The Summerhays name needs little introduction in the golf world. It’s synonymous with Tour pros, top teachers and, well, really good golf. Boyd Summerhays played on the PGA Tour and is now a teacher, and his students include names such as Tony Finau and Wyndham Clark, among others. Boyd’s two oldest kids — his son, Preston; and daughter, Grace — are also skilled players.
Preston Summerhays won the 2019 U.S. Junior Amateur title and, like his father, has had lots of success as an amateur. One reason for that, Boyd says, is because Preston’s been lucky enough to grow up around some of these Tour players, simply due to his dad’s profession. Boyd discussed this topic when he was a guest on the most recent Subpar Podcast with hosts Drew Stoltz and Colt Knost.
“I don’t want to get emotional, but I think of how good people have been to my kids,” Boyd said. “People have been so good to my kids. My kids have gotten a lot of benefits from Tour pros who have gone way above and beyond to help them learn and be in the mix.”
Preston earned a spot in the 2020 U.S. Open at Winged Foot after he won the U.S. Junior Amateur the year before. Boyd said it was a cool experience for him because he got to see his son interact as a player — not a fan — with the game’s best as a fellow competitor.
“He was going to compete,” Boyd said. “He wasn’t taking pictures with guys or asking for anything. He was just there. That’s just normal for him. Since he was 10 years old, he’s been on the PGA Tour.”
Boyd’s kids have made the most of hanging out with famous Tour players, too, and learned lessons from the experiences.
“I just try to be grateful for what people have done for my kids,” Boyd said. “You can’t substitute or replace the value of that. Each big win Preston has had, he’s hit a really horrible shot in the final round. Well, he’s played with Tony [Finau] hundreds of times where he hits a bad shot and is just literally over it. I can tell him all I want to get over your bad shot and move on to the next, but when he sees someone he looks up to and has grown up idolizing as a golf hero do it, no questions asked. ‘If Tony can do it, I can do it.’ Just cool to see all these people care about my kids.”
You can listen to the entire Subpar episode below.
