Brandon Stone speaks figuratively of how he “came out of the womb with a golf club” and, watching him bound down the fairways and strike a golf ball with such immaculate purity, it is far from fanciful superstition to suggest the young South African was born to play this game and this game alone.
The 22 year old is the son of a professional golfer, while his grandfather represented South Africa in the amateur game. It’s in his blood.
Now, he is hoping to bring the family name to new levels of fame as he begins a rookie season on The European Tour, following a dramatic final day at the Challenge Tour’s NBO Golf Classic Grand Final earlier this month when he had to wait for the final putt of the tournament to drop before confirming his graduation.
Ernie has always been an inspiration to me
Stone finished in 14th position on the Road to Oman Rankings after a season during which he came agonisingly close to victory on more than one occasion.
His true class off the course shone through though in the season-opening Barclays Kenya Open, when he was beaten in a play-off by his friend and compatriot Haydn Porteous. Although the disappointment cut deep, the Pretorian was visibly delighted for his conqueror on that occasion.
While Stone is relatively new to The European Tour scene, he is no stranger to the presence of golfing greats, as he counts four-time Major winner Ernie Els as a close family friend.
“Ernie has always been an inspiration to me,” said the former University of Texas student, who in 2013 was named NCAA Freshman of the Year in the American collegiate ranks.
“I keep in touch with him regularly, he’s a friend of my father, and he gave me some good advice during the Grand Final.
“My dad Kevin is a professional who plays on the Sunshine Tour and coaches the junior national team so it’s in my blood. Even my grandfather Sam represented South Africa so I came out of the womb with a golf club."
Els, with his easy-going demeanour and languid golfing style, is on a different end of the spectrum to the sprightly young Stone, who is never shy of conversation with his fellow competitors on the golf course.
He is sure to be brimming with even more energy as he embarks on a first full season on The European Tour but there is no doubt a weight of expectation sits on his youthful shoulders.
Stone has long been regarded as a future golfing superstar in a nation which has the fourth-highest number of cumulative Major victories in the history of the game, and just last August Finland’s Roope Kakko spoke of his younger counter-part in glowing terms en route to winning the Madeira Islands Open, saying he possesses “Major-winning potential”.
Despite his golfing lineage, however, Stone has never felt under any pressure to perform and he is just looking to enjoy himself on his maiden voyage on The European Tour.
“It feels great to get my card considering the downs that I had this year, missing Kazakhstan and the tournament before that,” he said after his berth on The 2016 Race to Dubai was secured in Oman.
“It’s a feeling of euphoria - to play the way that I did at the weekend in Oman was incredible so I’m going to savour it.
“It’s something I’ve always loved to do and my father and grandfather never pushed me to do it. It’s just passion that drives me and my family on.
“My goal in 2015 was to get my European Tour card and to achieve that goal is just incredible. It really is something special – to feel a life goal achieved is unimaginably special to me.”
Stone is a special talent and, after opening his season with a three under par 69 at the Alfred Dunhill Championship on home soil, a special season may well beckon.
