Christiaan Bezuidenhout — so near a tragic death

body’s whole nervous system and caused him to stutter. Even today 24 years later he still speaks with a stutter, although he is proud of his efforts to overcome it.

He said: “Golf was my safe place. I could be myself and do my own thing.”

He first played golf when aged four, played in tournaments when eight and developed a love of golf then, all the while dreaming of being a professional golfer living and competing in America.

He did play some rugby but golf was number one because he could be on his own and not have to put up with other youngsters making fun of his stuttering. It was very upsetting for him and he sought help from speech therapists and counselling.

At 15 years of age beta blockers were helping his confidence and enjoyment of life. He was now making his name known as a promising golfer by winning various junior tournaments in South Africa. But what followed a win was harder than the golf as he didn’t want to give a victory speech. Where they knew him they just gave him the trophy and he left.

He has great appreciation for South African golf legend Ernie Els and his foundation for helping golfers to progress. Bezuidenhout was in the programme for six years and he and Els have become good friends.

“I was fortunate to be in that programme,” Bezuidenhout told Harig.

“Ernie has done a lot for my career and we have spent a lot of time together talking about many things. His advice on travel, my game and all sorts has been great.

“We reminisce about his major wins, how he played different shots to different holes and how his mind was working.”

As Bezuidenhout’s game improved he would record better finishes culminating in his first European Tour title at the Andalucia Masters in 2019. Paired with Jon Rahm, he would win by six shots.

By Neville Idour

South African golfer Christiaan Bezuidenhout may not remember what happened when he was just two years old but he certainly knows now — he was a mere whisker away from death.

His story by Bob Harig from American sports channel ESPN caught my eye and there is nothing better than sharing a feel good story.

Bezuidenhout, 26, now finds golf the easy part of life considering how he got where he is today or even that he did.

As a two-year-old toddler he was with his parents at a park, when he saw a bottle of soda which he quickly opened and took a sip. But it was not soft drink. Instead it was rat poison. Rushed to hospital his life was saved.

However he had suffered severe nervous system and speech issues. The hospital had to pump his stomach to clear the poison but the poison had affected his

More drama at the 2014 British Amateur, when just as his life could have ended as a toddler, there his career could have ended before it had flourished. He tested positive for the prescribed beta blockers he was taking, completely unaware they were banned. Even though he had listed them on a form prior to his drug test he was suspended from competition for two years. That was so devastating for an 18-year-old.

A lot of people thought he took the beta blockers to help his game. The negativity made him want to show such people that he could play well without them so he stopped taking them and hasn’t taken one since. The two-year ban was reduced to nine months during which he worked on his game and turned professional.

A third at the BMW PGA would follow. Before the covid-19 pandemic hit and shut down golf for three months his good start to 2020, with a second and a win, lifted his world ranking to 50. This allowed his dream to be on the PGA Tour to take flight. Places in major championships last year followed plus some sponsor exemptions to PGA Tour events.

This year he has a limited exemption to play 12 events. His aim is to finish in the top 125 for the Fedex Cup.

“I just try to play and if I play well it will take care of myself.”

So far his career has yielded 10 professional wins. Five were international wins including three DP World tour events. Other highlights were a fourth and 13th at The Players’ Championships plus playing in the 2022 Presidents’ Cup where in two starts he recorded a win and a half.

After his near life ending event and road to accomplished professional golfer, Bezuidenhout has surely earned his right to set the highest of goals.