How just missing out on his Tour card gave this pro a fresh perspective

Patrick Rodgers’ 2022 season is off to a pretty good start. He finished 6th at the Fortinet Championship in September, and is one shot off the lead at the halfway point of the Butterfield Bermuda Championship after firing rounds of 68-64 (-10).

After narrowly missing out on the FedEx Cup playoffs in August (Rodgers finished 128th on the points list), Rodgers’ Tour card was in jeopardy for the first time in his career. He eventually regained his status by finishing in the top 50 in the Korn Ferry Tour Finals, but in his post-round comments on Friday in Bermuda, Rodgers attributed his recent solid play to a humbling change in mindset.

“It was really difficult to go through, to be honest with you,” Rodgers said. “My mindset and I think the mindset of most players out here is that I got my card at 22 and I didn’t feel like I would ever be in that position. I felt like I had the game to not put myself there and it was maybe a little slice of humble pie, and more so just kind of managing stress on the golf course.

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“I’m definitely feeling like I’m able to breathe a breath of fresh air here as the new season started,” he continued. “I’m really grateful to be out here and I’m playing some stress-free golf, which is nice.”

Now that his job is secure for another year, Rodgers says he feels a sense of freedom.

“It’s been a heck of a summer,” he said. “It’s the first time I had to grind to keep my card after just missing the Playoffs. That was a really just difficult emotional battle. I felt a huge weight lifted off my shoulders since coming back. I don’t feel like there’s much that can stress me out on a golf course at the minute and I’m just really grateful to have opportunities to play.”

When a reporter pointed out that playing in a beautiful place like Bermuda is an easily-overlooked privilege, Rodgers agreed.

“I think to be quite honest with you there have been times where I’ve lost sight of how amazing it is to be on the PGA Tour,” he said. “The grind of this summer trying to fight to keep my card, I really had to kind of learn to understand what it meant to me. I’m carrying a lot more gratitude going forward, which is awesome.”

Rodgers, 29, has three career runner-up finishes, and is still seeking his maiden PGA Tour victory. Could this be the week? He’s currently one shot behind leader Taylor Pendrith.