Erik van Rooyen had simply performed the most effective 9 holes of his life. A scorching back-nine 28 at Tiger Woods’ El Cardonal Golf Course, the final of which was a 25-foot eagle putt on the 18th gap to win the World Extensive Expertise Championship.

He raised his fist to the air, stoically, picked his ball out of the outlet and walked over to caddie Alex Gaugert, embracing him, the identical factor they did at first of the week.

Then every part that this week was hit him.

“How had been you capable of be so calm when the stakes had been the very best?” NBC’s George Savaricas started his post-round interview. Van Rooyen had made back-to-back-to-back putts from outdoors 20 ft to erase a two-shot deficit to Matt Kuchar.

Van Rooyen paused for what felt just like the longest 10 seconds ever. By the point his lips opened, there have been tears coming down his cheek.

“Sorry,” he lastly replied.

“I used to be calm as a result of there’s greater stuff in life than golf,” van Rooyen mentioned.

The 33-year-old was referring to his finest pal and former College of Minnesota teammate, Jon Trasamar. Trasamar has been battling Stage 4 melanoma for greater than a 12 months and whereas he hoped he had cleared it by late 2022, he hadn’t. In accordance to reporting by Ryan French, after failing to make it out of the primary stage of Q-College final fall, Trasamar went for a follow-up, and it was found the most cancers had unfold to his ribs. Regardless of remedy and enchancment, one other journey to the physician this previous February revealed the most cancers unfold to his liver, again, backbone and legs.

Now, van Rooyen mentioned Trasamar has simply six to 10 weeks to dwell.

This isn’t simply any pal for van Rooyen, both. At 19, when he moved to the U.S. from Johannesburg to attend Minnesota, Trasamar and his household had been the primary to welcome him, proper on the airport. Trasamar’s household lived simply two hours from Minneapolis, and so they had been set to be roommates for his or her freshman 12 months.

They ended up residing collectively for 3 out of their 4 years on campus.

Sunday, 14 years later, van Rooyen was wrestling together with his pal’s mortality.

“He’s not gonna make it,” van Rooyen instructed Savaricas off the 18 inexperienced, making an attempt to maintain himself composed. “Each shot on the market as we speak was for him. And while you’re enjoying for one thing greater than profitable some foolish trophy, it places issues in perspective.

“On the finish of the day, whether or not I gained right here or I misplaced right here, it actually didn’t matter. When one thing motivates you want that, whether or not you make a putt or miss a putt, who cares?”

He paid no thoughts to the actual fact he’s been enjoying this whole fall for his job. Van Rooyen got here into the week ranked one hundred and twenty fifth within the FedEx Cup Fall standings, the bubble man to maintain his card when the season ends in two weeks.

However in the course of the last spherical, or all through your entire week for that matter, van Rooyen hardly confirmed any signal of the burden he was carrying.

Particularly on the again 9, which he began 4 behind then-leader Camillo Villegas. Regardless of making 4 birdies in six holes, he was nonetheless two again of Kuchar as the ultimate trio made their solution to the sixteenth gap.

Then van Rooyen put collectively a dream end, birding the par-3, including one other one at 17 after which, after beginning the 18th gap tied with Kuchar, striping a fairway wooden from 300 yards onto the par-5 inexperienced in two to arrange the profitable eagle putt.

However he instructed Savaricas he was nonetheless hurting on the within your entire time.

“It dragged me down,” van Rooyen mentioned of the circumstances. “After Friday’s spherical, I shot … eight beneath on Friday and I get to my resort room and I simply break down in tears, ?”

The feelings had been overcoming him once more.

“So I wasn’t calm on a regular basis, however after I step onto the golf course, I’ve a fricking job to do and that’s what it comes right down to on the finish of the day, do your job and, now we are able to have a good time and cry and do no matter you need.”

At his winner’s press convention, he mentioned all he needed to do was play 9 holes with Trasamar.

“And intensely selfishly, that places all of this into perspective,” he mentioned. “Is it enjoyable to win golf tournaments? Yeah, it’s enjoyable. I’ve been enjoying golf since I used to be 8 years previous, extraordinarily aggressive and we wish to win.

“Nevertheless it doesn’t matter. Once I’m — , after I kick the bucket in the future, each time that is perhaps, this isn’t what I’m going to be excited about.

“I’m going to be excited about the those who I like probably the most, and Jon Trasamar is a kind of folks.”

A couple of minutes later, van Rooyen’s interviews had been over. The match was achieved. A brand new week was beginning. On Monday, he’ll be in Minnesota. With a trophy.

Together with his finest pal.

Jack Hirsh

Golf.com Editor

Jack Hirsh is an assistant editor at GOLF. A Pennsylvania native, Jack is a 2020 graduate of Penn State College, incomes levels in broadcast journalism and political science. He was captain of his highschool golf workforce and not too long ago returned to this system to function head coach. Jack additionally nonetheless *tries* to stay aggressive in native amateurs. Earlier than becoming a member of GOLF, Jack spent two years working at a TV station in Bend, Oregon, primarily as a Multimedia Journalist/reporter, but additionally producing, anchoring and even presenting the climate. He could be reached at jack.hirsh@golf.com.