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 and under-22. 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 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.
In 2016, van Driel competed in almost every round of the Challenge Tour, and with one second-place finish, in the Vierumäki Finnish Challenge, and five other top-10s, he finished 34th in the 2016 Order of Merit ensuring 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.
2017
With only one top-20 Challenge Tour finish in a year hampered by a back problem, van Driel could only finish 91st in the final Challenge Tour rankings.
2018
After five missed cuts in the first six tournaments, van Driel began to play with more consistency, claiming his first win on the Challenge Tour, and the first Challenge Tour win by a Dutch golfer in 5 years, in the Euram Bank Open in Austria in July. A 5th place in the Foshan Open in October secured him 34th position in the year-end Challenge Tour rankings. In August, he also won the Duinzicht Invitational, for the 2nd time in 3 years.
2019
Playing his fourth season on the Challenge Tour, van Driel won the Rolex Trophy. With six other top-10 finishes, he ended 13th on the 2019 Order of Merit, earning direct promotion to the European Tour in 2020. He also played in four main tour events, with a best result of second place in the Belgian Knockout. In December he was voted Dutch Golfer of the year.
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, Dutch National Foursomes Championship
Source:
Professional wins (6)
Challenge Tour wins (2)
Alps Tour wins (1)
Other wins (3)
2015 Dutch National Strokeplay Championship
2016 Duinzicht Invitational
2018 Duinzicht Invitational
Team appearances
Amateur
European Amateur Team Championship : 2007, 2010, 2014
