1982–83 Southern Africa Tour
The 1982–83 Southern Africa Tour was the 12th season of the Southern Africa Tour, the main professional golf tour in South Africa since it was formed in 1971.
| Duration | 12 January 1983 – 5 March 1983 |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 8 |
| Most wins | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} John Bland (2) |
| Order of Merit |  Nick Price |
← 1981–82 1983–84 → | |
Season outline
The early part of the year was dominated by two Americans, Corey Pavin and Charlie Bolling. David Frost won the first event, the Gordon's Gin Classic, by five shots over Nick Price, while Pavin finished in joint third place.[1] The following week, at the Lexington PGA, Pavin recorded a 66 in the final round to defeat Price by a shot.[2] Bolling won the following week at the Datusn SA Open by one over Tertius Claassens.[3]
A number of South Africans won their first significant tournaments late in the year. Wayne Westner won the fourth event of the year, the ICL Tournament Players Classic.[4] It was his first win on tour. The following week, Gavan Levenson shot a course record 62 to win the Sigma Vaals Reef Open by two shots over Nick Price.[5] It was also his first win on tour. In mid-February, Teddy Webber shot a final round 68 to beat third round leader Fulton Allem by one shot at the Quindrink Golf Classic.[6] At the next event, the Holiday Inns Pro-Am, John Bland defeated runner-up Webber by two shots.[7]
Schedule
The following table lists official events during the 1982–83 season.[8]
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (R) |
Winner[lower-alpha 1] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 Jan | Gordon's Gin Classic | Transvaal | 100,000 | David Frost (1) | |
| 22 Jan | Lexington PGA Championship | Transvaal | 100,000 |  Corey Pavin (1) | |
| 29 Jan | Datsun South African Open | Cape | 90,000 | Charlie Bolling (1) | |
| 5 Feb | ICL Tournament Players Classic | Transvaal | 40,000 | Wayne Westner (1) | |
| 12 Feb | Sigma Vaal Reefs Open | Transvaal | 40,000 | Gavan Levenson (1) | |
| 19 Feb | Quindrink Golf Classic | Natal | 40,000 | Teddy Webber (1) | |
| 26 Feb | Holiday Inns Pro-Am | Swaziland | 40,000 | John Bland (7) | Pro-Am |
| 5 Mar | Kodak Golf Classic | Transvaal | 40,000 | John Bland (8) | New tournament |
Unofficial events
The following events were sanctioned by the Southern Africa Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (R) |
Winner | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 Dec | Nedbank Million Dollar Challenge | Transvaal | US$1,000,000 | Raymond Floyd |
Limited-field event |
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in South African rand.[9]
| Position | Player | Prize money (R) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nick Price | 31,969 |
| 2 | David Frost | 29,820 |
| 3 | Charlie Bolling | 23,669 |
| 4 | Corey Pavin | 23,659 |
| 5 | John Bland | 22,187 |
Notes
- The number in brackets after each winner's name is the number of Southern Africa Tour events they had won up to and including that tournament. This information is only shown for Southern Africa Tour members.
References
- "Frost chips away to victory". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. 17 January 1983. p. 22. Retrieved 21 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- "Pavin pips Price with final 66". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. 24 January 1983. p. 22. Retrieved 21 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- Frederick, Adrian (31 January 1983). "Bolling triumphs as Bennett slips". The Daily Telegraph. London, United Kingdom. p. 19. Retrieved 21 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- "Westner wins ICL". The Palm Beach Post. West Palm Beach, Florida. 6 February 1983. p. 527 (E7 in paper). Retrieved 21 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- "Golf". The Independent-Record. Helena, Montana. 14 February 1983. p. 11 (3B in paper). Retrieved 21 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- "South African overcomes deficit". The Indianapolis Star. Indianapolis, Indiana. 20 February 1983. p. 71 (3D in paper). Retrieved 21 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- "South African wins golf". The Odessa American. Odessa, Texas. 27 February 1983. p. 40 (6C in paper). Retrieved 21 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- "1982/83 Tournament schedule". Sunshine Tour. Retrieved 22 September 2023.
- Berkovitz, Anton; Samson, Andrew (1993). South Africa and international sports factfinder. D. Nelson. p. 96. ISBN 1868061019. Retrieved 13 September 2023.