South Africa's Trevor Immelman makes his first appearance in his home country since winning the US Masters when he defends his title in the Nedbank Challenge limited field tournament at the Gary Player Country Club here from Thursday. Immelman, 28, won the 2007 event after receiving a late invitation.
But less than two weeks later he had to withdraw from the South African Open because of a benign lung tumour which required surgery.
Four months later he held off Tiger Woods and the rest of the world's top golfers at the Masters, holding or sharing the lead through all four rounds in brutally tough conditions.
He hasn't had a win since and in recent magazine interviews admitted that he found it difficult to lift his game to the same level in the months that followed.
