KZN golfer in Sun City field

This comes at the end of a year where Clark has been arguably South Africa’s top performer on the international stage.

With his victory in the RBC Canadian Open, the understated Clark is the only South African to have won on the PGA Tour this year, and has been one of the shining lights in a largely quiet 2014 for South Africa’s leading professionals.

Clark also recently lost a play-off to Masters champion Bubba Watson for the World Golf Championships HSBC Champions in China.

Those have been the standout performances in a year which Clark admits he didn’t have high expectations for following a difficult 2013 where he struggled with an elbow injury.

“To have won means a lot. I hadn’t had the greatest of years starting from January. I played good in the fall last year, but this year as a calendar year wasn’t the best for me, to start with. To turn it around like I have means a lot,” said Clark.

The Umkomaas professional is currently the third South African to confirm his place in the Nedbank Golf Challenge field, joining Charl Schwartzel and Dawie van der Walt.

Clark returns to Sun City with a rapidly improving record at this tournament. He has finished 12th, sixth, third and second in his previous four appearances in the Nedbank Golf Challenge.

His last appearance was in 2010 when he finished runner-up to Lee Westwood, who won by eight shots that year.

That was also the year Clark made his breakthrough on the PGA Tour with his first victory there, in the Players Championship.

Clark admits he will return to the Nedbank Golf Challenge a different player in many respects to the one South Africans last saw in 2010.

“A lot has happened since then. I’ve had surgery, and on the good side I’ve had two kids. My life has changed a lot.”

Clark heads back to Sun City seeking his first victory on African soil since winning the 2002 South African Open and the Sunshine Tour Order of Merit that year.

With the European Tour’s Race to Dubai now complete, the remainder of the Nedbank Golf Challenge field will be confirmed this week.
 
NEDBANK GOLF CHALLENGE CONFIRMED PLAYERS:

Thomas Bjørn (Denmark)
Martin Kaymer (Germany)
Lee Westwood (England)
Charl Schwartzel (South Africa)
Victor Dubuisson (France)
Jamie Donaldson (Wales)
Stephen Gallacher (Scotland)
Dawie van der Walt (South Africa)
Kiradech Aphibarnrat (Thailand)
Luke Donald (England)
Miguel Angel Jiminez (Spain)
Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand)
Ross Fisher (England)
Kevin Na (United States)
Tim Clark (South Africa)
 
Past Champions (3):

Thomas Bjørn – 2013
Martin Kaymer – 2012
Lee Westwood – 2010, 2011
 
Major Champions (2):

Martin Kaymer – 2010 PGA Championship, 2014 US Open
Charl Schwartzel – 2011 Masters

(File Photo: Gallo Images)

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