Horsey moves up South Africa leaderboard

David Horsey was the biggest mover late on the final morning of the South African Open in Paarl with his six-under-par through 12 holes taking him to within three shots of overnight leader Lee Westwood.

The 23-year-old Englishman carded four birdies and an eagle on another hot day at the Pearl Valley Golf Estates to move to 11-under overall, with the world number 10 yet to tee off in his final round.

Another big mover at the co-sanctioned European and Sunshine Tour event was Ernie Els, who fell apart in round three with a five-over-par round of 77 dropping him right out of contention.

However, he launched a spirited fightback on Sunday by picking up six shots and dropping just one through 13 to move to 10-under for the competition.

Scotland’s Richie Ramsay shot the best clubhouse score of the day with his four-under 68 giving him a total of seven-under 281.

His countryman Callum Macaulay also ended on a high note with his three-under 69 handing him a third under-par round of the week as he finished on 283.

One player who did not enjoy the best final round was Justin Rose.

The world number 19, whose main highlight of 2008 was a Ryder Cup debut, ended his year with a two-over 74, to go with the same score in round two and his other two cards of 69 and 71.

He said: “It was a great week, we get looked after very, very well here. Pearl Valley’s a really beautiful place, but the rest of it’s been hard work for me.

“There’s a lot of good stuff going on right now, but the scores aren’t quite adding up. So it’s really tough to stay patient and just trust that the confidence will come around.

“Overall, I’m glad to see the end of the year. I’m really looking forward to 2009. It’s kind of a nice clean break now. I can go away, rest out, practise and reset my goals. I think it’s going to be an important few for me to come out strong for 2009.”