Another try: Matured Tryon hopes for second chance on TOUR

Stan Badz/PGA TOUR

Ty Tryon, seen here in 2004, will play the second stage of q-school next week as he tries to get back on TOUR.

He blazed onto the PGA TOUR eight years ago like a comet. He set records, defied conventional thinking and made a lot of money in a very short time.

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But before we really got to know Ty Tryon, and before he really got to know the PGA TOUR, he was gone, leaving behind a bunch of unanswered questions and a debate on what is the best way for a child prodigy to embark on his career.

Many believe Tryon serves as a living example of how not to turn professional, even though in 2001 he became the youngest player (16) to make a cut on the PGA TOUR in almost 50 years and later that fall became the youngest (17) to earn his card by going through all three stages of q-school. His lackluster results in the years since his flameout -- like a comet -- have only added to that perception.

"I really didn't understand what I was getting myself into," Tryon said. "I thought I did, but I really didn't."

Now a grizzled 25-year-old, Tryon is once again hoping to use those lessons he learned as he attempts to resurrect his career. Tryon finished tied for fourth in a first-stage q-school event last week in Lakeland to advance to next week's second stage. A good performance there, and Tryon will return to Bear Lakes Country Club in West Palm Beach, where he made some of his history by advancing through the final stage of q-school in 2001 by finishing tied for 23rd.

So much has changed for Tryon in the last eight years. He went from being a kid to getting married and having a child. He went from being a prodigy to seemingly a washed-up pro.

By age 22.

"I think someday I could write a pretty interesting book," Tryon said.

Tryon never doubted he would become a golf pro. His given name is William Augustus Tryon IV, but he always went by the nickname Ty, a nod to Chevy Chase's character, Ty Webb, in the movie "Caddyshack."

Tryon's family moved from North Carolina to Orlando so he could concentrate on golf by attending the David Leadbetter Academy. Tryon's breakthrough moment came when he qualified for the 2001 Honda Classic at 16, and he continued to shock the golf world by making the cut after a first-round 67 (he finished T39).

Tryon wasn't just hitting the shots at that tender age, he was calling them off the course. He ignored the advice of several Orlando-area pros such as John Cook, who tried to convince Tryon he was too young to play full-time on the PGA TOUR.

"They told me there was a lot more to being on the PGA TOUR than just playing golf," Tryon said, "and they were absolutely right."

That didn't stop Tryon from dropping out of high school to pursue his dream. And who could question his motives when Tryon somehow earned his card -- and more than $2 million in endorsements from Callaway Golf and Target?

But that was about the only money Tryon made for a while. His rookie year was a mess -- he missed his first four cuts before being sidelined most of the year with mononucleosis. That earned him a medical exemption for the 2003 season, but even though his health was better, his game was still ailing.

He made just five cuts in 27 starts those two years on the PGA TOUR, posting only one top-10 finish, a T10 at the Bay Hill Invitational in his hometown. Those people who said Tryon didn't know what he was doing when he turned pro so young now looked a lot smarter.

By the time he was 19, Tryon had lost all of his PGA TOUR playing privileges. He qualified for the Nationwide Tour in 2004, but had more struggles (16-of-22 missed cuts) and was soon headed to golf's minor leagues, the mini-tours. He has bounced around them ever since. His last round on the PGA TOUR came when he shot a 76 while missing the cut at Disney World in 2003.

Tryon played like a seasoned pro last week at Grasslands Golf & Country Club in Lakeland. He made just seven bogeys during the 72 holes, offsetting them with 20 birdies -- half of them during a second-round 62 -- and an eagle. He knows the clock is ticking on his career and he says he has learned from his missteps.

"I don't take things for granted like I used to," Tryon said. "I know I want to get back on the PGA TOUR again."

Tryon is correct that he could write a very interesting book on his career. But not yet. He hopes there are plenty more chapters to come.

Craig Dolch is a freelance columnist for PGATOUR.COM. His views do not necessarily represent the views of the PGA TOUR.