Introduction
Darius Arjen Joel van Driel (born 2 June 1989) is a Dutch professional golfer. He lives in The Hague and is a member of the Noordwijk Golf Club.
Amateur career
Born in Leidschendam, Netherlands, van Driel took up golf at the age of 11. His junior and amateur career, up to and including 2014, saw him win the Dutch National Strokeplay Championship under-19 (2007) and under-22 (2010). He also won the 2008 Dutch National Strokeplay Championship, which earned him entry to that year's KLM Dutch Open where he missed the cut (+11) but finished as second Dutch amateur player. He was selected as a member of the Dutch team for the European Amateur Team Championship in 2007 and 2010. Also during this period he took some time away from the game to complete a bachelor's degree in Economics and Sports Marketing at the Johan Cruyff Institute in Amsterdam. In 2013 he won the Dutch National Matchplay Championship. and in 2014, his last year as an amateur, he finished second at the Lytham Trophy and was again selected as a member of the Dutch team for the European Amateur Team Championship. He ended his amateur career by taking second place in the qualifying school for the 2015 season of the Alps Tour, one of the European third-tier satellite tours.
Professional career
2015
In his first year as a professional golfer, van Driel competed in the Alps Tour. With one victory, five 2nd places and four top-10 finishes, he won the overall Alps Tour Order of Merit. As the 2015 Alps Tour champion, van Driel gained automatic entry to the 2016 Challenge Tour.
In August 2015, van Driel also won the Dutch National Strokeplay Championship and in December 2015 he was given the award for Talent of the year by the Dutch Golf Federation.
2016
In 2016, van Driel competed in almost every round of the Challenge Tour, and with one second place finish and five other top-10s, he finished 34th in the 2016 Order of Meritensuring his place in the 2017 Challenge Tour. He also represented the Netherlands, partnering with Joost Luiten, in the 2016 World Cup of Golf held in Melbourne, Australia, from 24–27 November 2016. The Dutch team finished T17 on 8 under par.
In his last tournament of the year, van Driel ended T6 in the 2016 Australian PGA Championship, one of the first tournaments of the 2017 European Tour.
During 2016, he was the number 2 Dutch golfer in the Official World Golf Ranking after Luiten.
Amateur wins
- 2007 Dutch National Under 18 Strokeplay Championship
- 2008 Dutch National Open Strokeplay Championship
- 2010 Dutch National Under 21 Strokeplay Championship
- 2013 Dutch National Matchplay Championship,
- 2013 Dutch National Foursomes Championship (with Bernard Geelkerken)
Source:
Professional wins
Alps Tour wins
- 2015 Open International du Marcilly
Other wins
- 2015 Dutch National Strokeplay Championship
- 2016 Duinzicht Invitational
Team appearances
Amateur
- European Amateur Team Championship (representing the Netherlands): 2007, 2010, 2014
- St Andrews Trophy (representing Continental Europe): 2014
Professional
- World Cup (representing the Netherlands): 2016