South African Christo Lamprecht defeated Ronan Kleu from Switzerland in a thrilling 36-hole final to win the 128th Amateur Championship at Hillside.
In front of large crowds, the 22-year-old claimed a 3&2 victory to win one of amateur golf’s biggest prizes and earn invitations to compete in The Masters, US Open and Open Championship.
From an international field of 288 players representing 38 countries, Christo became the third South African winner in the last six years – after Jovan Rebula in 2018 and Aldrich Potgieter last year.
The highest-ranked player in the field at sixth on the World Amateur Golf Ranking, Christo squeezed into the top-64 and ties for the matchplay stages before excelling in the knock-out format.
It was also a notable day for his caddie and International Arnold Palmer Cup teammate, Christiaan Maas, who was on the bag for Aldrich when he won at Royal Lytham & St Annes 12 months ago.
The 129th Amateur Championship will be played at Ballyliffin from June 17-22 in 2024.
