Christiaan Bezuidenhout

Christiaan Bezuidenhout ([ˈkrɪstiˌjaːn bəˈzœidənˌɦəut]; born 18 May 1994) is a South African professional golfer who plays on the European Tour. He won the 2019 Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters.

Christiaan Bezuidenhout
Personal information
Born (1994-05-18) 18 May 1994
Delmas, Mpumalanga, South Africa
Nationality South Africa
ResidenceJohannesburg, South Africa
Career
Turned professional2015
Current tour(s)European Tour
Sunshine Tour
Professional wins5
Highest ranking45 (21 June 2020)[1]
(as of 16 August 2020)
Number of wins by tour
European Tour1
Sunshine Tour2
Challenge Tour1
Other2
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentDNP
PGA ChampionshipCUT: 2020
U.S. OpenDNP
The Open ChampionshipCUT: 2019
Achievements and awards
Big Easy Tour
Order of Merit winner		2015
Sunshine Tour
Rookie of the Year		2017

Amateur career

As an amateur, Bezuidenhout received a drug suspension after testing positive for beta blockers at the 2014 Amateur Championship. Bezuidenhout was using them for anxiety and a stutter after an accidental poisoning at the age of two. The suspension was originally for two years, but was later reduced to nine months.[2]

Professional career

Bezuidenhout turned professional in early 2015.[3] He had success in September 2015 winning two 36-hole events on the Big Easy Tour, losing in a playoff for the Big Easy Tour Championship and also winning the Order of Merit.

In December 2015, Bezuidenhout won the Sunshine Tour Q School. In the first event of the season, the 2016 BMW SA Open, co-sanctioned with the European Tour, he finished runner-up to Brandon Stone.[4] Later in 2016, he won a smaller tournament on the Sunshine Tour, the Sun Fish River Challenge, and finished runner-up in the Vodacom Origins of Golf Final. Bezuidenhout started 2017 with 5th place finishes in both the Eye of Africa PGA Championship and the Dimension Data Pro-Am. He was the 2016–17 Sunshine Tour Rookie of the Year, awarded the Bobby Locke Trophy.[5]

Bezuidenhout played a number of 2017 Challenge Tour events. He finished tied for 25th place in the European Tour Q-School to gain a place on the main tour for 2018. Bezuidenhout made the cut in 20 of his 26 2018 European Tour starts. His best finish was tied for 17th place and he finished 105th in the Order of Merit, just retaining his card for 2019.

Bezuidenhout was one of nine runners-up in the 2019 Commercial Bank Qatar Masters behind Justin Harding. He also tied for 4th place in the Hero Indian Open and for third place in the BMW International Open. The following week he won the Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters and with the win earned entry into the 2019 Open Championship.[2][3][5] He was third in the 2019 BMW PGA Championship to enter the world top 100 for the first time and finished the season 18th in the European Tour Order of Merit.

In January 2020, Bezuidenhout lost in a sudden death playoff at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic to Lucas Herbert. Playing his final hole he held the outright lead, but found the water with his third shot resulting in a bogey finish. He lost the playoff to a birdie on the second extra hole. The following month he won the Dimension Data Pro-Am in South Africa and advanced into the top 50 on the Official World Golf Ranking. Bezuidenhout trailed by a shot coming to the final hole but made an eagle 3 to beat George Coetzee by one.[6]

Professional wins (5)

European Tour wins (1)
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runners-up
1 30 Jun 2019 Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters −10 (66-68-69-71=274) 6 strokes Adri Arnaus, Eduardo de la Riva,
Mike Lorenzo-Vera, Álvaro Quirós,
Jon Rahm

European Tour playoff record (0–1)

No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
1 2020 Omega Dubai Desert Classic Lucas Herbert Lost to birdie on second extra hole

Sunshine Tour wins (2)
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner-up
1 14 Oct 2016 Sun Fish River Challenge −8 (69-69-70=208) 2 strokes Daniel van Tonder
2 16 Feb 2020 Dimension Data Pro-Am1 −25 (61-67-69-67=264) 1 stroke George Coetzee

1Co-sanctioned by the Challenge Tour

Big Easy Tour wins (2)
No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory		 Runner(s)-up
1 4 Sep 2015 The Kings Cup - Big Easy Tour −10 (67-67=134) 3 strokes Riekus Nortje
2 9 Sep 2015 Big Easy Tour - Glendower GC −1 (68-75=143) 1 stroke Kim Dong-kwan, Michael Palmer

Results in major championships

Results not in chronological order in 2020.

Tournament 20192020
Masters Tournament
PGA Championship CUT
U.S. Open
The Open Championship CUT NT
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
NT = No tournament due to COVID-19 pandemic

Results in World Golf Championships
Tournament20192020
Championship T29
Match Play NT1
Invitational T20
Champions T17

1Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic

  Did not play

NT = No tournament
"T" = Tied

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See also

References
  1. "Week 25 2020 Ending 21 Jun 2020" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  2. Huggan, John (30 June 2019). "South African's maiden European Tour win is redemption after questionable drug ban as an amateur". Golf Digest.
  3. Tait, Alistair (30 June 2019). "Christiaan Bezuidenhout's first European Tour win comes with Open Championship bonus". Golfweek.
  4. "Young, talented: Christiaan Bezuidenhout (No. 6)". Sunshine Tour. 27 January 2016.
  5. Lavner, Ryan (30 June 2019). "From rat poison to winner's circle: Christiaan Bezuidenhout claims Andalucia Masters". Golf Channel.
  6. "Final hole eagle lifts Bezuidenhout to Dimension Data Pro-Am title". Sport 24. 16 February 2019.
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