Andalucia Recap: Stingers finish third at Valderrama in quest for first team title of 2024
SOTOGRANDE, Spain – With Dean Burmester setting the tone on day one and captain Louis Oosthuizen leading by example in the final round, Stinger GC celebrated its fourth podium finish of the season after LIV Golf Andalucía concluded on Sunday.
The smooth-swinging Oosthuizen mixed three birdies with a lone bogey to close with a 2-under 69 at Real Club Valderrama and help clinch an impressive third place for the all-South African combination in the team standings. Oosthuizen tied for fourth on the individual leaderboard.
Charl Schwartzel and Branden Grace both signed off with 71s while the long-hitting Burmester, who had led the tournament by one shot after opening with a superb 66 in testing conditions on Friday, ended his week with a 75.
That left the Stingers with a 2-over aggregate, five strokes behind the triumphant Fireballs GC who clinched the team title after a sudden-death playoff with Crushers GC.
For Burmester and company, it was nevertheless a disappointing finish overall, given that they had led the team standings by two strokes after day one and are still seeking their first collective victory this year.
"We talk about it enough," said Burmester, who won his first LIV Golf individual title earlier this season in Miami. "We are desperate to win one. We have put ourselves in positions enough throughout the season. We've still got to figure out.
"There's four scores to count (in the final round) but if all four of us have a decent Sunday ... then hopefully we can stand on that podium."
On a very difficult day for scoring in Friday's opening round at Valderrama, the Stingers made a strong start to the week. Burmester putted superbly on his way to a 66 and a one-stroke lead while his team surged to the top of the standings. Burmester needed a total of just 21 putts as gusting winds reaching nearly 20 mph.
"It was probably one of the best putting rounds I've ever had as a professional," said the 35-year-old from Zimbabwe. "Every time I stood over a putt, I just felt like could I make it. You don't get days like that too often but certainly I don't."
Burmester mixed six birdies with a lone bogey on a day when only seven players in the field of 54 finished under par - the fewest amount in a single round of any LIV Golf regular-season tournament.
"Valderrama ... even in the best of conditions ... is tough," he said. "The wind obviously played its part. It moved enough for it to be tough and then that dried the greens out. Three holes in, the greens were rock hard. It was like playing in a U.S. Open. It was tough and fast ... and I don't know how I shot 5-under, to be honest with you."
With Oosthuizen carding a three-birdie 70 and Schwartzel weighing in with a 73, that was good enough for the Stingers to move two shots clear at the top of the team standings.
However, day two did not go the same way. Burmester failed to contribute a counting score after he battled to a 4-over 75 that dropped him into a tie for sixth. Oosthuizen returned a 71 - also ending the round in a share of sixth place - and both Schwartzel and Grace posted 72s for the all-South African combination to slip into third spot in the team standings.
While the South Africans were able to maintain that third place after their collective performance in Sunday's final round, their quest continues for a first team title this year.
For Oosthuizen, who has been a runner-up this season in both Jeddah and Adelaide, it all boils down to one thing – his team have to gel effectively on that last day.
"Obviously it's a little bit more pressure on everyone playing well and some days you force it and it doesn't happen and then other days it happens by itself," said the winner of the 2010 Open Championship at St Andrews. "I think it's just a matter of having one tournament with a really good Sunday."
In their first 10 LIV Golf starts this year, the Stingers have somewhat hit-or-miss, clinching four podium finishes while also producing four results of ninth or worse.
Their best performance was a runner-up spot in Adelaide, where they were agonizingly beaten in a playoff for the title by Ripper GC, while their lowest moment came in Las Vegas, where they struggled in surprisingly cold temperatures before finishing 12th out of 13.
The last time the Stingers tasted team victory was just over a year ago - at LIV Golf Tulsa in May 2023 - so they are long overdue success.