Hogi, 10-Under Par Course Record... 'Canceled Plane Tickets Twice'

The Players Championship 3R Tied for 8th Place with High Spirits

He canceled his plane tickets twice over the weekend.

This is the story of Tom Hoge (USA). On the 12th (Korean time), at the Sograas TPC (Par 72, 7,256 yards) in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, USA, during the third round of the PGA Tour's "The Players Championship" (total prize money $25 million), known as the "fifth major," he set a course record with a 10-under-par and jumped to a tie for 8th place. Previously, nine players had shot 63. Hoge demonstrated remarkable resilience by quickly moving from the brink of missing the cut to the top ranks.

Tom Hoge is smiling brightly during an interview after shooting a course record 10-under par in the third round of the The Players Championship. [Ponte Vedra Beach, USA=Photo by AFP·Yonhap News]

After completing the second round of this tournament, Hoge almost returned home to Dallas, Texas. He struggled in the first round with a 6-over-par 78, making the possibility of missing the cut high. As a result, Hoge booked a flight at 2:59 PM local time the next day to go home after finishing the second round.

However, Hoge improved by 4 strokes in the second round, and because the second round was delayed due to bad weather and was not completed on the 10th local date, the cut line was not yet determined, so he postponed his flight to Dallas by one day. The second round finished on Saturday, the 11th local date, and Hoge, who was 2-over-par, barely made the cut. He also canceled his Saturday flight and surged up the leaderboard in the third round by making 10 birdies without a single bogey.

Hoge said, "Actually, my swing felt good from the end of the second round," and cheered, "I could have missed the cut, but I'm happy to be playing the third round like this." Born in 1989, Hoge is a veteran who turned professional in 2011. He joined the PGA Tour from the 2014/2015 season and had been frustrated by a long winless streak. Hoge won his first PGA Tour title last February at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. It was his first victory in his 203rd tournament over nine years, attracting attention. He is currently ranked 33rd in the world and 24th in the FedEx Cup standings.