Sunshine Tour executive director Selwyn Nathan phoned Casey Jarvis’ father towards the end of last year. Nathan had a very important message for the young player who won every 2020 major amateur title South Africa had to offer, and did so in record fashion.
“I was hearing about some ridiculous figures being thrown around for Casey to turn professional,†Nathan said.
He phoned Kevin Jarvis with advice to pass on to 17-year-old Casey. It was advice coming from a man who has been involved in professional golf for more than 50 years, from player to promoter to Sunshine Tour commissioner, deputy chairman of the Southern Africa PGA Tour, chairman of the South African Golf Development Board and now his current Sunshine Tour role.
It was a simple piece of advice: “Wait.â€
And Jarvis is happy to do so.
In the context of modern professional sport, never mind golf, it seems anomalous for a young star to delay the march towards wealth and fame. “If you’re good enough, you’re old enough†sits right alongside “Just Do It†as mantras of this age.
Jarvis is good enough. His 2020 results bear testimony to his skill. At 16 years, 6 months and 17 days he became the youngest winner of the South African Stroke Play Championship, ending Dale Hayes’ 51-year record. The way he won is significant: He posted rounds of 66, 65, 67 and 65 for a 25-under-par total, nine strokes better than his nearest challenger. He then completed the South African double by winning the South African Amateur Championship, beating Scotland’s James Wilson, 7 and 6, in the final.
He added victories in several of GolfRSA’s biggest provincial opens. His Gauteng North Open win featured rounds of 69, 63, 64 and 63 for an eight-stroke victory. He ended the year with another major milestone, winning the Freddie Tait Cup as leading amateur in the South African Open Championship, where he finished tied 25th overall. He is only the second golfer since 1969 to achieve the treble of the SA Amateur Stroke Play, SA Amateur and Freddie Tait Cup in the same year.
“I can still learn a lot. I just feel like I’m not ready to turn professional at the moment, even though my results are good.â€
Casey Jarvis
Jarvis clearly is good enough. But his experience of playing with the professionals in three European Tour co-sanctioned tournaments in South Africa at the end of last year makes him more than happy to heed Nathan’s advice.
“I can still learn a lot,†Jarvis said. “I just feel like I’m not ready to turn professional at the moment, even though my results are good.
“Just playing with professionals like Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Matthias Schwab, George Coetzee and Darren Fichardt during those European Tour events showed me how well they manage their games. I hit the ball just as well as they do, but their short games are unbelievable. From what I saw, the short game means a lot when you’re on tour. So I’d like to turn pro one day, but not soon.â€
For now, Jarvis is focusing on the myriad of US colleges courting his attention. Nathan, for one, believes he’s making the right choice.
“I’ve heard that he’s a bright kid who enjoys his academics, so it makes sense for him to go to college,†Nathan said. “He’s only 17 years old. I’ve seen it too many times before when talented amateurs turn pro too soon and struggle to adapt. That’s why I phoned his dad and said to give Casey time to make sure he’s ready. And his parents understand this. So does Casey. They’re in no rush.â€
Jarvis also shows a remarkable maturity in his own assessment of his standout 2020 season.
“It’s the best year I’ve had as a golfer,†he said. “Everything just clicked with my whole game, and I was playing with so much confidence. But because of lockdown we didn’t get much international competition. This year I’m hoping to play more internationally, and winning on the international stage against the best amateurs in the world would be a big step forward for me.â€
Nathan agrees.
“Casey missed out on a year of top international amateur competition when he was playing at his peak,†he said. “I think he is an unbelievable talent, and waiting a bit longer in the amateur ranks won’t do him any harm.â€
Jarvis has some excellent people around him. His father used to caddie on the Sunshine Tour and knows the professional world well. Former Sunshine Tour professional Tyrol Auret is his godfather. He also has considerable support as part of GolfRSA’s elite amateur squads, which are driven by Johann Rupert’s vision to give the country’s top amateurs as much international, competitive experience as possible.
Additionally, he has the benefit of phone calls from genuinely concerned individuals such as Nathan who take pride in South Africa’s ability to produce quality professional golfers with longevity. In fact, it’s a standard line drummed into the country’s elite amateurs by GolfRSA to not turn professional too early.
Perhaps Jarvis’ greatest asset will not be his talent or access to career advice. It may well be his own ability to remain patient, and make sure his timing on professional golf is exactly right.
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