At the cusp of 35, Erik Van Rooyen feels younger than ever. The South African is inching closer to his 40s, but there are no signs of slowing down. Instead, kicking aside injury woes, Van Rooyen stepped on the gas at the Mexico Open. At the lap of the Sierra Madre Mountains, Erik Van Rooyen set the course on fire with five brides and two eagles, which he himself admitted is “pretty rare.” 

The two-time PGA Tour winner is certainly enjoying his time under the Puerto Vallarta sun. It was his birthday, after all. Speaking to the media after the first round, the 34-year-old spoke candidly about aging and what it means to his game. 

Erik Van Rooyen appears hopeful after injury trauma

Van Rooyen feels the best days are still ahead of him. From his five outings this year, the South African has pulled off three top-25 finishes. That’s already half of what he managed last season from his 29 outings. Asked whether the 30s are the ‘sweet spot’ like everyone says, Van Rooyen, said, “I like to think so, I like to think I’m stepping into my best golf.”

Van Rooyen’s career has been riddled with injuries. A neck problem forced him out of the 150th Open in 2022. Injuries have also taken a toll on his performance. Last season, the South African missed 15 cuts—that’s more than half of the tournaments he played. Recounting that, Van Rooyen said, “Had a few injuries the last few years and I’m finally healthy and good golf’s starting to show up. So I like to think the best golf is still ahead of me.”

The World Wide Technology Championship victory that came on the heels of another tragedy – his friend was in the last stages of cancer – was his first in two years. Now, leading at Vidanta Vallarta, the PGA Tour Pro said, “I told my wife yesterday that next year I’m 35 and closer to 40 than I am 30, so I’m going to enjoy 34 for now.” Enjoy what he did in the first round, shooting 8-under-63 to take charge early on. Did it have something to do with Mexico, though?

Van Rooyen loves being in the Land of the Sun

Interestingly, Erik Van Rooyen’s last PGA Tour win at the 2023 World Wide Technology Championship also came in Mexico. What is it about the country that brings the best out of him? “I don’t know what it is. It’s got to be the feed, the people, the whole schabang,” said the South African International. Adding further, the 2022 WWT Championship winner said, “The food is amazing… we’ve a good golf course to boot, so, it’s always just sort of good vibes.”

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Reviewing the first round, the PGAT Pro said, “Two eagles is pretty rare, right? It doesn’t happen that often. If you can do that and you can kind of capitalize on the rest of the round, you’re going to have 8 under like I did today, so that was obviously nice.” Erik Van Rooyen is playing for the 500 FedEx Cup points and $1,458,000 available for the champion.

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