The 60-year-old local favourite won his mid-amateur debut with a comfortable two stroke win over  Gauteng golfer Kevin Sharp with a winning score of four-over-par 296.

Glendower’s Sharp carded a 78 to finish alone in second, one shot ahead of Jan Kemp Golf Club’s Josef Fourie, who shot a 75 and East London Golf Club’s John Kew, who carded a 76.

“It hasn’t quite sunk in,” said a delighted Jones. “I just hope that the Super Seniors don’t demote me because of this.”

Jones carded rounds of 68-71-80 and held a one shot lead over Sharp going into the final day. He turned in three-over, but held on to his edge until a double bogey at the stroke two, par-four 14^th nearly derailed his tournament.

“The ball pitched just over the fairway bunker and spun back into the trap,” explained Jones. “I thought I struck it well but it pitched short of the green. I hit a poor chip shot and it took two putts to finally get it in the hole.”

But the resilient senior cut the damage to one shot with a superb birdie at the 472 meter par-five 15^th.

“I hit a good third shot into the green and nailed a 10-footer to put some space between Kevin and myself,” he said. “From there I just steadied the ship to the end.”

Jones was thrilled to have held off players 20 years his junior.

“I’m absolutely thrilled, I tell you. I never gave myself a shot at winning this. I only entered for fun of it, you know, because the tournament was being played at my home course.

“To win a mid-amateur at 60...it kind of gives one a new lease on life.”

And 41-year-old Clifton Stanley from Akasia Golf Club also had reason to celebrate, after firing a final round five-under-par 68.

“I brought a new putter but I struggled on greens something fierce,” explained Stanley, who posted rounds of 77, 76 and 80 over the first three rounds.

“I took my old two-ball Odyssey putter out of the boot this morning and suddenly I was putting at buckets out there today. Everything just fell right back into place. It was the greatest feeling to finally play the kind of golf I was playing before the tournament.”

ENDS