Erik van Rooyen of South Africa plays his tee shot on the fourth hole during the final round of the 2024 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club As the only SA player to make the cut Charl Schwartzel and amateur Christo Lamprecht missed the cut, Erik van Rooyen (pictured) was entering uncharted territory in his third Masters appearance. Picture: David Cannon/Getty Images via AFP
Erik van Rooyen described his Masters experience as brutal, as he finished as the top South African at Augusta National on Sunday.
Van Rooyen finished in a tie for 55th with rounds of 71 76 78 76 to end on 13-over for the week.
Meanwhile, Scottie Scheffler romped to his second Masters title as he claimed victory by four shots on 11-under.
As the only SA player to make the cut after 2011 champion Charl Schwartzel and amateur Christo Lamprecht missed the cut, Van Rooyen was entering uncharted territory in his third Masters appearance.
His previous trips around Augusta saw Van Rooyen withdraw in 2020, and miss the cut in 2022.
This time Van Rooyen made the cut with three shots to spare, in conditions that he described as the most difficult he’s encountered.
“The first few days were absolutely brutal. Like I mentioned before, it's probably some of the toughest conditions I've ever played in,” said Van Rooyen
“But it's now my third time here, and I've improved every single time I've come here. First time I had to withdraw, second time I missed the cut and now I played four rounds. Maybe next year it'll be even a bit better than that.”
Van Rooyen’s final round started badly with a double bogey at the par four first, but he quickly responded with birdie at the par five second.
Three more bogeys would follow before Van Rooyen made the turn though, as he fell to four-over.
While Van Rooyen was more consistent on the back nine with five pars, his two birdies were offset with two more drops.
“[It was] Pretty similar to yesterday. I feel like I was relatively poor off the tee. It's just an odd golf course. You're going to battle from there on out. Just not a ton of opportunities,” said Van Rooyen.
Of the players that made the weekend, Van Rooyen finished ahead of only three of them - but that trio included Tiger Woods. The 15-time major winner finished last among the 60 players who made the cut.