GOLFRSA SQUAD WATCH
BREAKOUT
year
After trading boots for birdies, Logan Leisher has enjoyed an incredible season
Christiaan Maas’ all-encompassing love for the game is also to the benefit of those who have the privilege of watching him
play
BY CLINTON VAN DER BERG
When Logan Leisher teed it up in Mauritius for his first international start in August 2025, few could have imagined that just five years after picking up a golf club for the very first time, he would be lifting the trophy.
Yet that’s exactly what happened at the MCB Indian Ocean Open at Anahita, where the 22-year-old claimed a one-stroke victory with a composed performance that belied his relatively short journey in the sport.
Leisher’s final round was a study in resilience. He burst out of the blocks with three birdies in his first six holes, giving himself a cushion that would prove invaluable down the stretch. His one-under-par 71 was the best score of the day, enough to edge local professional Pierre Pellegrin by a single shot on one-over-par 217. It capped a week where he led from the opening round and never looked back.
‘The win has made me very confident, knowing I was able to get it done on my first try’
LEISHER'S 2025 AT A GLANCE
🏆 MCB Indian Ocean Open
🏆 Northern Cape Open
🥈 SA Stroke Play Championship
🥈 Gauteng North Silver Salver
🥉 Western Province Stroke Play – third place finish
📈 Climbed from 29th to inside the top 5 of the GolfRSA Open Amateur Rankings
‘I got off to a very nice start,’ he said. ‘The last few holes were brutal, playing into the wind. I didn’t hit any terrible shots, but it was hard to score. I just had to hang on. The win has made me very confident, knowing I was able to get it done on my first try.’
What makes his story remarkable is not just the victory, but also the unexpected path that led him there.
Unlike many of his peers who were nurtured through junior golf programmes, Leisher’s early sporting life unfolded on the football pitch. A standout at academy and provincial level with Alberton Football Club, Wits Football Academy, Eastern Football Association and even earning national colours at the SA Football Association, he surprised many when he chose to walk away in 2020, a decision that would eventually steer him towards a new sporting chapter.
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The family had moved to Eye of Africa Estate before the Covid-19 pandemic, and Leisher’s father Raymond, a lifelong golfer, encouraged his son to give golf a try. ‘I wasn’t interested at all, but then the pandemic struck and at the start of the lockdown, I started hitting balls into a net in the garden to pass the time. To my surprise, I really enjoyed it.’
What started as a way to stay active during lockdown quickly became a career path. As soon as golf was allowed again, Leisher was a fixture at the driving range.
‘I had probably played fewer than three rounds of golf ever before 2020. Once golf opened, I was at the range every day. I always wanted to be a sportsman, but instead of football, golf turned out to be the one. It just became part of me, and things just progressed naturally from there.’
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He started playing at the Eye of Africa course and within a year was down to a five handicap. ‘I entered the 2021 junior club championship, my first tournament ever, and I was so stoked when I won,’ Leisher recalls. ‘A few months later I played my first provincial junior event at Glenvista and pretty much stuck with the junior events until I played my first Open Amateur event, the Free State Open at Heron Banks in 2023. I think I only made one cut that year.’
It wasn’t until he won the KZN Open at Prince’s Grant in 2024 that Leisher knew he’d made the right career choice. ‘I went into the final round leading by one shot and I was nervous as hell,’ he says. ‘I just kept my head down, and I won on seven under. More importantly, it was the first time I shot under par in all the rounds. That was the confirmation I needed.’
‘I always wanted to be a sportsman and golf turned out to be the one. It just became part of me’
Now, with a prestigious international title to his name and a future filled with opportunities, Leisher is proof that talent, hard work and a touch of daring can rewrite the script.
His Mauritius victory, coming in a breakout season that included a runner-up finish at the South African Stroke Play Championship, a win at the Northern Cape Open, another runner-up at the Gauteng North Silver Salver and a string of strong results on the local circuit, confirmed his rapid rise as one of the country’s most exciting young prospects.
His induction into the GolfRSA National Squad in August was another big boost, but it also sharpened his focus on what comes next.
‘I’m picking my tournaments more carefully and, hopefully, I’ll get starts at a few more international events. I’m thinking about the Sunshine Tour Q-School next year, but the GolfRSA UK Tour is something I need to consider too.’
ERnEST BLIGNAULT/GOLFRSA/SUPPLIED
