written by Jaylan Hayes
When he was around 15 years old Behn Heyns knew he wanted to come to the United States for not only the academics but to also have more opportunities with golf. His original plan was to take a gap year after high school to give himself a small break.
"I was talking to a lot of schools for the 2023 term and when I was talking to Augusta University, the coach gave me an offer for 2022 which surprised me a little bit. But then I thought the earlier the better," said Heyns
Heyns is now in his junior year at AU and is in his third year with the men's golf team. He's over 15 hours away from his home in South Africa and while it is quite different than what he's accustomed to, especially the size difference between the two countries, he's not as homesick as one might think.
He feels right at home with his teammates and most of them, including both coaches, are from South Africa and luckily, his best friend from back home is also a Jaguar.
"Like all the South Africans, we've known each other even before coming here. We have a South African community here," said Heyns.
He recently changed his degree to accounting with a concentration in financing to give him more options to figure out what he wants to do. His plans for his future consist of him playing golf professionally.
"My dad got me into it. I did a lot of other sports growing up, but I always wanted to play golf. It was something I always loved," said Heyns.
He acknowledges that golf is a very up and down sport and knows for the past few seasons he's been on the downside of it. But he's learned from those times and that they have made him better because of it.
"I think everyone wants it just to be good, but you don't learn if you don't have those bad experiences," he said.
He doesn't put much pressure on himself with strict goals for the season instead he focuses one day at a time to get better.
When he's free from responsibilities Heyns enjoys doing things that keep him active. Playing pickleball, table tennis, and running. He's hoping to one day run a marathon and considers himself a decent runner. He wants to start with a half marathon and then maybe work his way up from there.
Heyns does miss the food back home especially a braai, which is a South African barbeque. He's sure to make it when he goes back home. But he also has some favorite food places here.
"Some people might think I'm crazy, but I love taco bell. And you can never go wrong with McDonalds," he said.
As the youngest of his family with two older brothers and two older stepsisters, he admits he had the most fun growing up. He misses his family and while they've been able to visit occasionally, he wishes they could come more.
Some of his favorite memories he's made are related to traveling. Heyns loved going to Hawaii, Puerto Rico and St. Simon's Island. He's hoping to get to travel to more places with friends and family.
Heyns is ready to see where the rest of his time at AU will take him. There's no immediate plan to continue school post-graduation, he's keeping an open mind to anything.
"The biggest thing for me that I've learned is that this has just being a great learning experience," said Heyns.
Men's golf schedule
