George Coetzee leads in Turkish Open

Rory McIlroy’s unexpected withdrawal from the Turkish Airlines Open opened up a spot for George Coetzee and the big-hitting South African is not a man look a gift horse in the mouth.

Coetzee staked the outright lead with a stunning seven-under-par 64 at the Regnum Carya Golf and Spa Resort in the $7-mllion start in the Final Series of the 2016 Race to Dubai yesterday.

Thorbjorn Oleson from Denmark was his closest challenger with a flawless 65, while Spain’s Jorge Campillo, Hoatong Li from China, Austrian Bernd Wiesberger and Manteo Manassero from Italy shared third at five under.

Compatriot Justin Walters opened with a 68 to tuck in behind a group of eight players in joint seventh and Darren Fichardt also finished in red numbers with a 70, despite a costly double bogey at the par four third.

Coetzee looked for all the world like a man destined for great things when he claimed comprehensive victories in the Tshwane Open and AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open last year, but a surfing injury in September put paid to any more title hopes.

It was while he recuperated from the broken ankle that the Pretoria native took a bold decision to make swing changes that was long overdue. What followed was nine months of frustration and a huge test of patience. The 30-year-old pretty much flew under the radar for most of this season, but after missing seven cuts in 12 starts, he was dangerously close to losing his European Tour card.

He shrugged off any suggestions of pressure with three successive 69s at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship last month and the tie for 25th in Scotland signalled a return to form.

Four sub-70 rounds at the Portugal Masters confirmed for Coetzee that his game was on an upswing and, after a joint 40th finish in last week’s WGC HSBC Champions, he arrived in Turkey ready to fire.