Fichardt, a veteran of South African golf with multiple Sunshine Tour and European Tour victories, showcased his experience and precision on a course that had been left waterlogged by heavy rain the day before. Thanks to the tireless efforts of the course maintenance staff, the layout was transformed overnight, allowing play to begin after just a three-hour delay.

Fichardt’s impressive form saw him matching the leading clubhouse score of seven-under-par 65, set earlier by England’s Sam Bairstow and Sweden’s Fredrik From. Unlike his international counterparts, however, Fichardt still had holes in hand when fading light forced play to halt.

Jayden Schaper. Photo: Sunshine Tour

“It’s been a long day with the delay, but I’m feeling good about my game,” said Fichardt. “The course was in incredible shape considering what it looked like after all that rain. The greenkeeping staff did an amazing job.”

The South African star capitalised on his renowned accuracy and touch around the greens, keeping himself bogey-free through much of his round. With momentum on his side, he’ll look to finish strong when play resumes on Friday morning at 08:00.

Meanwhile, Bairstow and From expressed their gratitude for even getting to tee off, given the state of the course the day before.

“The day before I thought there would be no chance of playing, especially seeing the water on the 16th hole. But all credit to the maintenance staff for getting the course playable. They did an unbelievable job,” said Bairstow.

From, who registered two eagles during his round, echoed the sentiment: “I couldn’t believe it this morning when they didn’t call it off. They must have worked the whole night pumping out water. They did a great job.”

Further down the leaderboard, South Africa’s Jayden Schaper, Scotland’s Richie Ramsay, India’s Shubhankar Sharma, China’s Haotong Li, and England’s Todd Clements finished their first rounds at six under par.

Schaper, eager to finally clinch a title after coming close in recent years, remains one to watch. “I’ve got a lot of good memories in this tournament. It’s just one that you want to do well in as our home Open, and this is a great venue for it this week,” he said.

Meanwhile, the defending champion, Dean Burmester, of Bloemfontein, got off to a solid start with a three-under-par 69 for a tied 28th, and four strokes off the lead.

With Fichardt poised to claim the outright lead upon resumption, the SA Open remains wide open, setting the stage for an exciting continuation of play.

OFM Sport/Morgan Piek cg