an average of 12 players and the stakes were raised to a take-home total of $1million for the winner alone in 1987.
In that time, the Nedbank Golf Challenge saw some of the greatest names in golf compete for the prize, including Ian Woosnam, Colin Montgomerie and Tiger Woods. Nevertheless, it was only in 2006 that the tournament started carrying World Rankings Points, and in 2013, it became an official European Tour and South Africa Sunshine Tour tournament.
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How has it changed?
Since switching from a small, 12-player event to a European Tour fixture in 2013, a lot’s changed. Over time, thanks to the increase in top-quality players – in 2013, it was expanded to include winners from the PGA Tour FedEx Cup, the European Tour, the Sunshine Tour and the Asian Tour – the prize money increased from $1million to a cool $7,500,000.
Despite the increase in players, the 72-par format of the challenge has remained the same, and every tournament has been held at the Gary Player Country Club.
From its modest beginnings, the Nedbank Golf Challenge has become so popular, it’s a South African sporting highlight and a top event for the world sporting calendar in its own right.
Who are the winners?
Since Johnny Miller won the course in 1981, the Nedbank Challenge has seen winners from all over the world. Seve Ballesteros won two years in a row from 1983 to 1984, while David Frost, Nick Price, Ernie Els, Sergio García and Lee Westwood have all taken home the prize money more than once. Most recently, Sweden’s Alexander Norén won the tournament in 2016, taking home the winner’s share of $1,166,660 in the process.
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