It was also his first time playing at the famed Royal Harare Golf Club and the victory was his maiden win on the Sunshine Tour, coming at one of the Tour’s most storied tournaments. He finished on 21-under-par 267. Van der Merwe went into the final round holding a four-stroke advantage over Kyle Barker and Bautista and never loosened his grip on the lead. He had a flawless front nine, with birdies at the first, sixth, eighth and ninth holes for an outward 32. After the turn, he birdied the 14th hole, double-bogeyed the 15th, and picked up another birdie at the 16th for an inward 36 to complete an impressive performance. For Bautista, it was yet another close call at the Zimbabwe Open after falling short by a similar margin to Luis Carrera last year. The Australian professional finished on 17-under-par 271. He closed with a four-under-par 68 featuring an eagle, four birdies and two bogeys. Bautista had a flawless front nine, making a birdie at the third hole and an eagle at the sixth for an outward 33. On the back nine, he added another birdie at the 12th, bogeyed the 13th, followed that with back-to-back birdies at the 16th and 17th, before a bogey at the 18th for an inward 35. Barker finished third on 15-under-par 273 while Tyran Snyders secured fourth place on 13-under-par 275. Samuel Simpson and Jaco Prinsloo shared fifth place on 12-under-par 276 while Gerhard Pepler and amateur Andries van der Vyver shared seventh place on 11-under-par 277. Van der Vyver was the only amateur to make the cut. Completing the top 10 were Ruan Korb, Benjamin Kedochim and Kieran Vincent, who tied for ninth place on 10-under-par 278. Vincent finished as the leading Zimbabwean, with Robson Chinhoi tied for 37th place on two-under-par 286. Visitor Mapwanya finished tied for 41st place on one-under-par 287. Newly turned professionals Darlington Chikanyambidze and Michael Wallace finished tied for 58th place on four-over-par 292.