Christiaan Bezuidenhout may be as frustrated with lockdown as ever as it halted his swift rise up the Official World Golf Ranking.
Winner of the 2019 Andalucía Masters at the famed Valderrama Golf Club, the Ernie Els Foundation product is looking to continue his upward trajectory even if it means hitting balls into a net right now.
The 26-year-old make headlines around the world for sharing his dramatic story [Bezuidenhout opens up] but has let his clubs do the talking over the past 18 months.
‘I am making sure as best I can that I don’t lose any form,’ he says, locked down in Pretoria.
READ: Bezuidenhout’s Masters spot sealed
But with a Masters spot booked, he is not ready to press pause on his rise in the game but has instead honed in on the goal for the next phase of his career.
‘The way I’m playing now I can definitely see myself in the top 30 in the world in the next year. To have had that call from Augusta was a really big bonus and something positive. Going into this year I was 92nd in the world, so the Masters wasn’t really in my mind. I was thinking about being in the top 50 by the end of the year [he is currently ranked 48th] to qualify for next year’s Masters.’
Under the watchful eye of leading South African coach Grant Veenstra, Bezuidenhout is also using his former mentor at the foundation as he looks to work his way into full-time playing rights on the PGA TOUR.
‘He [Ernie Els] is obviously a very successful golfer but he is a great human as well,’ says Bezuidenhout.
‘When I go to the States I normally go and spend a couple of days at his house in Florida, talk to him about stuff and ask advice.’
Rewind: Bezuidenhout’s big win in Spain
Photo: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images
