Kieron van Wyk, 23, first amateur to win APGA Tour event at Farmers Invitational

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — A 23-year-old South African has made history as the first amateur to win an Advocates Professional Golf Association (APGA) Tour event at the season-opening Farmers Insurance Invitational in San Diego.

In his first tournament on the Advocates Professional Golf Association (APGA) Tour, 23-year-old Kieron van Wyk — a College of Charleston senior and native of South Africa — became the first amateur golfer to win an APGA event since the tour started in 2010.

Van Wyk made par on the 18th hole in regulation, then birded the same hole twice in a three-man, sudden-death playoff that went two holes, at APGA Tour’s season opening Farmers Insurance Invitational on Sunday at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla.

The Farmer’s Insurance Invitational, presented by the APGA Tour, showcases the next generation of professional golfers, with a focus on supporting minority players who dream of joining the PGA Tour.

“I’m proud of myself and how I did,” van Wyk said. “I played well yesterday, and I just struggled a little bit mentally on the greens.  I knew I had the game to compete and win out here coming off a good season I had last semester. Yeah, I’m proud of myself. Only good things can come from this.”

APGA says van Wyk shot 3-over-par 75 Saturday on the North Course and then carded a 1-under-par 71 Sunday on the more difficult South Course during his first visit to the West Coast.

Despite a bogey on the 17th after he pulled his driver off the tee, he rebounded with a par on the 18th, according to APGA, and then watched as Luis Gagne and Chase Johnson both birdied the 18th to enter into the playoff.

Johnson was eliminated after the first playoff hole. Van Wyk flushed his driver down the middle on the second playoff hole, then went straight at the flag with a 7-iron from 187 yards, and chipped from the fringe off the back of the green to within two feet for a tap-in birdie that sealed his victory.

However, APGA says van Wyk will not take home the $30,000 winner’s check from the Farmers Insurance Invitational’s $100,000 purse because he is an amateur player. Gagne and Johnson will split the first and second place payouts, each earning $22,500.

“He seems very mature for his age,” said Gagne, a 27-year-old Costa Rica native who played collegiately at LSU and played in the 2018, 2019 and 2021 U.S. Opens, the latter which took place at Torrey Pines’ South Course. “He’s got a lot of (club) speed. He’s very calm, cool and composed. I think he’ll do great things if he keeps progressing. Kids now they can hit it so far. Playing on No. 18, definitely I felt like it was a disadvantage because I really have to hit a good drive off the tee to get there in two, and he’s hitting an iron in, which is pretty nuts. He’s very talented. I’m happy that he won. He played great.”

Van Wyk earned his spot in the APGA Farmers Insurance Invitational as the top player in the 2024-2025 Bridgestone APGA Collegiate Ranking as of October 30, 2024, and secured an exemption into the PGA Tour’s Puerto Rico Open this March after winning the White Sands Bahamas Men’s NCAA Golf Invitational last fall.

Last season was the third consecutive year that van Wyk was named First Team All-Coastal Athletic Association (CAA). He was the individual conference champion in 2022, making him the first Black golfer in CAA history to win medalist honors at the league tournament.   

“I think the APGA is doing really good stuff,” van Wyk said. “I think as a young professional or soon-to-be professional, you need as many opportunities as you can. It’s tough out here to play as a pro. You need those opportunities to get yourself going and familiarize yourself with the environments and everything that it has to offer. I’m truly grateful for all that they do and the opportunity that they’ve given me this week.”

The Farmers Insurance Invitational takes place in conjunction with the PGA Tour’s Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines Golf Course. For the past several years, Farmers has also provided an APGA Tour player with an exemption into the Farmers Insurance Open, with Willie Mack III receiving a spot in the 2025 field.