Paul Peterson makes PGA Tour debut at age 36 and leaves an impression

 

[January 10, 2025]  By DOUG FERGUSON

HONOLULU (AP) — The Sony Open is the PGA Tour stop where introductions are in order, and Paul Peterson made quite the first impression. He opened with a 6-under 64 and shared the lead with five others Thursday on a pleasant day at Waialae.

Harry Hall, Denny McCarthy and Eric Cole, all of whom got an early start in Hawaii last week at Kapalua, also opened at 64 along with Adam Schenk.

Tom Hoge, who tied for eighth in Kapalua, had the only 64 in the afternoon in a round that featured two eagles. The second one Hoge described as a gift — an 8-iron out of the rough from 189 yards that hit the pin and dropped into the cup.

“I was just hoping it would get down before it got over the back of the green,” he said.

Hideki Matsuyama, coming off a record score to par at Kapalua, birdied two of his last three holes for a 67. He is trying to become the third player to sweep the Hawaii swing.

Peterson is no ordinary rookie.

The lefty from Oregon State has five passport books with stamps from some 44 countries. He has held cards from six tours around the world, which doesn't include the mini-tours in Arizona and the Dakotas when he was just starting out.

“Whether I feel like a rookie, no,” Peterson said. “I've traveled a lot. I've seen a lot of golf in a lot of places. I feel like all of that's helped prepare me to get here. ... Do I wish I was over here a little bit earlier? Yeah. But do I regret any experiences I've had along the way? No.”

The Sony Open is the first full-field tournament of the year on the PGA Tour, attracting a big batch of rookies and graduates from the Korn Ferry Tour.

Peterson finally made his way back home by finishing among the top 30 on the Korn Ferry Tour, which included a victory in Tennessee. He felt good all week, and had such a good range session Tuesday he wanted the tournament to start a day early.

The wait didn't hurt him. He was motoring along with three birdies in eight holes when he belted his 7-wood into a soft, tropical breeze on the par-5 ninth hole to 5 feet for eagle. With birdies and two of the next three holes — six straight 3s on his card — he was the player to reach 7 under.

A few soft bogeys followed, and Peterson followed with another 7-wood to two-putt birdie range on the par-5 closing hole to join the others.

Peterson left Oregon State and tried the Canadian tour before getting his card on the Asian Tour. He picked up his first victory at the Czech Masters over Thomas Pieters on the European tour, added another title in Myanmar and figured a Japan Golf Tour membership might help him crack the top 100 in the world ranking.

Paul Peterson reacts after his shot on the 16th hole during the first round of the Sony Open golf event, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Matt York)

He never made it that high — No. 120 was his best — and has yet to play a major.

But the travel, the various conditions inside the ropes and culture at night, helped him develop. And there were a few memories along the way. None was better than in 2015, when he received an exemption into the KLM Open.

“Tom Watson made his final European tour start and we got paired on Sunday,” Peterson said. “It was the coolest. He was the coolest. He signed a golf ball for me.”

The travel also let him know he didn't handle the wind very well. When it blew in Oregon, he just didn't play. He has a home in Arizona and conditions were too pure. So he moved to Sea Island on the Georgia coast just north of Florida, where he also had plenty of action with several PGA Tour players.

So yes, he's a rookie. He just doesn't feel like one, and he certainly didn't look like one.

Conditions remained ideal in paradise — hardly a breath of wind at Kapalua, either — but the Bermuda rough is dodgy and Waialae greens always have been deceptive to read.

Cole, McCarthy and Schenk all played bogey-free. Hall had a more stressful time, at least when he wasn't making 10 birdies. The 27-year-old from England, who played college golf at UNLV and now lives in Las Vegas, took two shots to get out of a bunker on No. 8 for a double bogey that slowed his momentum.

But he's still riding high from last week. Hall won the ISCO Championship in Kentucky last year, an opposite-field event. He's not in the signature events, so Kapalua was a rare opportunity and he made the most of it.

He also is taking advantage of a proper swing coach he found in Las Vegas — Butch Harmon, who is closing in on retirement and agreed to take him on.

“I approached him, and he reached out to me a few months after and said, ‘It would be great to see you.’ I started working with him, and since then I’ve played really nice,” Hall said.

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