Just a month before he turns 40, and in his 355th start, Harrison Frazar has finally broken through on the PGA Tour. He beat Robert Karlsson in a sudden death playoff on the 3rd hole.
It’s always nice to see a “journeyman” pro finally break through – especially a fellow Texan. But this victory was especially interesting because of a column Frazar wrote for Golf Magazine back in March.
In the piece Frazar talks about the fact that he’d spent 13 years on tour and done very well financially, but he’d gotten to a point where he was ready to walk away from the game after this season in order to spend more time with his young family.
From his op-ed:
But there’s also been plenty of disappointment. I’ve never played in a Masters or a British Open, and despite a bunch of near misses, I’ve never won a Tour event. I’ve put winning on a pedestal for so long that it’s hard to imagine walking away without a victory. It’s not so much for me anymore. I want it for Allison and my parents and my friends and poor Randy Smith, my teacher at Royal Oaks in Dallas, who has had to put up with me all these years. I especially want it for my boys. But the last few years I’ve felt as if I were banging my head against the wall, wearing myself out physically, mentally and emotionally.
…
During the first round of the Hope, I birdied two of the first four holes. The whole time I was laughing and joking with my amateur partners and having a great time. There was a backup on the 5th tee, and as we waited, my mind began to wander. One overpowering feeling hit me: I don’t like this. I want to go home.
…
I haven’t given up by any means. I’m going to play hard for the rest of this year, see what happens and then make a decision. But I’m coming to grips with the fact that this very well could be my final season on Tour.
Oh what a difference a few months came make:
Now Frazar has the biggest paycheck of his career, taking home $1,008,000. He knows he’ll be playing at least a couple more years now he has a slot in the Tournament of Champions in Maui in January and in Augusta next April for his first Masters.
“It just shows you how sometimes when you let your guard down or let your expectations soften, you can free yourself up,” Frazar said.
Hopefully this breakthrough win will lead to even bigger things for Frazar. I know that I’ll be rooting for him next April when he makes his first start at the Masters.
