The move was announced by Leisurecorp, owners of Pearl Valley Golf Estates, and Maru Sport, the tournament promoters.

David Spencer, Leisurecorp's CEO - Golf, confirmed that each person who registers online at www.southafricanopen.com will be sent two free tickets for Thursday 18 December.

"With the strongest field ever in the South African Open, this is a great way for fans to see their golf heroes up close. I am sure we'll see heavy demand for this offer.

"Twelve South Africans participated in the British Open held at Royal Birkdale last week, and we now have the opportunity to see many of these local heroes play at home, as well as the impressive field of international stars. We're hoping that giving greater access to the tournament means there will be increased interest in the sport."

Last week, Masters champion Trevor Immelman announced that he will attempt to make it a hat-trick of wins when he tees off at the South African Open Championship, which runs from 18-21 December at Pearl Valley Golf Estates.

Immelman, back-to-back Champion in 2003 and 2004, will join Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, defending champion James Kingston, Lee Westwood, Darren Clarke, Jeev Milkha Singh, Rory McIlroy and reigning European Tour Order of Merit Champion Justin Rose at the Tournament.

An easy registration process on the championship website www.southafricanopen.com will ensure that two free tickets will be posted immediately.

Tickets to attend the remainder of the South African Open Championship are available from Computicket. Proceeds from the ticket sales will go the South African Open Championship charity, the Pebbles Project, a winelands based organisation that offers support to children with special educational needs, particularly those whose lives are affected by alcohol in some way.