MJ Daffue has made his name qualifying for events and on Tuesday he did it again but this time into The Open Championship.
The South African, who has two wins on the HotelPlanner Tour this year, made sure there was no doubts about his spot as he finished in a share for first at Royal Cinque Ports.
Rounds of 67 and 65 got the job done at the same venue where Matt Southgate and LIV Golfer Peter Uihlein also qualified.
He was one of four South Africans in the field as Thriston Lawrence, Branden Grace and Dean Burmester all teed it up but failed to finish inside the top 5.
Many will recall how the South African vaulted into the spotlight at the 2022 US Open when he birdied four of the first seven holes to grab a three-stroke lead early in the second round on his Major debut.
Daffue, though, appears to be finding his best after a few years in the US battling injuries.
Since 2023, Daffue’s career was stalled by a recurring nightmare in his right hand. A bone disease required surgery in 2023, while a subsequent infection led to three further operations the next year.
Full list of qualifiers:
Burnham & Berrow
-10 James Nicholas
-9 Caleb Surratt
-8 Tom Sloman
-8 Alejandro de Castro Piera (a)
-8 Austen Truslow
Dundonald Links
-5 Jack McDonald
-4 Matthew Baldwin
-4 David Howard (a)
-3 Nevill Ruiter (a)
-3 Marcus Plunkett
Royal Cinque Ports
-12 Baard Bjoenevik Skogen
-12 MJ Daffue
-10 Matthew Southgate
-9 Peter Uihlein
-8 Antoine Rozner
West Lancashire
-10 Samuel Bairstow
-9 Kazuma Kobori
-9 Josele Ballester
-9 Tiger Christensen
-8 Matthew Jordan
Article Link: SA's MJ Daffue plays himself into The Open