Trevor Immelman believes South African golf is in safe hands and will continue to churn out the against the odds success like it has done so for decades, writes WADE PRETORIUS.
Immelman’s name is forever etched in the DNA of golfing success in South Africa and the 2008 Masters winner believes that the talent coming out of the southernmost tip of Africa combined with the right attitude is what makes the nation’s golfers equipped for the biggest stages in the game.
‘Well, there’s just no question about it [punching above our weight]. The amount of talent that we have that comes through our country in all sporting codes is fabulous, and the mental strength that that takes,’ Immelman told Compleat Golfer.
Before his Major breakthrough – he held off Tiger Woods to add to the stature of the win – he had already won two SA Open titles, the 2006 Cialis Western Open as well as the ’07 Nedbank Golf Challenge.
An internal driving force may have been the need to prove to himself and to the rest of the tour that he was good enough. That he belonged.
‘I think part of that too, also, is when you come from a relatively small country like a South Africa or a New Zealand, somewhere like that.
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‘A lot of times you come through with maybe just a little bit of a chip on your shoulder, because you really want to prove to people that you’re worthy, that you’re good, that you can cut it up with the best. And so I think a lot of times that mentality can play to your advantage as well. But yeah, look. When you’ve got natural talent that South Africans clearly do from a sporting perspective, and then you have a rock-solid work ethic, and you have desire, when you start to add those pieces of the puzzle together, it’s pretty hard not to achieve your goals.
‘We’ve got such a small country really – not all that many golfers. If you look at it on a global scale, the amount of success that the guys and girls have had over the years is really a testament to, you know, the talent, that we can breed down in the southernmost tip of Africa.’
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With Ernie Els and Retief Goosen moving over to the Champions Tour and Immelman spending more time in the commentary booth, it’s now time to look ahead to who will take up the challenge of working towards a place in the top 10 in the world and a follow up Major win to Els’ triumph at The Open in 2012.
‘It’s pretty exciting over the years, having watched people achieve so much success. For me, obviously, learning, growing up, watching guys like Gary [Player] and Retief [Goosen] and Ernie [Els] and David Frost, Hugh Baiocchi, John Bland – we can go through a very long list all the way through, kind of, my crew with me and Charl [Schwartzel] and Louis [Oosthuizen].
‘And now it is these youngsters coming through, like Erik van Rooyen, Christiaan Bezuidenhout and guys like that … it’s exciting.
‘It’s great to see the talent starting to shine through when they get the opportunity on the biggest stages and also I think a lot of that is a testament to what the South African Golf Development Board is doing there, that Grant Hepburn has started, the legacy that he is starting to leave is pretty cool. And it’s a proud moment for somebody who lives outside of South Africa to look back at that system and see the fruits of everybody’s labour.
‘If you look at the amount of Majors that South Africans have won in the game of golf, it’s a lot more than a lot of people will realize. I think we do punch above our weight, and I think that with the grassroots platform that we have in place down there now, I think that will continue.’
Photo: Harry How/Getty Images
