PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Hard to believe it's been seven years.
Back in the fall of 2001, teen phenom Ty Tryon turned the golf world upside down by navigating his way through three stages of PGA Tour Qualifying School to become the youngest player ever to earn exempt status on the world's toughest stage.
Ever since, the news has been mostly lean and leaner. He lost his card, played on the developmental Nationwide Tour for a while, burned through a few caddies, plenty of his endorsement earnings and has spent most of the past four years in anonymity on the South Florida mini-tours.
Through nobody's fault, really, he became the cautionary tale of why turning pro at a young age isn’t for everybody. For every PGA Tour standout like Sean O'Hair who makes it, tenfold others do not.
So when a mutual friend passed along an e-mail this week noting that Tryon had Monday-qualified for the Nationwide event in Fort Smith, Ark., the memories came flooding back. While plenty of tour pros questioned whether he was far too young to face the weekly rigors of the tour and the off-the-course travails of a traveling player, the kid had some skills and was close to fearless.
You don’t cruise through three levels of Q-School unless you have some game.
After some decidedly unproductive years, Tryon moved back to his native Orlando, Fla., a few months back and renewed ties with former trainer David Herman, who has worked with major championship winners Trevor Immelman, Suzann Pettersen, Se Ri Pak and Ernie Els over the years. Herman always considered himself a big brother to Tryon and was happy to have him back in the fold.
Herman said that Tryon, after being lost in the woods for a while, is serious about doing everything he can to rebuild his game and reputation. Tryon, who turns 24 next month, is now married and has a young child. Tryon shattered the typical golf template by turning pro while he was still in high school, skipping college.
"He's got his mindset back," Herman said Wednesday. "He's hungry again. When he talks about his career, he sounds really good."
Tryon shot 67 at Eagle Crest Golf Club to claim the 13th of 14 spots available in the Monday qualifier. He tees off at 2:10 p.m. at Hardscrabble Country Club in Fort Smith.
So, if you need somebody to root for this week, this could mark the beginning of one hellacious comeback story.
