JACK BUCHANAN: I started playing golf when I was about four years old. I would always sit on the golf cart with my mom and dad when they were playing, and I've kind of loved the game since then.
Q. What do you love about the game? What's kept you in the game? What do you love most about golf?
JACK BUCHANAN: That's a great question. I think just being out in the open for five hours when you're playing, and my mom used to say when I was growing up, she'd rather have a child like me who was never at home from 7:00 a.m. to pitch black dark rather than somebody going out partying every night. It was kind of a good problem for her to have.
Q. Tell us a little bit about golf, where you're from and golf in South Africa in general as well. How do you think it's been going?
JACK BUCHANAN: Golf in South Africa at the moment is very good. As you guys know, we've had three of the past six amateur champions are from South Africa, so golfers in South Africa are going outside of South Africa to play, playing college golf, and we're winning a lot, which is really cool to see, and it's giving a lot of the younger guys like myself and even younger guys in the squad kind of hope to go out and do the same like Christiaan Maas, Christo Lamprecht, Aldrich. Kind of walking in the footsteps of what they're doing.
Q. How important is the Africa Amateur, this new inaugural effort?
JACK BUCHANAN: Yeah, this year's Africa Amateur is a lot different. I was fortunate enough to play in the event last year, and it was nothing like this year's. To have a spot in the Open Championship up for grabs is unreal. That's why a lot of players are here this week, and then also the Alfred Dunhill and then I think a couple more Sunshine Tour events and the WAGR, too, the power of the WAGR being pretty much double the strength of the South African Amateur last week, which is unreal. It's going to get a lot of guys on to WAGR this week, which is going to grow the game and grow WAGR in South Africa a lot, which I think is overdue.
Q. Let's rewind the clock a little bit. You mentioned about your history in Scotland and your family heritage. Can you give us that whole spiel?
JACK BUCHANAN: Yeah, so Buchanan is Scottish. There's land next to Loch Lomond called Buchananland and there's actually a golf course there, too, called Buchanan Castle. My dad and I have been fortunate enough to actually play it, and it's a great little track. I actually met somebody last week who has played quite a few professional events around there, which is really cool. But Buchanan Castle, if you're near Loch Lomond, go and give it a bash.
Q. How cool is it to have that family link to the home of golf, where it all started and with the R&A?
JACK BUCHANAN: Yes, whenever people would ask me what tournament do I want to win, it's always been The Open. A lot of my friends would say the Masters, something in the U.S., but being half British and having the link, the descent to Scotland, I've always wanted to play and win The Open Championship, ideally at St Andrews.
Q. What do you do outside of golf? What are some of the hobbies, sort of fun things you get up to outside the game?
JACK BUCHANAN: Outside of golf, I'm very athletic. I went to a good boys' school back home in Cape Town called Rondebosch Boys' High School, and I played all sport growing up: Cricket, athletics, hockey. I was always outdoors on the sports field when I was not in the classroom, and when I was in the classroom, I was wishing I was outside playing golf, cricket, hockey, athletics. You name it, most likely I played it.
Q. Who's an inspiration for you? Who do you look up to as a golfer?
JACK BUCHANAN: I think somebody that really got me into the game was probably my dad, so I look up to my dad. Professionally, I really like Rory. I really like Justin Thomas. I was fortunate enough a few weeks ago to meet quite a few of the LIV players. I met DJ, and it was just really cool to be around that atmosphere outside of the tournament mode. Obviously in tournament they're very focused, but while they're relaxing and having some downtime, they're all really nice people, and I really look up to a lot of the guys I met last week or a few weeks ago.
Q. If you're in the safari surviving for your life, which animal would you be and why?
JACK BUCHANAN: I don't know if we get cheetahs in the safari. I think we do. I'm going to say a cheetah because I'm lightning fast.
Q. What's your strength and your weakness of your game?
JACK BUCHANAN: A strength is hitting the ball quite far, and a weakness -- I would actually say nothing.
Q. You're a big hitter --
JACK BUCHANAN: I can get it out there.
Q. Enjoy ripping the driver?
JACK BUCHANAN: Definitely.
Q. What's your natural shot shape?
JACK BUCHANAN: I hit draws, big draws consistently.
Q. Is that with all clubs?
JACK BUCHANAN: Pretty much. I find back home I hit draws with the driver, but whenever I go up to JoBurg, it doesn't really draw, so it takes a few days to get used to it, but up here I hit the driver pretty straight, but everything else, nice draws.
Q. If you had a green light yardage what's your number where you just go --
JACK BUCHANAN: 105 metres on the coast. It's a good 60-degree wedge.
Q. How are you feeling in terms of your form, your current performance levels? How are you feeling coming into this week?
JACK BUCHANAN: Yeah, I've had a few good weeks on the road. I haven't been home for about a month, but I love that. I love travelling. I started at the South African stroke play where I finished 12th. Had a good week. Didn't score very well. Kind of kept it together.
Then I had a good run at the South African Amateur, made the match play on the number, wasn't playing too well in the stroke play, made it on the number and I had some tough games early on. I think I played the No. 2 and No. 3 ranked players in South Africa in the first three rounds.
Match play is a very different game. You're playing against one person. It doesn't matter if you finish 64th or first. It's 1 v 1, and I had a good run at the South African Amateur.
I struggled a little bit last week at the Golf Eires (phonetic) Invitational, but we're at Leopard Creek this week. It's a treat to be here, and I love this course.
Q. What is it about Leopard Creek that you love in particular?
JACK BUCHANAN: I mean, look around you. It's unreal. The facilities here, you can spend all day, all the sunlight hours on the range, on the par-3 course, on the course. It's amazing. It's South Africa's Augusta National, to put it in simple words.
Q. You talked about the strength of the other South African players. Is that something that you want to aspire to achieve, to win the titles that they have done?
JACK BUCHANAN: A hundred per cent. Between those three names, they have racked up some really good golf tournaments between them, and I think they've inspired a lot of younger South Africans to follow in their footsteps, and having the chance to compete this week in the Africa Amateur is a huge privilege, and winning it would get you into some really good tournaments. I think they have allowed us to be here this week by winning the magnitude of tournaments that they have won. They've kind of put South Africa golf on the map over the last few years, and that's only going to benefit myself and the younger guys playing in South Africa and Africa as a whole.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports