Staff WriterCara Gainer, England’s top-ranked star on the Ladies European Tour, is gearing up for a real thriller in this week’s €300,000 Joburg Ladies Open.
In a field brimming with talent, she’s been blown away by the incredible standard of golf on the Sunshine Ladies Tour this season.
Gainer joins a formidable lineup at Modderfontein Golf Club, where play gets underway on Thursday.
She arrives in Johannesburg having posted a victory and a runner-up finish in her last five events and believes this flourishing Sunshine circuit creates a perfect stepping stone to the Ladies European Tour.
“The standard is definitely rising out here. The Sunshine Ladies Tour is a really good pathway to the Ladies European Tour.
A lot of players play this tour and then these co-sanctioned events, which are really good for them to see what standard they’re at compared to the rest of the Ladies European Tour.
You can see the scores over the last few weeks on the Sunshine Ladies Tour have been low, so you can tell the standard is good out here.
And the field this week is a strong one. It’s great to have so many great players here this week,” said Gainer.
This is her first Joburg Ladies Open appearance since 2023, and she’s keen to keep building on her early-season momentum.
“I’m really excited. I was last here in 2023 and it’s nice to be back in Johannesburg.
The golf course is slightly different to when I last saw it. It’s playing a lot softer. It’s quite fun having to work out different clubs and yardages to what I was used to.
“I had a really good start to the year with a win and second place. I think I’m bringing in a different mentality this year.
Last season I had a wrist injury so I was sort of up-and-down. I promised myself this year that I was going to really enjoy my golf and not put as much pressure on myself as I did last year. T
hat’s what I’m looking forward to – enjoying myself and letting the golf take care of itself.”
Defending champion Chiara Tamburlini from Switzerland is back to protect her title, noting that Modderfontein’s setup should offer a fresh puzzle for the field to solve.
“It’s playing a little different this year, but there are really good memories here and I’m excited to be back,” she said.
The 2023 champion joins a stacked entry list that boasts every one of the top 10 players on the Investec Order of Merit, headed by South Africa’s Casandra Alexander, as well as seven of the current top 10 on the Ladies European Tour Order of Merit.
“It’s a tough field out here, so you’ll definitely need your A game to win,” Tamburlini added.
With Gainer and a host of other accomplished professionals bringing their best, the Joburg Ladies Open promises four days of high drama and sparkling golf.
