Aldrich Potgieter will start his PGA Tour adventure in 2025 up three places in the latest Official World Golf Ranking list as he reached a career-high 214^th in the year’s first rankings issued on Monday.

The big-hitting youngster earned his status on the PGA Tour through the Korn Ferry Tour last year, during which he became the youngest-ever winner on that tour when he won in the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic. He finished the year with a share of 40^th in the Alfred Dunhill Championship after nearly winning the Nedbank Golf Challenge, and he will tee it up in the Sony Open in Hawaii this week.

His move upwards on the world rankings since the end of 2024 has been largely due to algorithmic adjustments which gave a lot of South Africans small boosts, although they, like Potgieter, have yet to get their 2025 seasons underway.

One player who did play last week was Christiaan Bezuidenhout, and his share of 40^th in the ridiculously low-scoring The Sentry at Kapalua in Hawaii saw him gain one place as he climbed to 54^th.

He is South Africa’s second-best player according to the official rankings, and he is eight places behind the 46^th-placed Thirston Lawrence. At this point, they are the only two South Africans, besides 2011 champion Charl Schwartzel, who will be in the field for the year’s first major championship, the Masters, in April.

South Africa’s top 25:

1. Thriston Lawrence 46 (down 1)
2. Christiaan Bezuidenhout 54 (up 1)
3. Erik van Rooyen 76 (down 1)
4. Dean Burmester 112 (up 3)
5. Shaun Norris 122 (up 2)
6. Louis Oosthuizen 198 (up 1)
7. Robin Williams 203 (up 1)
8. Aldrich Potgieter 214 (up 3)
9. Zander Lombard 238 (down 2)
10. Brandon Stone 247 (up 2)
11. Jayden Schaper 294 (unchanged)
12. Ryan van Velzen 296 (up 3)
13. Casey Jarvis 302 (unchanged)
14. Garrick Higgo 304 (down 3)
15. Barend Botha 312 (down 1)
16. Jonathan Broomhead 342 (up 5)
17. Dylan Frittelli 360 (unchanged)
18. Jaco Ahlers 365 (down 2)
19. Charl Schwartzel 383 (up 4)
20. Thomas Aiken 388 (up 1)
21. Jacques Kruyswijk 393 (unchanged)
22. Deon Germishuys 397 (up 1)
23. Daniel van Tonder 411 (up 1)
24. Darren Fichardt 416 (up 2)
25. Wilco Nienaber 417 (up 1)