Skip to content

Nedbank Challenge: Danny Willett's new driver works the oracle in Sun City

Image: Danny Willett congratulated by caddie John Smart at Sun City

Danny Willett was pleased his aggressive approach off the tee at the lucrative Nedbank Challenge paid off.

We put a new Callaway driver in the bag a few weeks ago and it's been tremendous.
Danny Willett

Willett claimed his second European Tour title at Sun City with a final round 66, enough for a four-shot advantage over fellow Englishman Ross Fisher.

He finished with an 18-under par total and admitted his plan to attack the Gary Player Course had worked out perfectly after picking up the first prize of nearly £700,000.

Intimidating

"My caddie John and I spoke at the start of the week and came up with a good game plan, to be aggressive off the tee on this golf course," said Willett, whose previous win came at the BMW International Open in 2012.

"It's visually very intimidating, but I've been driving the ball really well and we wanted to give ourselves a lot more wedges and nine irons into holes, whereas some guys are just laying back.

"We put a new Callaway driver in the bag a few weeks ago and it's been tremendous.

"It was just one of those weeks where the swing felt good and it came off. South Africa is a place that's suited me in the past and I've played well down here.

Latest Golf Stories

"I love the place, love the people - everything about it is great. It's been a truly fun test of golf."

Positives

Luke Donald finished third, after leading going into the final 18 holes, but he took some positives from the week despite being unable to complete a victory on his 37th birthday.

He said: "It's nice to put myself back in position. I could have played a bit better today, but I still would have had to shoot five under just to tie with Danny.

"He played really focused golf today and hats off, he's a deserved winner.

"Danny's putter was red hot - he didn't seem to miss and did everything really well. He drove it amazingly well on this very tough, tight golf course."

Around Sky