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Eric James Cole (born June 12, 1988) is an American professional golfer from Delray Beach, Florida who plays on the PGA Tour. He was awarded the 2022–23 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year[2] and is also the son of professional golfers Bobby Cole and Laura Baugh.[3]
| Eric Cole | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||||
| Full name | Eric James Cole | ||||
| Born | June 12, 1988 Palm Springs, California, U.S. | ||||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | ||||
| Weight | 155 lb (70 kg; 11.1 st) | ||||
| Sporting nationality |  United States | ||||
| Residence | Delray Beach, Florida, U.S. | ||||
| Career | |||||
| College | Nova Southeastern University | ||||
| Turned professional | 2009 | ||||
| Current tour(s) | PGA Tour | ||||
| Former tour(s) | Korn Ferry Tour Minor League Golf Tour | ||||
| Professional wins | 12 | ||||
| Highest ranking | 36 (February 25, 2024)[1] (as of November 24, 2024) | ||||
| Best results in major championships | |||||
| Masters Tournament | 52nd: 2024 | ||||
| PGA Championship | T15: 2023 | ||||
| U.S. Open | T39: 2023 | ||||
| The Open Championship | T31: 2024 | ||||
| Achievements and awards | |||||
| |||||
Cole was born in 1988, the year after his parents remarried, two years after their divorce, as one of seven siblings. With both parents being tour golfers, Cole grew up on golf courses and started playing seriously at age 11. He never had other coaches than his parents.[3]
At age 14, while playing high school golf, Cole became a friend of Sam Saunders, the grandson of Arnold Palmer. Cole also got to know Palmer and the three of them played golf at Palmer's home clubs, Bay Hill Club and Lodge in Florida and Latrobe Country Club in Pennsylvania. In later years, Cole also caddied for Saunders at the Arnold Palmer Invitational on the PGA Tour.[4]
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He won 56 times on the Minor League Golf Tour including winning the tour championship in 2009 and 2021.[5]
Cole earned his Korn Ferry Tour card in 2017 and played in eight events, making two cuts. His best finish was a tie for 39th place. He returned to the Korn Ferry Tour for the 2021 season and made 31 starts. His first top-10 finish came at the Savannah Golf Championship in October 2020, where he finished tied for third. He had five top-10s in the 2022 season, including two third-place finishes.[6]
Cole qualified for the 2021 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines Golf Course, where he missed the cut after rounds of 77-73.[7]
Cole finished tied for third in the 2022 Korn Ferry Tour Championship to earn his PGA Tour card for the 2023 season.[8] In February, he finished tied with Chris Kirk atop the leaderboard of the Honda Classic before Kirk won with a birdie on the first playoff hole.[9] He was voted as the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year for the 2022–23 season.[2] At 35 years of age, Cole became the second oldest player to receive this award since its inception in 1990. Only Todd Hamilton, at 38 in 2004, had been older.
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Cole is the son of Bobby Cole, who won the Buick Open on the 1977 PGA Tour and had three top-10 finishes in major championships. In 1966, Cole's father, 18 years old, became the youngest winner ever of the British Amateur. Cole's mother, Laura Baugh, was the 1971 U.S. Women's Amateur champion, the youngest winner ever a 16 year old, and the 1973 LPGA Rookie of the Year.[10][11][3]
Minor League Golf Tour wins (12)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aug 28, 2009 | Quail Ridge 2-Day | −12 (67-65=132) | 3 strokes |  Matthew Abbott |
| 2 | Dec 16, 2009 | MLGT Tour Championship | −7 (71-66=137) | 1 stroke | Johnny Bloomfield, Steve LeBrun |
| 3 | Apr 27, 2011 | Abacoa 2-Day | −4 (73-67=140) | 1 stroke | Derek Fathauer, Nick Latimer |
| 4 | Aug 6, 2015 | 3-Day Abacoa | −12 (66-71-67=204) | 1 stroke | Carl McCauley |
| 5 | Nov 18, 2016 | Match Play Championship | 2 and 1 | Hernan Borja | |
| 6 | Jun 13, 2019 | Monday Qualifier Contest #5 | −15 (67-49-65=181)* | 7 strokes | Nick Latimer,  Jesús Rivas |
| 7 | Sep 12, 2019 | The Falls CC 2-Day | −13 (67-64=131) | 1 stroke | Tom Lovelady |
| 8 | Sep 19, 2019 | Qualifying School Contest #5 | −10 (66-66=132) | 3 strokes | Hernan Borja |
| 9 | Oct 10, 2019 | Monday Qualifier Contest #8 | −15 (67-67-67=132) | 4 strokes | Justin Bryant |
| 10 | Oct 30, 2019 | Joey D Golf Match Play Championship | 2 and 1 | Blake Morris | |
| 11 | Dec 8, 2021 | MLGT Tour Championship (2) | −13 (63-66=129) | 1 stroke |  Ben Taylor |
| 12 | Apr 5, 2023 | Palm Beach County Open | −18 (66-63-66=195) | 3 strokes | Chris Wiatr |
*Note: The 2019 Monday Qualifier Contest #5 was shortened to 49 holes due to rain.
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PGA Tour playoff record (0–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2023 | The Honda Classic | Chris Kirk |
Lost to birdie on first extra hole |
| Tournament | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | 52 | |||
| PGA Championship | T15 | CUT | ||
| U.S. Open | CUT | T39 | CUT | |
| The Open Championship | T31 |
Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
| Tournament | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| The Players Championship | T27 | CUT |
CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
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