AVONDALE, La. What does a 43 year old ex-Army or Navy man do this week, at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, who has made only one cut in the last 28 starts on GPro Tour?
The answer to this question may be a bit baffling.
Paresh amin and Michael Thompson, a 15-year veteran of the Tour, are competing in TPC Louisiana’s two-man team competition. The pair tied for the 77 th place out of 80 teams with a 1-under-71 best-ball score on Thursday.
Amin told Times Picayune, “It was fascinating.” It went exactly as I had pictured. Overall, it was an excellent experience.
Amin was one of 10 sponsors invited to the tournament after Thompson, who had been late in joining the field, chose Amin as his partner. Amin and Thompson became friends while playing golf together at Sea Island Golf Club, St. Simons Island in Georgia, where Thompson formerly lived. Both are members.
Amin played golf in high school but did not pick up a club for his 16 years of military service. Julia, his wife, encouraged him to pick up golf again.
Amin said, “She told to me that I needed to leave the house because you were driving her crazy.” Amin said, “I had a lot of DIY projects in the house that were not finished. I decided to take up clubs and do this as a job.”
Amin competed in the GPro Tour over the last three years, and to say that he struggled would be an understatement. He has missed the cut in 27 out of 28 events and withdrew from the remaining two. His best finish was a tie for the 79 th at the 2020 Columbia (South Carolina), a 36 hole event. In addition, he shot 42-over-par for four rounds of the Mackenzie Tour Q-School in this year.
“I’m used to other things. “When you are called to a military assignment, you receive the call. You fly to another country to perform your job,” he told Jeff Duncan of Nola.com. There’s a long lag in golf. This is a big build-up. “I felt like I got into my rhythm on the back 9.”
Amin did not make a birdie during the round, but he sank an 11-foot putt for par at No. They used a par at No. 15 after Thompson made bogey. The team counted Thompson’s bogey on the third hole, when he made a double.
Sponsor exemptions can be granted at the sponsor’s discretion. Alex Fitzpatrick, his big brother Matt, who is the U.S. Open winner and won last week’s RBC Heritage and entered the second round of the Zurich Classic, was one shot behind his brother. This was the primary reason Matt, his big brother and reigning U.S. Open champ, decided to sign up for this week. Celebrities like Tony Romo have always taken up sponsor invites that could be given to better qualified players. A big week can change a player’s life. Amin’s resume is one of the thinnest we have seen in a FedEx Cup sponsor invitation for some time.
He said, “These guys have an obvious advantage over me.” They’ve done it all their lives. “I’m trying to crack the codes and make it a full-time job out here.”
