Meshack Motloung

Meshack Motloung

Tongoona Charamba and Omar Sandys are likely to spring a surprise in the Vodacom Origins of Golf Tour at the Selborne Country Club in KwaZulu-Natal this week.

The event - with R400000 prize money- tees off this morning and ends tomorrow.

Charamba, from Zimbabwe, came close to collecting his second professional title in the Sunshine Tour's Lombard Insurance Classic in Swaziland at the weekend.

The 25-year old from Harare finished just behind Peter Karmis, who won the inaugural R350 000 event.

Sandys, of Free State, who finished alone in second behind Louis Oosthuizen earlier this year at the Dimension Data Pro-Am, came fourth in Swaziland.

But he also overtook James Kamte as the leading black player on the Sunshine Tour's order of merit and is ranked 14th with earnings of R266319.

While Charamba and Sandys will tee off in the third leg of the Vodacom Origins of Golf, Kamte will tee off in the European and Challenge Tour in France.

Another golfer who stands a chance of winning this event is Andrew Curlewis who missed the cut at the Lombard Insurance Classic in Swaziland last week.

KwaZulu-Natal's Curlewis, who also missed the cut at the Eskom Power Classic, won his maiden title just a week later in the Vodacom Origins of Golf Tour series at Arabella.

The 23-year old from Margate was in great spirits, looking forward to the challenge on a Selborne layout he is more than familiar with, this week.

"I practise here a lot, so I do fancy my chances of another win here this week," he said.

Other top players include Hennie Otto, Doug McGuigan, Thabang Simon, Irvin Mosate and Lindani Ndwandwe.