By Jordan Holley

Special to GolfWRX

Jordan Holley, 28, is a mini-tour player pursuing his dream of earning a PGA Tour card. He graduated from Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla., where he was an NCAA All-American and a member of the Cleveland Golf Academic All-American First Team. He qualified for the U.S. Amateur in 2008, and since turning professional has played on the NGA Hooters and eGolf tours, as well as other minor league tours. 

Well guys, it has finally happened! I am going to have an entire year + to play this game I love so much.

Let me tell you what happened … I was invited through a mutual friend to play in a church charity event in Boca Raton, Fla., this past Monday.  I didn’t really think too much of it as far as opportunities go, but I was excited to see my friends and play some relaxing golf.  I met with my teammates for breakfast, hit some shots on the range, rolled a few putts, gave a few pointers and headed to the first tee.  By the end of the day, I played some really solid golf including six birdies and two eagles on my own ball (playing a scramble) and we won the tourney.  As we finished, I was talking with my partners and one asked if I had any sponsors heading into 2012.  I told him I did not at the present moment but was going to play off of my own dime.  I had just put $1250 into the next NGA Hooters Tour event this next week in Windsor, NC.  This was a tough decision for me because it left me with under $1000 in the bank and some bills coming up soon.  Long story short, my playing partners and some of his influential friends got together and decided to fully fund my year of play! I have had so many empty promises and was reserved at first but quickly found out these guys were for real. I felt an incredible wave of emotion and had to excuse myself from the table to go outside and let out a scream and a few tears! I was beside myself with all kinds of feelings, mostly excitement for what I am going to do this year.  This is my year and I am ready to take this chance and turn it into something big.

Here is where I might lose some, may offend some, and hopefully will gain some true fans. I am a Christian. I believe God has a plan for everyone and I am convinced that at this point in my career, I am right where He wants me to be. I have been through so many troubled spots in my life and I truly believe in the power of prayer and will give a specific example of why. I was at a fairly low spot after my last story. I had just ruined a chance at a nice paycheck, was still troubled with my recent break-up with a longtime girlfriend, was coming ever-so-close to being broke and didn’t really see the light at the end of the tunnel. I actually called my ex and talked for a while about control. Too often, we try to control every little aspect of our life, and how often do we fail! It is so difficult to let go of the things that are important to us. The smaller day-to-day things in life are easier to let go of, but it’s the important ones, i.e. relationships, your career, etc. that are so hard to let out of your own hands.  How incapable of seamlessly managing our lives are we?

It seems every time I have found myself in tough spots, I can feel myself trying to control EVERY situation.  Long story short, I got off the phone with my ex and decided it had been far too long since I had last gone to church/spent any quality time on my relationship with God. I attended a really cool service geared towards people 20-30 and very upbeat, trendy, casual type of service in West Palm Beach. They meet on Tuesday nights, and this particular night, I felt an incredible pull to attend.  I went with another good friend and professional golfer Greg Forest and guess what the message was about?  That’s right … control.  It gave me chills down my spine. As he was talking, I felt a release of tension as I made a conscious effort to give control of those important things back over to the ONE who is so capable.  I had a short conversation with the Pastor after the message and headed home with a better sense of where I should head in my personal relationships as well as my career.

Here is where it becomes undeniable that there is something to this prayer thing.  I prayed the rest of that week that God would show me where I was heading next.  I felt the pull to put up that $1250 for the Hooters Tour event and pulled the trigger.  Now I was really poor.  I had no idea what I was going to do, but I knew I was going to go into this past week of practice with a little less tension and a little more vigor.  I felt some improvements in some parts of my game and especially with the putter.  Wow, do you ever putt better with no tension!  I was able to finally feel the putter release and started pouring them in from everywhere!  On Monday, I met with those guys, played the event, and practically determined the path of my next two years!  All of this in one week, from rags to … well, slightly nicer rags.

Now it’s on to the next one and I could not be more excited, determined, and ready to put every ounce of my soul into making the most of this opportunity.  That’s it for this week — I leave Sunday for North Carolina for the next Hooters Tour event, followed by the next two events on the eGolf Professional Tour.  I will keep you guys/girls up to date with all of my experiences!  I could not be here if it weren’t for so many people … the guys out at Jonathan’s Landing Country Club in Jupiter for giving me an incredible place to practice and play while I am preparing for this season. To Mike Adams at Medallist Golf Club, the best instructor in the country, and all of the people who have supported me up until this point, here is to getting out there and letting it go!!

Click here for more discussion, and the chance to interact with Jordan in the “Tour Talk” forum.

You can follow Jordan on Twitter @J_Holley6under and on www.jordanhollegolf.com.