Sunday was worth the wait for Aldrich Potgieter. Although, technically, at just 20 years old, you could argue he didn’t have to wait long at all.
The South African emerged from a three-man playoff to win the Rocket Classic at Detroit Golf Club on Sunday, taking down Max Greyserman on the fifth playoff hole. Chris Kirk was eliminated on the second. Potgieter’s winning moment came on the par-3 15th hole, when he rolled in a birdie putt from 18 feet.
Not bad for the rookie’s 20th career PGA Tour start.
At 20 years, 9 months and 16 days old, Potgieter becomes the seventh-youngest PGA Tour winner since the start of 1983. He also joins an exclusive list of international-born players who won on Tour before turning 21. Also on that list? Seve Ballesteros, Rory McIlroy, Joaquin Niemann and Tom Kim. Last year he became the youngest Korn Ferry Tour winner in the league’s history, and he almost won on the PGA Tour earlier this season but lost the Mexico Open in a playoff to Brian Campbell back in February.
“It was definitely a tough day,” Potgieter said. “The start didn’t go my way; I struggled to make putts, left a lot short. Finally got one to the hole, and I just saw the ball roll end over end and I knew it was going to go in.”
Greyserman was winless but had three runner-up finishes as a 29-year-old PGA Tour rookie last season. Sunday was his first runner-up of 2025.
“I did a lot of good things,” Greyserman said. “I started the day two back. Obviously wish I could have had a few shots back or a few putts, but hit a couple good putts at the end with pretty decent speed and sometimes putts don’t go in.”
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The Greyserman/Potgieter/Kirk trio finished 72 holes tied at 22 under, and all three made par on the first playoff hole, the par-4 18th (Kirk missed a 9-footer to win). On the par-3 15th, Kirk three-putted and was eliminated, Potgieter got up and down to save par and Greyserman missed an 11-footer for the win.
On 16, a par-4, both players missed 16-footers for birdie, and both two-putted for birdie on the par-5 14th. Finally, on the par-3 15th, after Greyserman missed from 35 feet, Potgieter drained his.
Potgieter entered the day with a two-shot lead over a group of five at 17 under (Greyserman and Kirk included), but it turned into a shootout on Sunday.
Potgieter played the front nine in one under, which allowed Kirk to leapfrog him by one at the turn. Birdies on 13 and 14 gave Potgieter the lead again, but he missed the green on the par-3 15th, hit a poor chip and made bogey. That made it a three-way tie at 21 under with Potgieter, Kirk (playing the 17th) and Michael Thorbjornsen (playing the 18th). Greyserman and Jake Knapp, both at 20 under, were still hanging around too.
Thorbjornsen parred 18 to take the clubhouse lead at 21 under, but Kirk birdied 17 and parred 18 to set the mark at 22 under. Meanwhile, Greyserman, playing in the final pairing with Potgieter, finally made his first birdie of the back nine, rolling in a 35-footer on 16 to join Thorbjornsen and Potgieter at 21 under.
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