Peter Kuest performs through the last spherical of the Rocket Mortgage Basic golf event at Detroit Nation Membership, Sunday, July 2, 2023, in Detroit. Carlos Osorio, Related Press
BYU golfer Peter Kuest tees off on the second tee through the Arizona St. Thunderbird Invitational , Saturday, April 13, 2019, in Phoenix. Rick Scuteri, Related Press
The PGA’s Korn Ferry Tour will announce its three sponsors exemptions into the Utah Championship subsequent week, and former BYU golfer Peter Kuest may in all probability have anticipated an invite, after ending in a tie for fifth in final yr’s event.
“My life hasn’t modified. I'm nonetheless only a golfer. I prefer to go fishing and hang around with my mates. It isn't like I'm a rock star touring the world. I'm going out and enjoying some fairly candy programs and seeing the nation.” — former BYU golfer Peter Kuest on life on the PGA Tour
However Kuest doubtless gained’t be accessible to play Aug. 3-6 at Oakridge Nation Membership in Farmington. As an alternative, the Fresno, California, native plans to be enjoying within the PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, North Carolina, the results of an unbelievable stretch of excellent golf for the previous faculty All-American who gained 10 tournaments throughout his time at BYU.
“I didn’t have many alternatives to play this yr, so once I had them, I needed to profit from them,” Kuest mentioned Tuesday in a Utah Championship-sponsored media name. “I really feel like I’ve performed a reasonably good job of that.”
That’s an understatement.
With out enjoying standing on any tour this yr, Kuest, 25, had been enjoying in state opens and trying to qualify on Mondays for varied tournaments till he put collectively an exceptional stretch in Might, June and July that has earned him particular momentary membership on the PGA Tour for the rest of the common season.
Which means he'll play within the Barracuda Championship in Truckee, California, this week whereas many of the golfing world can be targeted on The Open Championship in Hoylake, England. Subsequent week, he'll play within the 3M Open in Blaine, Minnesota, and the next week within the Wyndham Championship with a handbag of $7.6 million.
When the Korn Ferry Tour stops in Utah, which has a handbag of $1 million, Utahns can have former BYU golfers Patrick Fishburn and Daniel Summerhays to cheer for, however in all probability not Kuest.
The slender, sweet-swinging Californian’s rise has been nothing in need of unbelievable.
What has clicked for the present American Fork resident?
“I imply, it has all been fairly good. I wouldn’t say something has actually clicked. Simply lots of arduous work over the previous few years. It's beginning to get again to the place I need it to be, and kinda take off,” he mentioned. “It's all a part of the method. We're simply attempting to stay to the method we all know and simply go from there.”
Now that he’s earned greater than $650,000 this season and injected extra confidence and fewer fear into his golf sport and life, Kuest mentioned the success hasn’t modified his life, as may be anticipated.
“My life hasn’t modified,” he mentioned, talking on the teleconference from the car parking zone of the Tahoe Mountain Golf Membership close to Reno. “I'm nonetheless only a golfer. I prefer to go fishing and hang around with my mates. It isn't like I'm a rock star touring the world. I'm going out and enjoying some fairly candy programs and seeing the nation.”
New man can hit it 😳 @Peter_Kuest, who burst onto the scene and secured Particular Short-term Membership, has led the sector in driving distance in three of his final 4 PGA TOUR begins. pic.twitter.com/wo6oapJulw
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 13, 2023
He additionally joked that he’s in a position to eat at locations like Chipotle now, as an alternative of McDonald’s. And he’s made some new friendships and earned the respect of his PGA Tour counterparts.
“Yeah, perhaps,” he mentioned, when requested if extra individuals on the circuit know who he's now. “I've had a bunch of men come as much as me and congratulate me on the play. So yeah, it has been actually cool to see. There are lots of actually cool guys out right here on the PGA Tour.”
Transferring on from BYU in 2020 after his senior season was minimize brief by COVID-19, Kuest gained the Utah Open by seven photographs in August 2020 and likewise acquired exemptions into 5 PGA Tour occasions that summer time.
Nevertheless, he didn't make a minimize within the first 4, then positioned sixty fifth on the Barracuda and earned $7,525. He performed within the PGA Tour’s Safeway Open in September 2020, one of many first occasions of the 2020-21 season, but in addition missed the minimize there.
This season (2022-23), his first huge breakthrough got here Might 14 on the AT&T Byron Nelson Basic, the place he tied for 14th and earned $163,875. He tied for 57th on the RBC Canadian Open in June.
After he Monday-qualified on the Rocket Mortgage Basic in Detroit — the place Tony Finau was the defending champion — he performed in a apply spherical with Finau after which opened with a 64 on Thursday.
“It's at all times good to play with Tony, simply seeing what he's hitting off the tee and the way he goes about it,” Kuest mentioned. “Every night time he would textual content me one thing right here or there. It was good to speak with him all through the week.”
Kuest finally completed tied for fourth in Detroit, incomes $370,333. That top-10 efficiency received him into the John Deere Basic two weeks in the past, and his T17 end earned him the particular momentary membership on tour till the FedEx Cup playoffs start Aug. 10-13 in Memphis.
“I knew I may compete out right here,” Kuest mentioned. “It was getting the chance to go do it, after which releasing your self as much as go do it, and never worrying about all that different stuff. … So it was simply the little issues like that that provide the confidence to go and do it.”
Kuest mentioned enjoying freely and releasing oneself of outdoor baggage doesn’t imply he has a carefree perspective.
“You simply attempt to execute the very best you'll be able to, and no matter occurs, occurs,” he mentioned.
Fishburn, who was roommates with Kuest in Provo, mentioned he's utilizing his good good friend’s success as inspiration for his personal profession. Fishburn is forty fifth on the Korn Ferry Tour factors listing and working out of time to get into the highest 25 and earn his PGA Tour card for subsequent season, which begins in September.
“I'm very joyful for Peter, and really pleased with him. He was an awesome teammate at BYU. We beloved the time we roomed collectively. We simply had lots of enjoyable collectively,” Fishburn mentioned. “He’s received as a lot expertise as anybody. It isn't a shock to see what he’s performed. He simply wanted the chance.”
Fishburn mentioned Kuest hits his driver in addition to anyone he’s been round, but in addition has a crisp brief sport and is an excellent ball-striker.
“He’s received the total package deal. It's nice to see him do what he’s doing,” Fishburn mentioned. “It has given me lots of inspiration, motivation, to try to rise up there and be a part of him and Tony and Zac (Blair) and a few of my different buddies. So it's nice to see.”
BYU golfer Peter Kuest tees off on the second tee through the Arizona St. Thunderbird Invitational , Saturday, April 13, 2019, in Phoenix.
Rick Scuteri, Related Press