South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen, who had missed the cut in all his three previous Opens and was a 250-1 outsider before the tournament started, won the British Open Sunday on the 92nd anniversary of Nelson Mandela’s birth.
Receiving thunderous applause, Oosthuizen crushed the world’s best golfers by seven strokes to delight the crowd on the ninth green in Scotland, the birthplace of the sport.
Not only had he never made an Open cut before but it was only his second professional win outside South Africa with a previous best finish of 73rd in the 2008 U.S. PGA Championship (pictured on right, courtesy of Bob Silverman).
No one was happier with Oosthuizen’s achievement than the world number six, South African player Ernie Els. Oosthuizen is a graduate of the Ernie Els Golf Foundation which helps identify young talent in South Africa.
(READ the full story in the Good News South Africa– UPDATE: Read the wonderful account in the Daily Record, which quoted his odds of winning at 250-1)