It says everything about Lyle Pedro as a person that when he is asked to put into words what it has taken for him to reach the point where he is now building his career as a young professional on the Betway Big Easy Tour, he immediately talks about his family.

“My family has to be my biggest support system,” says Pedro. And there is one particular example that stands out for the young Northern Cape golfer as the perfect indication of just how much this support means to him.

“I received an invitation to play a tournament at White River Country Club. My dad drove me all the way from Kathu in the Northern Cape to White River in Mpumalanga [approximately 11 hours], and then he had to be back in Kathu the next morning for work. But he did it just so I could have the opportunity to compete.”

It was Pedro’s father who introduced him to the game, and set in motion a career which has seen him progress through the ranks of the South African Golf Development Board (SAGDB) and GolfRSA, and then finally on to the professional stage. He is also a Tier 2 member of the Sunshine Tour’s Papwa Sewgolum Class for transformation players on the Tour, which provides these professionals with financial and general support in order to give them the best possible chance at success in their careers.

“My dad started me in the game. I was a young boy pushing his golf cart during the Saturday club competitions, and it was in these moments that he taught me about the rules and etiquette of golf. Then he gave me a cut-down putter and a wedge to start me off,” says Pedro, who by the age of 15 was the men’s club champion at Sishen Golf Club.

The club, in the iron-ore mining town of Kathu, has a rich history of producing some quality professionals, including Theunis Spangenberg, while Des Terblanche is another famous name from this part of the world. The golf course is one of the finest examples of a Bob Grimsdell design and it’s long been a host of Sunshine Tour events. So it’s no surprise that this small town should produce another golf gem like Pedro.

But he admits that the transition from amateur to professional golf has been a difficult one. Significantly, though, he finished 40th at the Sunshine Tour’s SunBet Challenge Wild Coast Sun this season, and he had a top-10 finish at the Betway Big Easy Tour 5.

“I found that transition tough, but also an enjoyable challenge. The biggest difference is the amount of travelling you do as a pro to tournaments throughout the year. There are also big differences in the way the courses are set up compared to the amateur tournaments. The set-ups are tough, especially with the tucked pin positions. But it’s also fair. You have to be in top form to perform.”

But Pedro says the strength of the structures within South African golf, and the benefit of going through these structures plays a tremendous role in preparing players such as himself for this next phase of their careers.

“The competitive nature of our amateur golf through the SAGDB and GolfRSA, and the incentives they provide you with, definitely help prepare you for the professional arena. Those structures are all aimed at making you want to perform and play well, which is exactly the mentality you need to have if you want to be able to compete in the professional ranks.”

In the 2023-24 season on the Betway Big Easy Tour, Pedro finished 66th on the final Order of Merit. In the 2024-25 season he improved to 62nd. And he has clear goals for his next season.

“I want to finish in the top 30 on the Betway Big Easy Tour Order of Merit and be in contention to win tournaments.”

IMAGES: TYRONE WINFIELD/CARL FOURIE/DEON VAN DER MERWE/SUNSHINE TOUR/GOLF RSA/PLAYGOLF KATHU