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DRIVEN TO SUCCEED

Werner Deyzel has the talent to overcome the pro challenges he is so candid about. Clinton van der Berg 

In late December, all Werner Deyzel had on his mind were holiday plans.


With a couple of weeks off, he wanted to switch off from golf for a while. But he loves it too much, so he took his clubs along, hoping for several swings every other day.


Deyzel made a strong start to his career, having turned professional in 2023, but his form meandered as he closed out 2024.


“I’m in a slump with my swing, not hitting the ball too good,” he says after an ordinary showing at the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open that closed out his year. “I’m trying to dig myself out of a hole. I must keep my head down, work on the right stuff.”


Happily, Deyzel’s record proves his talent is there – he just needs to tighten up and reclaim the form that saw him sitting in third place on the Rookie of the Year standings at the end of 2024 and three top-10 finishes since May.


His solid amateur career, anchored by his presence in the GolfRSA squad, saw him represent South Africa at numerous tournaments, including the All Africa Golf Team Championship.


In 2023, he made the leap to professional golf, making an immediate impact with a victory on the Blue Label Development Tour that September. His consistent performances, highlighted by six top-10 finishes on the Big Easy Tour, earned him a spot on the Sunshine Tour for the 2024-25 season.


Deyzel kicked off the new season with promise, making the cut at three of the first four events, highlighting his potential and determination to excel.

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But the capricious nature of golf – you can rock up feeling poorly and play well, or arrive positively and endure a blowout – is what sticks in his craw. He says his game doesn’t feel especially off, but he’s having it tough. He needs to work his way back, starting with that holiday.


But a holiday has its negatives: don’t practise enough and you resume the Sunshine Tour lacking sharpness.


If most 24-year-olds will experience existential doubts, whether golfers or not, Deyzel has the comfort of knowing he can hang with the big dogs.


“I’ve had a strong start to my pro career,” he agrees. “I’m happy with that. I’m past halfway in the current season, but I must make up for missing two or three Sunshine Tour cuts.”


He says that not much has surprised him in the professional game, but there are marked differences from the amateurs.


“On the amateur circuit, if you shoot one over and then three over in the second round, you’re still making the cut. And with two good rounds, you may still get a top 10.

“I’ve had a strong start to my pro career. I’m happy with that. I’m past halfway in the current season, but I must make up for missing two or three Sunshine Tour cuts”

“Now it’s way more bunched up. If you’re making the cut on the number, you can be six shots behind. Anything can happen; you can win or get a top 10, especially at the coastal events where the weather is a key factor. A lot of times you may not be playing well, but make the cut. You can squeeze out a six under in the third round and move into the top 10.”


The other difference he has observed is how much more expensive the pro game is. As an amateur, Deyzel’s father sponsored him. Now with golf as his new career, he must pay his own way and cough up for a full-time caddie. Those top-10 finishes thus take on a whole new importance.


Even when Deyzel was a schoolboy in Garsfontein, Pretoria, he knew he would be a pro golfer, although his start was hampered by Covid before he enjoyed a full season on the Big Easy Tour.


He says golf can be a “cool” career, but he’s yet to be completely seduced by its charms, reckoning that 30% of pros on the Sunshine Tour aren’t playing bad golf, while finding it expensive to keep going.


“If it’s good, all the bills get paid,” says the Woodhill Country Club member.


It’s evident that Deyzel is still coming to terms with his transition, learning as he goes and trying to find his place. Ambitious and driven, it helps too that he’s smart along with talented, and ought to crack on in 2025.

CHIP SHOTS

Best course: Leopard Creek. We have a farm in the Kruger Park nearby, and I love nature.

Best golf experience: My first top 10 [SunBet Challenge Times Square at Wingate].

The biggest surprise about pro golf: Just how good the guys actually are.

Best country visited: Japan.

Hobbies away from golf: My best mate (and caddie) Alex Pienaar has introduced me to hunting and shooting, and we fish a lot. I also enjoy hiking with my girlfriend.

Who is the GOAT? It’s still Tiger Woods.

IMAGES: TYRONE WINFIELD/SHAUN ROY/SUNSHINE TOUR