Levy on fairway after SA Juniors victory

Seventeen-year-old Daniel Levy won the South African Juniors International 2025 in March this year, being challenged by about 90 of the best Under-19 amateurs in the country.

The Johannesburg-based Levy went under par on each day of the three-round event at Rondebosch Golf Course, Cape Town, from 3 to 6 March.

Levy, a matric student at St David’s Marist Inanda, said, “Winning was a great feeling because I worked hard for it. Lots of pride, lots of relief as well because it was stressful on the day.

“I managed to shoot scores of 66, which is 6 under par, then 67, which is 5 under par, and then 70, which is 2 under par, to give me 13 under par overall.” Levy won by one shot over another Central Gauteng Golf Union player, Vuyisani Makama.

“I hit the ball really well for the three days,” Levy says. “You have to do everything well to win. The particular stand-out part of my game was driving off the tee. I hit a lot of fairway, which allowed me to score.”

Levy, who competes at school, provincial, and national levels, says, “I’ve won provincial and club events before, but this was my first win in a national event, which is really big for me.” Other golfing highlights include playing with his friends and uncle.

Levy was just two years old when his father introduced him to golf. “I like any sport that involves a ball in it. I played cricket a lot of my life, and then when the COVID-19 pandemic came, I played a lot of golf because all other sports were closed due to contact,” he says. “I just kind of fell in love with golf, and never went back to any of the others.”

Levy, a member of Johannesburg Country Club, says he loves the fact that in golf, “the challenge is that you can’t be perfect, but you strive for perfection. Even the best in the world – Rory [McIlroy] and Tiger [Woods] – still work on their swings every day. I like that. It will never be perfect, but you can always get better.”

Levy, whose favourite golfer is McIlroy, says juggling matric studies and golfing pursuits is difficult. “I miss quite a lot of school. Last year, I missed about 50 days of school. This year, I’ve missed about 20 days of school and we are only three months in. It’s hard to manage and catch up on all the work, but it’s worth the challenge to play.”

Levy stopped playing all other sports about two years ago to focus on the 18-hole game. “I still play sports like padel and football with my friends, but golf is the sport I play competitively,” he says.

Levy, whose next event is the South African Boys’ Championship in Mossel Bay, wants to go to an American college to play golf. “Then after that, we’ll see what happens.”