"So my caddie just qualified" - Erik van Rooyen thrilled as his bagman joins him as a playing partner in the 2023 3M Open 

Erik van Rooyen is set to compete at the upcoming 2023 3M Open. However, the South African professional golfer is also thrilled to play alongside his longtime caddie, Alex Gaugert, who also has qualified for the event on Monday (July 24).

After Gaugret qualified for the upcoming PGA Tour event, van Rooyen took to his Twitter to express his excitement to play alongside his caddie as a competitor at TPC Twin Cities this week. He wrote:

"So my caddie @lil_gaugs just qualified for the @3MOpen! What a STUD!!! Soooooooo anyone want to loop this week?! @PGATOUR"

Erik van Rooyen and Alex Gaugert used to be teammates during their college days at the University of Minnesota. The latter joined the South African golfer as his caddie back in 2019, and won the Scandinavian Open with him.

Gaugert is set to make his PGA Tour debut this week at the TPC Twin Cities in Blaine, Minnesota. The tournament will begin on Thursday, July 27 and will have a prize pool of $7,800,000.

---

Analyzing Erik van Rooyen's performance on the PGA Tour in 2022-23

Erik van Rooyen played a total of 23 tournaments in the 2022-23 PGA Tour season as of July 2023. However, this season has not been a very fruitful one for the 33-year-old South African golfer so far.

In 12 out of 23 tournaments he played, van Rooyen did not manage to make it to the cut line. He just had three top-10 finishes, with T6 in the recently-concluded Barracuda Championship being his best finish so far.

Erik van Rooyen at the Genesis Scottish Open (via Getty Images)

Van Rooyen did not manage to qualify for any major tournament this season. He also withdrew from the Cadence Bank Houston Open, last year in November. He has garnered $728,979 in on-course earnings so far this season.

Here are the leaderboard standings of van Rooyen on the PGA Tour 2022-23 season so far:

• Barracuda Championship - T6
• Genesis Scottish Open - T68
• John Deere Classic - Missed the Cut
• Rocket Mortgage Classic - Missed the Cut
• Travelers Championship - Missed the Cut
• RBC Canadian Open - Missed the Cut
• Charles Schwab Challenge - Missed the Cut
• AT&T Byron Nelson - Missed the Cut
• Wells Fargo Championship - Missed the Cut
• Mexico Open - T33
• Zurich Classic of New Orleans - T26
• RBC Heritage - Missed the Cut
• Valero Texas Open - Missed the Cut
• Corales Puntacana Championship - T56
• Valspar Championship - T10
• Puerto Rico Open - 32
• The Honda Classic - Missed the Cut
• WM Phoenix Open - T50
• AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am - Missed the Cut
• The American Express - T6
• Cadence Bank Houston Open - Withdrawn
• World Wide Technology Championship - Missed the Cut
• Butterfield Bermuda Championship - T35

Van Rooyen has just won one event on the PGA Tour, the Barracuda Championship 2021. He will surely be searching for his second victory in the upcoming 2023 3M Open.