McKibbin blasts 10-under 62 to lead in Cape Town: "It was a very special day”
Tom McKibbin Photo Credit: Sunshine Tour.
Teenager Tom McKibbin slashed five strokes off his career-low round when he fired an incredible course record equalling 10-under par 62 at Royal Cape Golf Club to take a three-shot lead into the weekend in the Challenge Tour's Bain's Whisky Cape Town Open.
The Holywood Golf Club talent (19) opened with a bogey-free, four-under 68 at Rondebosch Golf Club to lie just three shots off the lead overnight.
But he then took full advantage of a sponsor's invitation in just his 21st start in a professional event on the Challenge Tour or DP World Tour, opening with seven straight birdies at Royal Cape Golf Club before picking up further shots at the 11th, 12th and 15th.
"It was really good," said the Newtownabbey native, who leads by on 14-under par from Spain's Ivan Cantero and South Africa's Zander Lombard.
"I was going out there just to try and shoot another good round like yesterday, and I started off with seven birdies in a row which was very surprising considering how tight it is around here.
"It was a very special day."
The touring professional for Galgorm Resort and Spa, McKibbin's best finish is a tie for 12th in the Irish Challenge at Portmarnock Links last year and he's thrilled to be bogey-free so far.
Tom McKibbin
"I just picked good targets off the tee and into the greens," said the former Irish international, whose biggest success as an amateur arguably came in the prestigious Junior Invitational at Sage Valley near Augusta in 2019, which counts Akshay Bhatia, Genesis Invitational leader Joaquin Niemann and last week's Phoenix Open winner Scottie Scheffler amongst its former champions.
"I haven't really been too silly with anything. I have just tried to plot my way around the course, and it seemed to work out.
"Today, it was a little easier and there wasn't as much wind as yesterday or even the practise rounds, so I get a guess I just took advantage of the conditions."
The former Irish international has former professional Chris Selfridge on his bag and the pair have made a good team so far.
"Chris has been great," McKibbin said of the former East of Ireland, North of Ireland and Irish Close champion Selfridge, whose career was cut short by injury. "He's caddying for me this year, and he's just been really good helping me with targets and committing to shots and picking good clubs. He's been a great help for me."
McKibbin, who won his first tournament on the Minor League Golf Tour in the US in January, was also pleased to take advantage of a sponsor's invitation.
"I'm going to play a few down here on invites, so I will try and make the most of it and playing well in the first two rounds as I have so far, it's been really good," he said.
"I've played a lot of events over the last year. I haven't played in a while, but I felt fine. I have been practising loads and playing a good bit, so it just felt like normal. "I'm hoping for a bit more of the same over the weekend. That would be nice, but I will just go back and chill out this afternoon and start again tomorrow."
Royal Dublin's Niall Kearney is tied for 27th after a one-under 71 at Royal Cape with Greystones' Paul Dunne, who was tied third overnight after an opening 66, tied 38th on five-under after mixing four birdies with five bogeys in a 73 at Rondebosch Golf Club.
Cormac Sharvin and Kinsale's John Murphy shot two-under 70s at Rondebosch but missed the four-under-par cut by one stroke while Gavin Moynihan shot a 75 at Royal Cape to finish on five-over.
At Rondebosch, joint overnight leader Cantero shot a four-under 68 and Lombard a seven-under 65 to share second place on 11-under.
France's Gary Stal shot a seven-under 65 at Rondebosch, where compatriot Félix Mory posted eight birdies and an eagle three in a 10-under 62 to leave them tied fourth on 10-under.