Player Profile - Nicolas Colsaerts

This week’s player profile introduces golf fans to up and coming Belgian golfer Nicolas Colsaerts – the second Belgian player to win on the European Tour.

Colsaerts was born in 1982 in Brussels, Belgium into a sporting family. With his father’s family boasting several Olympic athletes, it is no surprise that the young Nicolas grew up participating in several sports – he lists five in his personal biography. With a passion for golf developing in his high school years, Colsaerts dropped all but one other sport in favour of hitting balls on the driving range and honing his short game on the practice tee. By the time Colsaerts was eighteen; his game was sufficiently developed for him to make his debut in the year 2000.

Colsaerts kicked off his rookie year with a win at the World Travel Open, hosted by the PGA of Belgium. Honing his skills in his home country in the 2001 season, he was victorious the following year at the Belgian Matchplay Championship. The following season, in 2003, he won the Omnium of Belgium. By now, Colsaerts had established himself as a top-draw golfer in his home country and Europe was calling.

In 2005, Colsaerts made his foray into European golf when he played on the Alps Tour. A victory at the Open International de Bordeaux confirmed the young Belgian’s ambition to succeed on the continent, and for the next four years he competed in an increasing number of tournaments in Ireland, Holland, France and Scandinavia among others.

In 2009, Colsaerts joined the second-tier Challenge Tour, a clear path toward top level professional golf. He was victorious twice in the 2009 season, winning the Dutch Futures and SK Golf Challenge. The following year he joined the European Tour.

After a win in Mauritius last year, Colsaerts had his first victory on the European Tour at the weekend when he won the Volvo China Open.