Jayden Schaper, South Africa’s top-ranked men’s golfer, is aiming to secure a Masters invite by maintaining a top 50 world ranking by the end of March, following his recent back-to-back DP World Tour victories. Picture: LACHLAN CUNNINGHAM / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / GETTY IMAGES VIA AFP
Image: LACHLAN CUNNINGHAM / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / GETTY IMAGES VIA AFP
As South Africa’s top-ranked men’s golfer in the world right now, Jayden Schaper will be chasing an exclusive Masters invite by the end of the month.
Schaper won back-to-back events on the DP World Tour in December at the Alfred Dunhill Championship and then the Mauritius Open. Those triumphs were also Schaper’s first two on the DPWT for the professional who turns 25 in mid-March.
His play has seen him rise as high as 49th in the world earlier this year, and he currently holds the 57th position in the world.
Should he maintain a ranking inside the top 50 in the world by the end of March, he will earn an invite to play at The Masters at Augusta for the first time.
“Yeah, you want to play in the majors. You want to win a major. I think that's the biggest goal in this game,” Schaper told Sportsboom.co.za.
“It's a bonus. If it doesn't happen this year, I'll work towards it for the next couple of years. I'm not going to force anything. You go out there, you have a good week, you find yourself in the top 50 again. If it happens, it happens. If not, there's always a next year.”
Though Schaper’s success on the DPWT has been sudden, he has campaigned on the tour for three full seasons before he broke through.
Ultimately, Schaper’s big goal is to compete more consistently, he explained.
“Yeah, it's good. I mean, obviously, it feels a little bit nicer coming into each week as a winner on the tour, especially a two-time winner."
“I mean, it's still the same every time you come out here. You want to come out here and do your best, and you work for that win. So yeah, but it's been all good. I've always looked at trying to be consistent on tour. Two wins back-to-back is obviously, I mean, it's quite special."
“I look at success as just kind of competing each week. Obviously, you play the game two in tournaments, and that's what gets you recognised."
“I like to be competing every week. Obviously, making cuts and kind of finishing top-10. I always base my season on how many top tens I've had and how many times I can kind of be up there competing."
“To have two wins early on in the season and kind of have a couple of other top fives, and I have some close calls, especially at the Nedbank, Dubai Desert Classic."
“So yeah, it's been a good run, and hopefully, we can continue that.”