LIVING THE DREAM

Growing up, Eric Van Rooyen used to wait until the early hours to watch his South African heroes tee off at Augusta. Now it’s his turn...

- Michael Weston

For what seemed like an eternity, Erik Van Rooyen could only watch and wait to see whether he’d end the year in the world’s top 50 to qualify automatically for his Masters debut. He had downed tools after the season ended in Dubai, which left his position in some jeopardy. Monday mornings were spent checking the updated rankings to see if his points had “depreciated like a car”.

Fortunately for the South African, they held their value, and a few weeks later he got one of those fancy invites in the post from Augusta’s Board of Governors. Place secured.

Qualification came on the back of his most successful season on the European Tour to date. In August, he won his maiden title at the Scandinavian Invitation in Sweden, and he finished tenth in the Race to Dubai. There were three runner-up spots, too, and a top-ten finish at the USPGA Championship. It was a hectic season, one that left him “knackered”. However, after years of watching The Masters, the 30-year-old finally gets to fulfill a lifelong dream.

“It’s always been a tough one to watch as a kid, with the time difference,” says Van Rooyen. “I was supposed to go to school the next day and I’d have to stay up until two o’clock to watch the leaders teeing off. I remember watching Trevor win [Immelman, 2008] and Ernie [Els, 2004] crushingly getting heartbroken.