Why Jaco can’t wait for Egyptian Open

Jaco van Zyl never takes anything for granted, but he never expected to face Rory McIlroy at the Egyptian Open.
Jaco van Zyl never takes anything for granted and that’s one of the reasons why he has won four tournaments on the Sunshine Tour this year.
Even so, he was certainly taken aback while finalising his plans to play in the European Challenge Tour’s Egyptian Open to find that Ryder Cup hero Rory McIlroy, a member of both the US PGA and European Tours, had his name on the list of Cairo entrants.
Taking on the Northern Ireland star is a daunting prospect, but looked at in a different way, it also offers Van Zyl a great opportunity to showcase his A-game with one of golf’s hottest properties in attendance, and, with world-ranking points up for grabs, a chance to start his campaign to play regularly on the European Tour in the future.
The field also boasts 15 tournament winners from the 2010 Challenge Tour schedule as well as promising local and regional talent.
Defending champion Steven Tiley is currently placed 28th on the Challenge Tour rankings, and a successful defence would leapfrog him into the top 20 and put him in a position to join McIlroy on the European Tour next year.
Van Zyl will have to do things the hard way if he is to get a place on the European stage – he is playing in the European Tour’s Final Stage Q-School in December.
But a good showing at the JW Marriott Mirage City Golf Club in Cairo, and maybe even a final-round showdown with McIlroy, would go a long way to cementing his burgeoning domestic reputation in a foreign context.
He didn’t have the best of times in his last tournament – he finished 17th in the Vodacom Business Origins of Golf Final at Oubaai after opening with his worst tournament round of the year, a four-over 76.
But that was only the fourth time this year in 18 starts that he has been outside the top 15, and one of those occasions was when he retired from the Vodacom Championship in Pretoria due to illness.
McIlroy is excited at the prospect of returning to the Middle East, having won his maiden European Tour title at the 2009 Dubai Desert Classic and finishing runner-up at the Dubai World Championship later in the year.
“I’m very excited about the chance of playing in Egypt for the first time,” McIlroy said. “It’s not a country you would necessarily think of as a home for golf, but I have heard great things about the courses there, the whole history of the Egyptian Open and the developments that are coming about. So I can’t wait to see it all for myself.”
He’ll have to keep an eye open for Van Zyl, too.
Latest
-
News
On this day in 2008: Ryder Cup misery in Louisville for Nick Faldo’s Europe
Faldo was heavily criticised for his tactics in the closing singles.
-
Lucas Glover edges past Patrick Cantlay to claim back-to-back Tour wins
Glover, 43, ultimately claimed victory with a par on the 18th hole playoff after Cantlay found water off the tee.
-
Lilia Vu wins second major as Charley Hull comes up short despite stunning eagle
American Vu added the Women’s Open title to her Chevron Championship.
-
Lucas Glover holds onto lead in Memphis with Tommy Fleetwood two strokes behind
Glover said it was a scrappy day but he got ‘a lot out of’ what he had.
-
Charley Hull shares lead with Lilia Vu heading into final day of Women’s Open
The pair are nine under for the tournament.
-
On This Day in 2007 – Tiger Woods claims 13th major with victory in Oklahoma
The world number one successfully defended his US PGA Championship title.
-
Ally Ewing out to emulate Brian Harman with Open win
The pair share their southern roots, passion for hunting and college teams named the Bulldogs.
-
Ally Ewing storms clear during second round of AIG Women’s Open at Walton Heath
At 10 under par Ewing enjoyed a five-shot lead over compatriot Andrea Lee and Japan’s Minami Katsu.
-
Jordan Spieth leads by one after first round of FedEx St Jude Championship
England’s Tommy Fleetwood and Aaron Rai are the best of the British contingent, closing out Thursday on four under par.
-
Rory McIlroy delighted with Tiger Woods’ role on PGA Tour’s policy board
Woods, 47, has not played since withdrawing from April’s Masters and concedes his playing opportunities will be extremely limited going forward.