By: Max Bechtoldt
South Africa returns two players to the Paris Olympics, both who paricipated in the 2016 Rio Olympic games. Interestingly, neither played in Tokyo in 2021. Ashleigh Buhai withdrew from the event early on and was replaced by Paula Reto, who also withdrew. While neither played in 2021, they are still around and the top players in their country. So, meet the team representing South Africa in the Paris Olympics:
ASHLEIGH BUHAI
Ashleigh Buhai was seen as a prodigy in her time entering the women’s professional golf world. While she maybe hasn’t those heights, she has had a successful career. Buhai has been on and off since 2008 on the LPGA Tour, and consistently since 2014. She saw moderate success on the tour for awhile, until her true breakthrough in 2022. She finally got her first win on tour that year, and not only was it finally raising a trophy, it was a major championship. In a thriller she grabbed the AIG Women’s Open at Muirfield over In Gee Chun on a playoff hole. While that could be seen as a fluke, she won the Shoprite LPGA Classic the next year in 2023. Because of injury, this season has derailed a bit, but she has been mostly consistent with just two missed cuts.
PAULA RETO
Paula Reto is an interesting case as an LPGA Tour player. The 34-year-old former Purdue player has had a solid career without a lot of high-end results. Reto has one LPGA Tour win, at the 2022 Canadian Open, but she has peaked in recent years after that. In 2022 she had four top 10s including that win, and in 2023 she had two more. Reto’s major record leaves a lot to be desired, with no wins or even top 10s, and a lot of missed cuts. That being said, she has been a consistent force especially as of late. Reto has finished in the top 20 in four of her last five starts on tour. This leads to a lot of momentum leading into the Paris Olympics.
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