Manon De Roey wins Investec SA Women's Open

Manon De Roey can now call herself a two-time Ladies European Tour (LET) champion after the Belgian cruised to a four-shot victory at the Investec SA Women’s Open.

Leading by three shots on 14-under-par before the start of play, the 32-year-old held her nerve in windy conditions at Erinvale carding an even-par round of 70 to claim title number two.

“I’m super happy with my performance this week!” De Roey said. “I had a couple of goals at the beginning of this year and one of them was to win again. I like playing in windy conditions because I feel like I can shape the ball well. I can just let the wind do the work and I feel a bit more relaxed.”

Playing alongside Morocco’s Ines Laklalech and Sweden’s Lisa Pettersson, De Roey got off to a steady start as her playing partners dropped shots early on carding six pars in a row.

As New Zealand’s Momoka Kobori made a move elsewhere, De Roey carded her first birdie of the day on the par-5 7th before dropping a shot after missing the green on the par-3 8th.

The Olympian bounced back immediately thanks to a clutch birdie in front of the clubhouse on the 9th – one which took her lead to five as Pettersson and Laklalech found trouble on the same hole.

As victory loomed, De Roey would make eight straight pars in a row before dropping a shot on the 18th after three-putting the par-4.

Tapping in the bogey for a four-shot victory, De Roey – an immensely popular figure on Tour – was showered in champagne by Austria’s Christine Wolf and English trio Ellie Givens, Liz Young and Hannah Burke.

Watch final round highlights from the Investec SA Women's Open

“I’m very happy with my week,” she said. “Today was pretty stead overall. I’m super happy with my win. I love South Africa! I didn’t think it was going to be windy so that was a surprise. It was tough but I managed. I’m so happy.”

With the victory, De Roey wins her second LET title following her breakthrough win at the 2022 Aramco Team Series – Bangkok event.

The Belgian also rockets to second place in the 2024 Order of Merit, leapfrogging last week’s winner Chiara Tamburlini to sit 157.98 points behind England’s Bronte Law. The full standings can be found here. 

Gabriella Cowley claims Sunshine Ladies Tour Order of Merit

In second place on 10-under-par finished Kobori and England’s Gabriella Cowley. The latter carded a round of 70 (-2) to also claim the Sunshine Ladies Tour Order of Merit.

South Africa’s Nicole Garcia finished in solo fourth on eight-under-par, a result which capped off a wonderful two weeks on home soil after she finished T5 at last week’s Joburg Ladies Open.

Winning a car for finishing as the top South African in the Sunshine Ladies Tour Order of Merit, Garcia said: “It was a bit of a surprise to find that out when I walked off the 18th green. I hadn’t really realised that it was a possibility. I’m going to enjoy my Renault for the year. But I’m happy with my performance overall, and this is a great added bonus.”

Laklalech finished in fifth on seven-under-par after a disappointing 76 (+3). Burke and Austria’s Sarah Schober ended the week one shot back in a tie for sixth. A 77 (+5) for Pettersson saw her finish in solo eighth.

The LET now has a week off before the second Aramco Team Series event of 2024, which takes place in Seoul, South Korea.