Quick Facts
TaurusBiography
Christiaan Bezuidenhout (be-zay-den-hote; 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.
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.
Professional career
Bezuidenhout turned professional in early 2015. 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. 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.
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 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. 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. Bezuidenhout trailed by a shot coming to the final hole but made an eagle 3 to beat George Coetzee by one.
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. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | Danie van Tonder |
| 2 | 16 Feb 2020 | Dimension Data Pro-Am | −25 (61-67-69-67=264) | 1 stroke | George Coetzee |
Co-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
| Tournament | 2019 |
|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | |
| PGA Championship | |
| U.S. Open | |
| The Open Championship | CUT |
CUT = missed the half-way cut
Results in World Golf Championships
| Tournament | 2019 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|
| Mexico Championship | T29 | |
| Dell Technologies Match Play | ||
| FedEx St. Jude Invitational | ||
| HSBC Champions | T17 |
"T" = Tied