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TARGET
Christo Lamprecht has remarkable focus when it comes to knowing what he needs to do to achieve his goals
By Michael Vlismas
When Christo Lamprecht answers the phone, he’s about to drive 45 minutes to the gym. There’s nothing random about that. In Lamprecht’s mind, there will be a clear reason he goes to that gym rather than somewhere closer. It’s one of the many elements of a young star who is focused on knowing exactly what works for him in his quest for greatness in the game.
The 24-year-old’s breakthrough victory on the Korn Ferry Tour this August was a big step towards that goal. It’s carried him into the golden top 20 on the Tour’s standings with four tournaments remaining. If he can stay there, he earns himself a PGA Tour card.
And that’s Lamprecht’s focus – always looking forward, always on the next step he needs to take to learn the lessons he needs to learn early in a professional career many predict will yield plenty of success.
‘There have been a lot of learnings this past year,’ he says. ‘You don’t really know something until you’ve experienced it.
‘I’m very competitive and I try to win as much as I can. But I’ve also tried to be more consistent’
118
The number of places Lamprecht rose in the World Ranking, to 145, after his first win in 27 starts on the Korn Ferry Tour when he took the Pinnacle Bank Championship by one shot.
331.9
yards
The driving distance averaged by the South African on the Korn Ferry Tour, which makes him the longest on the Tour. The average is 308.5 yards.
QUICK Q&A
How much does it help having your cousin as your caddie?
There are very few people who know more about me than him. He sees me getting angry before I even know it. For me, the better the friend I have on the bag, the more calm I can stay, and get out of my own way. It’s like having a brother out there on the course.
What’s your favourite course in the US?
The same one for everybody probably – Augusta National Golf Club. Going to college at Georgia Tech meant we were privileged to play the golf course, and I also did so at The Masters [in 2024]. I’ve never experienced a golf course in such incredible shape.
Any new food favourites you’ve picked up in the US?
No. Nothing gets close to a lamb chop. And beef jerky is just a sad taste in the mouth compared to biltong.
Anybody you maybe ask for advice from on Tour?
Louis Oosthuizen is probably the person I’ve asked the most questions of when I have seen him. Also Garrick Higgo. It’s awesome how those players give us advice.
‘I was fortunate through GolfRSA to have played a bunch of professional tournaments while still an amateur and through my college career, even a few Majors. So I had an idea of pro golf. But it’s another thing being a pro golfer.’
And yet it’s been a remarkable rise for him since turning professional in 2024, including three top-10s on the Korn Ferry Tour, a runner-up finish at last December’s AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open on the DP World Tour, and then the victory with that incredible chip-in from the bunker in Omaha.
‘As a kid who messed around quite a bit on the Kingswood chipping greens in George, I holed out like that a fair amount of times. I did a similar thing at a junior event in South Africa. A lot of things went my way that week.
‘But the biggest thing for me now is not to take the foot off the pedal and ease it home over the next four tournaments on the Korn Ferry Tour. I want to stay focused and try to win four golf tournaments. I’m also trying not to focus on the rankings and to simplify it for myself.
DID YOU KNOW?
There are 26 South African golfers who have played on the Korn Ferry Tour, with eight of them winning – Tim Clark (twice), Garth Mulroy (twice), Deane Pappas (twice), Dawie van der Walt (twice), Trevor Immelman (once), Brendan Pappas (once), Aldrich Potgieter (once) and Lamprecht (once).
‘The cross on my golf glove reminds me to always be grateful that I’m out here doing what I love’
‘I’m trying to get real good at the things I’m good at, and not overdo it. In golf you can get carried away with the big picture. Winning is hard. I’m very competitive and I try to win as much as I can. But I’ve also tried to be more consistent and focus on putting myself in those positions to win more often. I’m just controlling what I can.’
Control what you can – CWYC. This, written on Lamprecht’s golf glove, has been possibly the biggest thing he’s focused on. And it took a friend’s passing to intensify this focus.
‘I first spoke about it with my college coach. I was playing good golf, but I was my own worst enemy. He tried to give me something to focus on so that I didn’t overreact – to a bad or good shot.
WHAT’S IN THE BAG
Lamprecht won the Pinnacle Bank Championship with a two-driver set-up. This is what was in his bag for his first Korn Ferry Tour title:
Drivers:
G430 LST (10.5º), #G440 MAX (12º)
Hybrid:
iCrossover (3)
Irons:
#Blueprint S (5-6), Blueprint T (7-9)
Wedges:
#s159 (46º, 48º, 52º, 56º, 60º)
Putter:
#PLD Anser
Gallery below
‘I write it on my golf glove. Then I have a cross next to it as a reminder of a good friend of mine who passed away when we were in Grade 7. We lived similar lives, and it reminds me to always be grateful that I’m out here doing what I love.’
Keeping it simple is a discipline in a game of such fine margins, and where everybody is not just chasing the 1% improvement, but the 0.01%.
‘Between Scottie Scheffler and No 100 on the rankings is probably less than one percent difference. But it makes a difference over the season. He gets all those 0.01% really well. The danger is you look for the 0.01% and you end up giving away 1% somewhere else. So I think it’s about claiming the lowest hanging fruit for you and working on that.’
And Lamprecht is enjoying being part of a growing group of South Africans contending and winning on US fairways.
A DAY IN THE LIFE
Get an inside look at how Lamprecht prepared for the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour Finals.
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‘It’s a different environment, and for us as South Africans, the biggest adjustment is that comfort level. It’s hard to come from SA and you don’t know where to have dinner in a new town.
‘The competitive nature out here is different to the Sunshine Tour and DP World Tour. They play golf differently over here. It’s a lot more percentage golf, compared to more feel golf on the other Tours. The courses are also set up so differently.
‘But I’ll be honest, as a kid I never realised just how strong a group of golfers we are in our generation, from a Daniel Bennett to a Dylan Naidoo or Aldrich Potgieter, and Wilco Nienaber, Jayden Schaper, Deon Germishuys, Garrick Higgo, Luca Filippi and so many others who all played around each other.
‘I think it’s one of the strongest generations that has come through South Africa in a long time, and it’s awesome to be a part of it.’
MAGIC AT WORK
See how the 24-year-old won the Pinnacle Bank Championship on the 18th hole.
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JAY BIGGERSTAFF/BRENNAN ASPLEN/BUDA MENDES/GETTY IMAGES/GALLO IMAGES/TYRONE WINFIELD/SUNSHINE TOUR/PING
