Eric Cole (golfer)

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Eric Cole
Personal information
Full nameEric James Cole
Born (1988-06-12) June 12, 1988 (age 35)
Palm Springs, California
Height5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight155 lb (70 kg; 11.1 st)
Sporting nationality United States
ResidenceDelray Beach, Florida
Career
CollegeNova Southeastern University
Turned professional2009
Current tour(s)PGA Tour
Former tour(s)Korn Ferry Tour
Minor League Golf Tour
Professional wins12
Highest ranking36 (February 25, 2024)[1]
(as of March 24, 2024)
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentDNP
PGA ChampionshipT15: 2023
U.S. OpenT39: 2023
The Open ChampionshipDNP
Achievements and awards
Minor League Golf Tour
money list winner
2019
PGA Tour
Rookie of the Year
2022–23

Eric James Cole (born June 12, 1988) is an American professional golfer from Delray Beach, Florida who plays on the PGA Tour. He was awarded the 2022–23 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year[2] and is also the son of professional golfers Bobby Cole and Laura Baugh.[3]

Early life and amateur career[edit]

Cole was born in 1988, the year after his parents remarried, two years after their divorce, as one of seven siblings. With both parents being tour golfers, Cole grew up on golf courses and started playing seriously at age 11. He never had other coaches than his parents.[3]

At age 14, while playing high school golf, Cole became a friend of Sam Saunders, the grandson of Arnold Palmer. Cole also got to know Palmer and the three of them played golf at Palmer's home clubs, Bay Hill Club and Lodge in Florida and Latrobe Country Club in Pennsylvania. In later years, Cole also caddied for Saunders at the Arnold Palmer Invitational on the PGA Tour.[4]

Professional career[edit]

He won 56 times on the Minor League Golf Tour including winning the tour championship in 2009 and 2021.[5]

Cole earned his Korn Ferry Tour card in 2017 and played in eight events, making two cuts. His best finish was a tie for 39th place. He returned to the Korn Ferry Tour for the 2021 season and made 31 starts. His first top-10 finish came at the Savannah Golf Championship in October 2020, where he finished tied for third. He had five top-10s in the 2022 season, including two third-place finishes.[6]

Cole qualified for the 2021 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines Golf Course, where he missed the cut after rounds of 77-73.[7]

Cole finished tied for third in the 2022 Korn Ferry Tour Championship to earn his PGA Tour card for the 2023 season.[8] In February, he finished tied with Chris Kirk atop the leaderboard of the Honda Classic before Kirk won with a birdie on the first playoff hole.[9] He was voted as the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year for the 2022–23 season.[2] At 35 years of age, Cole became the second oldest player to receive this award since its inception in 1990. Only Todd Hamilton, at 38 in 2004, had been older.

Personal life[edit]

Cole is the son of Bobby Cole, who won the Buick Open in 1977 and had three top-10 finishes in major championships. In 1966, Cole's father, 18 years old, became the youngest winner ever of the British Amateur. Cole's mother, Laura Baugh, was the 1971 U.S. Women's Amateur champion, the youngest winner ever a 16 year old, and the 1973 LPGA Rookie of the Year.[10][11][3]

Professional wins (12)[edit]

Minor League Golf Tour wins (12)[edit]

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 Aug 28, 2009 Quail Ridge 2-Day −12 (67-65=132) 3 strokes United States Matthew Abbott
2 Dec 16, 2009 MLGT Tour Championship −7 (71-66=137) 1 stroke United States Johnny Bloomfield, United States Steve LeBrun
3 Apr 27, 2011 Abacoa 2-Day −4 (73-67=140) 1 stroke United States Derek Fathauer, United States Nick Latimer
4 Aug 6, 2015 3-Day Abacoa −12 (66-71-67=204) 1 stroke United States Carl McCauley
5 Nov 18, 2016 Match Play Championship 2 and 1 United States Hernan Borja
6 Jun 13, 2019 Monday Qualifier Contest #5 −15 (67-49-65=181)* 7 strokes United States Nick Latimer, Colombia Jesús Rivas
7 Sep 12, 2019 The Falls CC 2-Day −13 (67-64=131) 1 stroke United States Tom Lovelady
8 Sep 19, 2019 Qualifying School Contest #5 −10 (66-66=132) 3 strokes United States Hernan Borja
9 Oct 10, 2019 Monday Qualifier Contest #8 −15 (67-67-67=132) 4 strokes United States Justin Bryant
10 Oct 30, 2019 Joey D Golf Match Play Championship 2 and 1 United States Blake Morris
11 Dec 8, 2021 MLGT Tour Championship (2) −13 (63-66=129) 1 stroke England Ben Taylor
12 Apr 5, 2023 Palm Beach County Open −18 (66-63-66=195) 3 strokes United States Chris Wiatr

*Note: The 2019 Monday Qualifier Contest #5 was shortened to 49 holes due to rain.

Playoff record[edit]

PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 2023 The Honda Classic United States Chris Kirk Lost to birdie on first extra hole

Results in major championships[edit]

Tournament 2021 2022 2023
Masters Tournament
PGA Championship T15
U.S. Open CUT T39
The Open Championship
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut

Results in The Players Championship[edit]

Tournament 2023 2024
The Players Championship T27 CUT

CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Week 8 2024 Ending 25 Feb 2024" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Scottie Scheffler wins Jack Nicklaus Award as PGA Tour Player of the Year for second consecutive season | Eric Cole earns Rookie of the Year honors, receives Arnold Palmer Award". PGA Tour. January 3, 2024. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c Heil, Jarrod (February 8, 2017). "Storylines: Cole follows in parents' footsteps as pro golfer". PGA Tour. Archived from the original on March 11, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  4. ^ Babineau, Jeff (March 1, 2023). "For Cole, first Bay Hill start fulfills a teenage dream". PGA Tour. Retrieved March 2, 2023.
  5. ^ "Eric Cole wins the 2021 MLGT Tour Championship presented by Joey D Golf". Minor League Golf. December 8, 2021. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  6. ^ "Eric Cole – Career results". PGA Tour. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  7. ^ Marshall, John (June 16, 2021). "Cole gets shot at the U.S. Open after learning from parents". Associated Press News. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  8. ^ Waters, Steve (February 24, 2023). "Honda Classic: Delray Beach rookie Eric Cole emerges as contender with 'passionate' support". Palm Beach Post. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  9. ^ D'Angelo, Tom (February 26, 2023). "Chris Kirk outduels Eric Cole in a playoff to win 2023 Honda Classic". Golfweek. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  10. ^ McCabe, Jim (February 23, 2023). "Laura Baugh's kid". Global Golf Post. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
  11. ^ Schreiber, Max (February 26, 2023). "After unorthodox path to PGA Tour, rookie Eric Cole nearly wins Honda in playoff". Golf Channel. Retrieved February 26, 2023.

External links[edit]