JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA - MARCH 05: Jayden Schaper of South Africa tees off on the 16th hole on day one of the Joburg Open 2026 at Houghton GC on March 05, 2026 in Johannesburg, South Africa. (Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images)
Jayden Schaper, already a two-time DP World Tour champion this season, has put himself in a strong position to challenge for a third title after the first round of the Joburg Open at Houghton on Thursday.
The 24-year-old won back-to-back in December at the Alfred Dunhill Championship and the Mauritius Open and on Thursday he carded an opening round six-under-par 64 to be right in the mix.
He made four birdies and an eagle in a blemish-free round.
“On this golf course it’s always nice to go bogey-free, especially on the first day and get off to a good start,” said Schaper after his round.
“It’s pretty wet out there so it’s hard to know how the approach shots are going to react, if they’re going to spin or not. And then on the greens it was also difficult, as there are a lot of slow putts out there as well.”
He added: “From tee to green I was pretty good. I didn’t get myself out of position too many times.
“I’m looking forward to the second day and the rest of the tournament, especially after a start like that.
“But we’ll have to see what the weather has planned for us, Friday might be worse, but we can’t control that.”
On a train-affected opening day, Schaper was fortunate to finish his round, but several men will have to return early Friday to complete their first rounds, weather-permitting.
One of these men is Luke Brown, the 27-year-old South African who leads the way at seven-under-par after completing just 12 holes of his first round.
Sitting alongside Schaper in a tie for second currently is England’s Nathan Kimsey, Maximillian Steinlechner of Austria, and Spain’s Angel Ayora (15 holes).
Wilco Nienaber was one shot further back in a tie for sixth at five-under-par alongside a number of other players after making five birdies and no drop shots.
Hennie du Plessis, who was in contention until late last week at the SA Open in Stellenbosch, was at four-under-par after his first round 66, just three off the current lead.
Last week’s SA Open champion, Casey Jarvis, who is chasing a third straight win on tour, to join only Seve Ballesteros and Nick Faldo as players who’ve achieved the feat, after also winning the Kenya Open the week before, is still very much in with a shout of achieving his goal.
He was three-under-par after completing only 14 holes when bad light and rain halted play.
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