Blast from the past: Boks hang on to win first Test as Lions roar back in second half

1994 — Ernie Els wins his first Major title, taking the US Open in a three-way play-off against American Loren Roberts and Scotland’s Colin Montgomerie on the Monday. The South African, needing a par on the final hole to triumph at Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania, scored a bogey after driving into the rough. After the 18-hole play-off, Els and Roberts were tied on three over par, with Montgomerie out the reckoning on seven over. Els took the title on the second hole of the sudden death shoot-out, parring the par-four 11th with Roberts carding a bogey. Els was the second South African to win this tournament after Gary Player in 1965.

1998 — Captain Gary Teichmann scores one of SA’s five tries as the Springboks beat Ireland 33-0 in the second Test in Pretoria to win the series 2-0.

2004 — Retief Goosen wins his second US Open crown, shooting a four-under-par 276 at the Shinnecock Hills golf club in New York to beat Phil Mickelson by two strokes. Goosen played in the final pairing with countryman Ernie Els, who was two shots off the lead on three under par. Goosen’s one-over 71 was enough for the victory, but Els imploded as he carded 10 over par to end in a four-way tie for ninth spot. Nobody in the final round broke par, and the average score was nearly nine over par. The US Open is the only Major Goosen and Els, with two each titles, won more often than Gary Player, who triumphed only once.

2009 — The Springboks hold on to beat the British and Irish Lions 26-21 in the first Test at Kings Park in Durban. Leading 26-7 early in the second half, they were dominated in the second stanza as the tourists came back at them. The Lions scored three tries to South Africa’s two. Morne Steyn came on as a substitute to win his first cap, and would go on to be one of the heroes of the series.

2012 — Kaizer Mabuza loses his marginal IBO junior-welterweight title on a fourth-round knockout to Khabib Allakhverdiev of Russia in Moscow.