The six South Africans making their Nedbank Golf Challenge debuts

Appearing at the Nedbank Golf Challenge for the first time has become akin to a right of passage for South African golfers.

Of a 13-strong contingent of home hopes teeing it up this week in Sun City, six are making their first appearance in the limited field event which has a US$6 million prize fund.

Here, we take a look at the players - four of whom are DP World Tour members on the 2026 Race to Dubai - aiming to shine brightest at 'Africa's Major' as the Opening Swing makes its first visit to South Africa at Gary Player Country Club.

Jayden Schaper

• Age: 24

• Official World Golf Ranking: 153

A two-time Sunshine Tour Rookie of the Year, he played on the HotelPlanner Tour in 2022 and in 2023 finished 104th on the Race to Dubai Rankings despite starting the season without membership. Now since established on the DP World Tour after reaching the Play-Offs for the past two seasons, he is hoping to build on the momentum established with nine top tens on golf's global Tour in 2025 - second most behind Spain's rising star Angel Ayora.

Jacques Kruyswijk

• Age: 33

• Official World Golf Ranking: 174

A consistent performer in his homeland for a number of years, he enjoyed a breakout year on the DP World Tour in 2025. In his second campaign on Tour after graduating from Qualifying School in 2023, he won the Magical Kenya Open presented by Absa for his first title. He came close to a second on home soil at the Joburg Open, losing out to Calum Hill in a three-man play-off that also featured fellow South African Shaun Norris. He made his Major Championship debut at the U.S. Open as a qualifier, finishing the season a career-best 31st on the Race to Dubai Rankings.

Dylan Naidoo

• Age: 27

• Official World Golf Ranking: 371

Made his DP World Tour debut just days after his 17th birthday in 2015, before going on to be a consistent figure on the Sunshine Tour after turning professional in 2019. Won his national Open in a play-off with England's Laurie Canter in May to secure a two-year DP World Tour membership, while also qualifying for The Open at Royal Portrush - his Major Championship debut. While he lost form over the second half of the 2025 campaign, he did make it to the start of the DP World Tour Play-Offs in Abu Dhabi.

Yurav Premlall

• Age: 22

• Official World Golf Ranking: 569

A rising talent in South African golf, Gary Player personally extended an invitation to him for this year's edition. He comes into the event with good memories at Gary Player Country Club, having lifted the Freddie Tait Cup as the leading amateur in his national Open when it was played at Sun City. That same year he also won the Nedbank Junior Challenge at the venue. A winner on the Sunshine Tour for the first time last year, this is just his 21st start on the DP World Tour.

Garrick Higgo

• Age: 26

• Official World Golf Ranking: 68

It's perhaps a surprise to realise that this is his debut, having represented his country at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and reached a career-high 38th in the world. Gary Player Country Club holds fond memories having won his first Sunshine Tour title at the Sun City Challenge in 2019. A year later, he won the first of his three DP World Tour titles at the Open de Portugal at Royal Óbidos. In 2021, he made his PGA TOUR breakthrough with victory in the Palmetto Championship. Having seen his progress impacted by a wrist injury, he won a second PGA TOUR title at the Corales Puntacana Championship earlier this year.

Christo Lamprecht

• Age: 24

• Official World Golf Ranking: 145

Like Premlall, he has received an invitation from South Africa’s Grand Slam icon to take his place in the field this week. A winner of The Amateur Championship in 2023 and the former world number one-ranked amateur, he claimed his first win as a professional at the Pinnacle Bank Championship on the Korn Ferry Tour in August. He went on to finish ninth on the Korn Ferry Tour Points List to earn his PGA TOUR card for next season. Among the longest hitters in the game, he is six feet, eight inches tall.

How have the other South Africans fared on their appearances at the Nedbank Golf Challenge?