Player Profile - Louis Oosthuizen

Louis Oosthuizen is the latest young golf talent to emerge from South Africa. Born in 1982 in the town of Mossel Bay in South Africa's Western Cape Province, Oosthuizen showed a talent for golf from a young age. Known to his friends as 'Shrek', the twenty-seven year old golfer entered the golf programme at the Ernie Els Fancourt Foundation in the year 2000. After several years of intensive training and on-course experience, Oosthuizen went professional in 2002, at the age of nineteen.

As a young professional on South Africa's Sunshine Tour, Louis won five tournaments, including the Telkom PGA Championship two years in a row in 2007 and 2008. He joined the European Challenge Tour, a training ground for talented young pro golfers in 2003 and qualified for the European Tour in 2004. In the years following his debut, Oosthuizen steadily improved his game, placing in the top 35 at the Race to Dubai in 2009, and ranking in the world top 50 players in the same year. 2010 saw his first tour victory, the Open de Andalucia de Golf.

On July 18th, Oosthuizen made his mark on professional golf at the highest level. After taking the lead on day two of the British Open at St Andrews, the young South African opened up a seven stroke lead and sailed to victory in a display of masterful play and nerves of steel. His victory, coinciding with the 92nd birthday of Nelson Mandela, marks the beginning of a promising career for the mild-mannered and highly focused golfer. He thanked fellow South African champion Ernie Els, who congratulated him on his victory and whose foundation gave him his start in professional golf.

Oosthuizen's wife Nel-Mare had been supporting him throughout the championship, as was South African golf legend Gary Player, who called Oosthuizen on the morning of the final round to offer some words of advice and encouragement. Louis Oosthuizen has made his mark on professional golf, setting the scene for a successful and exciting career.