Zander Lombard has been told by his coaches that you need the ‘X-factor’ if you want to succeed in golf.
Although it is early days for the 20-year-old hpc-sponsored golfer who does not know yet whether he has what it takes to win important golf tournaments, he is quietly confident that he will be able to make an impact on the competitive golfing arena.

Lombard will make his Southern Africa Sunshine Tour debut on 18 February when he will play in the Dimension Data Pro-Am on the world famous The Links Golf Course at Fancourt.

He received his players card in January when he finished 3rd in the Sunshine Tour Qualifying School in Bloemfontein.

Last year Lombard became probably only the third South African player to finish second in the Amateur British Open Championships.

Before elaborating on what it takes, according to him, to play good golf, he quickly mentioned that the legendary Bobby Locke was the only South African golfer who was able to win the tournament.

“Golf is a mental game, therefore your state of mind has a great influence on the way you play. There are many players who can hit a ball really well.  They are also able to put well and know how to use their irons but they still battle to put together a good score because they tend to be self-destructive at crucial moments. 

“That is why I consider patience of the essence when playing a golf tournament. At a rough estimate you will end up playing 330 plus shots during any tournament. The difference between winning and losing is often merely one shot.  This means that it is the guy who can keep his cool at a crucial moment who ends up winning.

“It is a given that you are bound to play one or two bad shots at any tournament, but the  challenge is to remain patient and not to allow the bad shots to get to you.”

Lombard had a taste of what it feels like to take on the ‘big guns’ when he played in the South African Open and the Alfred Dunhill Tournaments.

“Unfortunately I did not make the cut at the SA Open, but it was an amazing learning experience to play with some of the top players I used to hero-worship while I was at school.”  

Lombard used to consider Tiger Woods as a role model when he was at school.
“I still think Tiger is one of the best golf players ever, but at the moment I consider Rory McIlroy and Hendrik Stenson to be some of the best. I think they currently set the standard for what it takes to win big tournaments. Hopefully I will, in the foreseeable future, be able to match their golfing skills.
“However, my biggest goal for this season is to make sure that I get my European players card.”