South African Golfers On PGA Tour 2023

Branden Grace is a South African PGA golfer since 2007. He is a two-time winner of PGA tour events and has fifteen career wins amassing prize money of over 4 million. 

Gracie is a talented athlete who started from an Amateur career by participating in the Ernie Els and Fancourt Foundation event. 

Similarly, He holds a record of becoming the first person to score sub-63 while shooting 62 shots which were eight under par. 

Branden has made his countrymen proud, despite European and American golfers hogging the spotlight. He made beautiful plays that remain in the memory of golf fans. 

His other career achievements include fourth place at US Open and sixth place at the Open championship. He is ranked 10th in OWGR, it is his highest rank. 

Trevor Immelman was a South African pro golfer but he is retiring and holds a job as a television commentator for the PGA, European, and Sunshine tours.

Immelman started playing pro at the age of 23, he was one of the rising players from SA. In his amateur career, he made waves in the US as well. 

He was a links golfer, he held Amateur wins in the South African Amateur and US Amateur Public Links in ’97 and ’98 respectively. 

Florida residing golfer was mentored by Gary Player and his time learning from Gary helped him out in his career. Trevor attained 12th ranking in OWGR which is his highest rank throughout his career.

He gave his best performance during his first year at PGA thus winning an award titled PGA Tour Rookie of the Year 2006. In the twilight of his career, he made an astonishing comeback by finishing third in the Scottish Open.

Charl Schwartzel is a South African golfer who has won the Masters. Schwartzel turned pro in ’02 and played in European, Asian, and LIV golf tours. 

Schwartzel is a talented athlete who took the golf community by storm after he won the 2011 Masters tournament. He was an unexpected dark horse who joined the ranks of Player and Immelman.

Besides his championship win, he has won Joburg Open and the Alfred Dunhill championship multiple times. Charl is the winner of his home tour the Africa Open. 

He was born in Johannesburg and started learning golf from a young age. He had a good amateur record before coming to the pros. 

After two decades of playing golf professionally, he won a master’s and finished within the top ten of the other majors in golf besides the PGA championship. 

Louis Oosthuizen is a popular South African Golfer who won the Open and PGA championships. Oosthuizen’s all-time highest ranking is fourth he accomplished the feat in 2013. 

Oosthuizen had a passion for golf from a young age but he was not able to meet the financial requirements while learning golf. 

Fortunately, Ernie Els’s organization helped him out and he went on to win multiple Amateur titles for the philanthropic organization.

He participated in fewer events in his golfing tour. He mostly ascertained good ranks in every competition, giving stiff competition to the likes of British golfers like Paul Casey, Lee Westwood, and Rory McIlroy. 

Should he quit golf due to being unable to meet financial requirements then South Africa would have lost a gem and pride of their nation. He went on to finish 14 professional wins and amassed nine wins on a European tour as well. 

Retief Goosen is an old South African golfer he is a talented player who was enshrined in the World Golf Hall of Fame. He had won US Open twice in his career. 

Goosen was a talented player who is now qualified for the US Senior Open at the age of 50. He accomplished 38 wins in his career including seven PGA tour wins. 

He is a legend among South African golfers. He played alongside Ernie Els and David Frost. Goosen credits Gary Player as his inspiration. He is one of the most decorated US veterans in his career.

Moreover, after passing half a decade in the age, he has not stopped his PGA run. Refief recently won a Hoag Classic and he received a Rookie of the Year (2019) which was long overdue since his debut. 

Tim Clark is a PGA golfer from South Africa, he is one of the highest-earning South African Players. Clark had made around $14.7 million in 2009 without any major wins. 

Clark is a talented athlete who mostly finished within the top 20 during his time with the club. However, his run through PGA was halted when he suffered an elbow injury in the ’15-16 season. 

His last victory was PGA Championship that he secured at the Oak Hill Country Club in ’13. He represented SA in the two biggest tournaments which were World Cup and the Presidents Cup. 

Similarly, Tim had multiple accomplishments and succeded including his amateur participation in the Eisenhower Trophy. He has not competed in any majors thus it is likely that he has retired silently. 

Dean Burmester is a 34-year-old South African golfer. He was born in Zimbabwe but represents SA in golf. He has played in multiple tours including PGA and challenge tours.

Burmester’s most accomplishment is his PGA championship win in the Sunshine tour. He was up against fellow South African player Pieter Moolman, Dean beat him in the tournament by two strokes. 

He might not have an impressive resume but he is yet to slow down as the athlete is climbing the ranks of PGA. He earned his PGA tour card for the 22-23 season. 

We can expect multiple exploits of athletes in LIV and PGA golf in the coming seasons. The pursuit of sports runs into the family. Dean is the son of former Zimbabwe cricketer Mark Burmester. 

Garrick Higgo is a young South African golfer on a PGA tour. Despite his short stint in the golfing career, he has already won his PGA tour title. 

Higgo is from the town of Johannesburg and came to the States in 2017 and studied at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. SA golfer turned pro in ’19. 

He initially participated in the Sunshine tour and later qualified for the PGA tour. In 2021, he won the Palmetto Championship of the PGA and bagged $1.3 million in the season. 

Therefore, his win earned him the PGA tour card which is likely to bring invite another achievement from his end. 

He credits his golfing inspiration to his father. He learned to play golf with his dad and developed a love for the game. He was also mentored by Gary Player who advised him in terms of strategy. 

Thriston Lawrence is a South African PGA golfer in 2023. Thriston recently won the DP world tour cup in his home country’s Open championship. 

Lawrence registered his fourth win in the DP tour. He turned pro in 2014 and has already succeded to expand to his eighth win. Lawrence does not have a good record in the majors. 

He placed 42nd in the Open Championship and did not participate in Masters. Thus, the player’s most success is seen at European events. 

Nelspruit-origin golfer secured his fourth European win at the BMW International Open in Germany. Before his pro career, he was a South African champion of the amateurs. 

Therefore, he is gradually learning the game and climbing the ranks in his career. 

Erik Van Rooyen is an S.A. golfer who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2009. He has a good record in the majors despite not winning a trophy. 

Rooyen placed the 23rd in US Open, 8th in the PGA Championship, and 17th in the Open championship. He is among the top golfers in the country to achieve such success in an international venue. 

Furthermore, Rooyen is the winner of the Barracuda Championship. He secured his win in 2021 on the PGA tour after defeating Andrew Putnam by five points. 

He has one win each in the European tour, Sunshine, and Challenge tour in his career.