Seventh Youngest Champion in Rocket Mortgage Classic History
Youngest Winner Ever on Korn Ferry Tour Last Year
Emerging as a Post-McIlroy Power Hitter with Drives up to 393 Yards
Rugby and Wrestling Background, Combining a 96kg Frame with Flexibility
A 'phenomenon' has emerged.
This refers to 20-year-old long hitter Aldrich Potgieter from South Africa. On June 29 (local time), at the Detroit Golf Club (par 72) in Detroit, Michigan, USA, Potgieter claimed his first-ever victory on the PGA Tour at the Rocket Mortgage Classic (total prize money: $9.6 million), prevailing after five playoff holes against Max Greyserman and Chris Kirk (both from the United States).
Potgieter became a rare under-21 champion on the PGA Tour. At 20 years and 289 days old, he is the seventh youngest winner in PGA Tour history. The only players younger than Potgieter to win on the PGA Tour are Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Jordan Spieth, Matthew Wolff, Nick Dunlap (all from the United States), and Kim Joo-hyung. He is the fifth player from outside the United States to win a PGA Tour event before turning 21, following Seve Ballesteros (Spain), Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland), Joaquin Niemann (Chile), and Kim Joo-hyung. Potgieter is now the youngest South African ever to win on the PGA Tour. He took home a winner’s check of $1,728,000 (approximately 2.35 billion won).
Aldrich Potgieter is regarded as a promising talent who will lead the PGA Tour in the future. Photo by AFP Yonhap News
Potgieter turned professional in 2023, advancing from last year’s PGA Korn Ferry (second-tier) Tour to the main tour this year. In January 2023, he set the record for the youngest-ever winner on the Korn Ferry Tour by capturing the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at 19 years, 4 months, and 11 days old. He broke the previous record set by Jason Day (Australia) in 2007 (19 years, 7 months, 26 days). His world ranking has also risen rapidly. He finished last year ranked 217th, and this year has climbed to a personal best of 49th. If he maintains his current pace, breaking into the top 10 is within reach.
Potgieter was born on September 13, 2004, in Pretoria, South Africa. He started playing golf as a child, and at age 8, moved with his family to Perth, Australia. Due to Australia’s COVID-19 policies, he was unable to compete in tournaments, so he returned to South Africa at age 17. Since 2020, he has collected trophies at amateur events in both Australia and South Africa. In June 2022, at age 17, he won the Amateur Championship. He became the second youngest winner in history, after Matteo Manassero (Italy), who won at age 16 in 2009.
Aldrich Potgieter, who is 180cm tall and weighs 96kg, is a long hitter capable of driving the ball up to 400 yards. Photo by AFP Yonhap News
After winning the African Amateur Stroke Play Championship in February 2023, Potgieter went on to claim victory at the Junior Invitational, the top junior tournament in the United States, in April of the same year. Thanks to his win at the 2022 Amateur Championship, he competed in the following year’s Masters Tournament, but shot rounds of 77 and 74 and missed the cut.
Potgieter is a versatile sportsman, having also played rugby and wrestling. He has an outstanding physique, standing 180cm tall and weighing 96kg. At the second round of the PGA Tour’s Sony Open this January, he unleashed a remarkable 393-yard tee shot. Charl Schwartzel (South Africa), who played alongside Potgieter at the Masters last April, said, “He really hits the ball far. It was almost scary.”
The reason he attracted attention early on is not only his young age but also his jaw-dropping driving distance. He is the top long hitter on the PGA Tour. He averages 7 yards longer than Rory McIlroy (320.6 yards), who was the longest driver on the PGA Tour until last year?a huge difference. Potgieter ranks first in this category this year (327.4 yards). At the Rocket Mortgage Classic, he averaged 337.20 yards off the tee (1st place). On the Korn Ferry Tour, he also led with an average of 336.5 yards. In the Monday qualifier for the PGA Tour’s John Deere Classic in July 2023, Potgieter made a hole-in-one on a 403-yard par-4. In the second round of the Korn Ferry Tour’s Astara Golf Championship last February, he shot an 11-under-par 59.
Like most long hitters, his fairway accuracy rate is 54.83% (142nd), and his greens in regulation rate is 65.53% (93rd). However, at this Rocket Mortgage Classic, he recorded a fairway accuracy rate of 64.41% (42nd) and a greens in regulation rate of 85.71% (3rd) over four days. His strategy of attacking the green with short clubs after long drives paid off. For his age, his putting is top level. He ranks 26th in putts per round (28.38) and 23rd in average putts per hole when hitting the green (1.728), both respectable numbers. Potgieter said, “I’m so happy to have won,” and added, “I’m delighted to have finished the tournament on a high note,” expressing childlike joy.
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