Ben Griffin has a likelihood to begin his rookie PGA Tour season with a bang.
In the fourth begin of his debut season, the 26-year-old is tied for the lead heading into the ultimate spherical of the Butterfield Bermuda Championship with Seamus Power at 18 underneath. He had blended leads to his first three begins of the season, lacking the reduce on the Fortinet Championship, however then tied for twenty fourth in Jackson and tied for sixtieth in Las Vegas. He did benefit from a begin on the finish of the 2022 season, ending fourth on the Wyndham Championship in August, having already secured his PGA Tour card for this season via his play on the Korn Ferry Tour.
But incomes that PGA Tour card took a lot of labor, particularly contemplating he wasn’t even playing aggressive golf 18 months in the past.
“It’s tough financially,” Griffin stated of the challenges Saturday after his third spherical. “You know, during Covid I didn’t have status on the Korn Ferry Tour or the PGA Tour and it’s very difficult unless you have sponsors or a support system that can kind of help you get back.”
Griffin joined the PGA Tour Canada upon graduating from North Carolina in 2018, the place he was an All-American. He rapidly earned Korn Ferry Tour standing for the following season however made simply eight begins and two cuts in 2019.
Without any momentum and mounting monetary obligations, Griffin determined to stroll away from aggressive golf solely and labored a desk job as a mortgage officer for a mortgage group within the spring of 2021.
“I felt like I always had the game,” Griffin stated Saturday, reflecting on the choice. “I grew up competing against the Scottie Schefflers, Collin Morikawas. I kind of touched base on that a little bit with the media this past year. I’m just comfortable. It was really, it was a combination of burnout a little bit from Covid and then also financially, I didn’t want to rely on my parents anymore for everything. They’ve done so much for me.”
It was nearly an accident he bought again into the sport.
It began when he forgot he was signed up for a U.S. Open qualifier in 2021, nevertheless it was too late for him to withdraw and get his a reimbursement. So he performed and superior to the sectional qualifier with a birdie on the second playoff gap.
He ended up lacking the sector at Torey Pines by a stroke, however there have been different indicators it was time for him to return to the sport.
Griffin told PGATour.com last year he performed so properly at a member-guest at Price Cutter Country Club, host of the Korn Ferry Tour’s Price Cutter Charity Championship, the members satisfied him to return again the following month and Monday-qualify for the match.
He did, and he made it via to the event in Springfield, Mo.
“I’ve got all these things kind of telling me you have to go play golf,” Griffin informed PGATour.com final November. “Sure enough that Korn Ferry week I kind of made a decision that I should probably get back to golf and I had enough time working and had proved to myself that I was legitimate enough to do this for a living, which I kind of already knew. It was just more of a burnout and I needed to make some money.”
Eventually, a pal he had performed golf with in Georgia referred to as him up and supplied him a two-year sponsorship together with his firm, Lord Abbett. That was the cash that allowed him to give up his job and sign-up for Q-School, the place he earned his Korn Ferry Tour card for the 2022 season.
He completed second 3 times on the Korn Ferry Tour final season and had his PGA Tour standing for this season locked up by June.
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“I credit all of my success this last year and really the month or two to my sponsors, Lord Abbett,” Griffin stated Saturday. “The CEO Doug Sieg, he was crucial in my comeback. Without him, I wouldn’t be playing golf right now. All of these really cool people have stepped in my life. Mike Swann, Jesse Ahearn, guys out in Springfield, Missouri, those guys all supported me and paid for my Q-School last year to get through Korn Ferry.”
With the reassurance of his standing for the rest of the season and his sponsor help, Griffin stated he can play freely, with out having to consider something monetary on the golf course.
“I can go out there and just try to win golf tournaments,” he stated. “You see the best players in the world kind of have that mindset and it’s because they’re not thinking about anything except trying to win. When I came back to golf, all my sponsors and everyone has allowed me to think about winning. I haven’t won in the last year, I’ve had a lot of second-place finishes and been in contention a lot. I feel like my time’s coming pretty soon and hopefully, I can get it done tomorrow.”
Griffin and Power will begin Sunday two away from the remainder of the sector, but when his feedback are any indication, Griffin, as he talked about, feels very assured about his recreation this week.
“It’s nuts, definitely, to be sitting here talking to you guys, getting ready to win a PGA Tour event tomorrow,” he stated.
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