Andrea Pavan will not compete in the DP World Tour's Investec South African Open golf tournament this weekend. This means he will miss out on a chance to compete for a $1.5 million purse and an invitation to the Masters golf tournament this April.
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Instead, the 36-year-old will be recovering from injuries he sustained when he fell down an elevator shaft yesterday.
How Did Andrea Pavan Fall Down an Elevator Shaft?
Pavan was in Cape Town, South Africa, to compete in the golf tourney. He was staying in a nearby hotel when he called for an elevator.
TMZ reports that when the doors opened, the former Texas A&M University player did not realize that there wasn't a car there. He stepped inside and fell three floors. He was then taken to a hospital for treatment.
Pavan, a two-time DP World Tour winner, sustained several injuries that required hours of surgery. However, they were not life-threatening.
A spokesperson for the DP World Tour said he pulled out of the Investec South African Open, which takes place at Stellenbosch Golf Club, due to injury, but did not explain why for confidentiality reasons.
The Athletic reported that J.T. Higgins, Pavan's former college coach, shared the following update: "By all accounts, he's in good spirits, thankful to be alive and FaceTiming with his kids."
Who Is Andrea Pavan?
The Italian-born Pavan won the his country's Amateur Stroke Play Championship twice before moving to the United States to play at Texas A&M University. He was a member of the team that won the 2009 NCAA Men's Golf Championship. The former Aggie also earned All-America First Team honors in 2010.
That same year, Pavan turned professional. He initially competed on the Challenge Tour, securing five victories. But it was on the European Tour where he really shone. In 2018, he won the D+D Real Czech Masters. The following year, he won the 2019 BMW International Open in a dramatic playoff against Matt Fitzpatrick.
Pavan also appeared at the U.S. Open in 2014 and 2025. His most recent golf tournament appearance was several weeks ago at the Qatar Masters in Doha. He missed the cut.
