Mini Tour Players - players who don't make money?

[Ironman_32]

Question for all the guys out there playing the mini tours, for all the guys who continually play events but don't make money or cuts, are they basically playing with family money or some sort of trust fund kid? Over the past couple of years I've started to follow some mini tour pros on social media, some of them appear to never make money or make small amounts, but continue to play/practice year over year, just wondering how they go about that exactly?

[Jtgavigan]

Some are sponsored, some "crowd fund," and others go into lots of debt. I have seen all 3.

[KennyP]

Part time work too. I believe nightclub bouncer is a popular occupation.

[Strugglingpro]

On 2/26/2024 at 6:57 AM, Jtgavigan said:

Some are sponsored, some "crowd fund," and others go into lots of debt. I have seen all 3.

Some will play any two guys with their partner for any amount over 2k and under 10k. It's pretty profitable for the two guys with a record of 58 -3. There's actually a YouTube video that I saw that said "a putt to beat [my name]. I think playing for your own money is fun and I know that I will definitely get a lot of responses. It's not an ego thing to me. I simply like to play for money, and it helps with the price of playing full time.

[Strugglingpro]

Just now, Strugglingpro said:

Some will play any two guys with their partner for any amount over 2k and under 10k. It's pretty profitable for the two guys with a record of 58 -3. There's actually a YouTube video that I saw that said "a putt to beat [my name]. I think playing for your own money is fun and I know that I will definitely get a lot of responses. It's not an ego thing to me. I simply like to play for money, and it helps with the price of playing full time.

It's" I missed a putt to beat B£€✓€  W0°∆§

[mizuno player]

Jtgavigan has it nailed. 

 

A friend played mini tour and a few Nationwide events. 

 

He sold shares as if he were a business. Share holders were only re paid if he made money. 

( I believe that was his deal )

 

He also had some money from part time work. 

 

Stayed in hotels that offer free breakfast. Ate a lot of P&J sandwiches. If pizza places offered a two for one price he'd get that and have two dinners. Gotta be frugal to make what little bit of money that had last. I think his first two years he raised what seems like a lot of money but really isn't. $40/50k. 

 

Sadly a lot of guys, one of his best friends, get in a lot of credit card debt. My friend did not but a lot do. It's tough. 

 

This was all before social media. I'm sure some are able to make money that way now. 

 

Follow Monday Q school on social media. He's gives a pretty good look at how difficult it is and how guys and ladies do it. 

[kwcsports]

A bunch of people from my old club put money together to help our Pro go to Q School.

Had he made it, they were going to help bankroll him. 

[naval2006]

I know a couple of pro players from my country who have played KF.  They both said that the KFT is just the highway to PGAT, but zero $, even on a very good season.  One of them, who's played on KF, PGAT and DP, says expenses on KF and PGAT are pretty much the same when you're struggling.

[One Putter]

From what I've seen they'll usually get someone to bankroll them and then work some at a country club to get practice privileges.

[me05501]

Country clubs are full of old dudes who want to buy into the dream of making it out there. 

[golfortennis]

8 hours ago, me05501 said:

Country clubs are full of old dudes who want to buy into the dream of making it out there. 

 

What else are they going to do?  Waste that money on financial advisors?  

[Strugglingpro]

On 2/26/2024 at 6:29 AM, Ironman_32 said:

Question for all the guys out there playing the mini tours, for all the guys who continually play events but don't make money or cuts, are they basically playing with family money or some sort of trust fund kid? Over the past couple of years I've started to follow some mini tour pros on social media, some of them appear to never make money or make small amounts, but continue to play/practice year over year, just wondering how they go about that exactly?

I've been playing full time since I retired from a short Baseball career with Seattle. I'll just say this... It's about the same as playing Minor League baseball with a lot less people supporting you. Long drives to small towns for a state open or a qualifier. It would be impossible to do it with a family, if you didn't have a sponsor. I have had little success but I have had some success, so that keeps me getting up early every morning and practicing and/ or playing every day. Now we have a lighted course and a big game so I played from 7 am to 2:15 am yesterday. Only Golf. 

[iBanesto]

On 2/27/2024 at 3:57 AM, KennyP said:

Part time work too. I believe nightclub bouncer is a popular occupation.

 

Vijay Singh was also a bouncer in 1987 whilst playing in Scotland.

 

[phizzy30]

On 2/26/2024 at 6:29 AM, Ironman_32 said:

Question for all the guys out there playing the mini tours, for all the guys who continually play events but don't make money or cuts, are they basically playing with family money or some sort of trust fund kid? Over the past couple of years I've started to follow some mini tour pros on social media, some of them appear to never make money or make small amounts, but continue to play/practice year over year, just wondering how they go about that exactly?

I have friends who used to play on mini tours but are now in other career fields because the money ran out.  One guy works for the USGA and the other is in insurance sales now.  One was sponsored by an older couple that were members at my father's old CC and the other guy came from a wealthy family.  Mind you this was 15 years ago when online crowd funding didn't exist.  I'd imagine it's a bit easier getting access to resources nowadays with social media and what not. 

Edited March 17 by phizzy30

[phizzy30]

On 3/11/2024 at 9:21 AM, me05501 said:

Country clubs are full of old dudes who want to buy into the dream of making it out there. 

Living vicariously through up and coming or struggling tour pros in hopes that one will hit pay dirt one day. 

[Zach.buckler23]

Usually comes from sponsorships or parents money 

[PedronNiall]

On 3/17/2024 at 8:23 AM, phizzy30 said:

I have friends who used to play on mini tours but are now in other career fields because the money ran out.  One guy works for the USGA and the other is in insurance sales now.  One was sponsored by an older couple that were members at my father's old CC and the other guy came from a wealthy family.  Mind you this was 15 years ago when online crowd funding didn't exist.  I'd imagine it's a bit easier getting access to resources nowadays with social media and what not. 

Crowd funding seems like it might be a headache at a minimum. Rather have a handful of people at a local club behind me than 1000 strangers who might have ridiculous expectations from me regarding time and whatever else because they gave $10 to my gofundme my rookie year. 

 

Maybe it's more chill than that, but people have gotten a little crazy in certain avenues the past few years with what they feel they're owed because they bought into something. The mobs that build up when fans don't like a decision is literally insane in too many cases. 

[Ferguson]

On 3/17/2024 at 5:19 AM, iBanesto said:

 

Vijay Singh was also a bouncer in 1987 whilst playing in Scotland.

 

 

 

It's the way he approached life - taking the deer by the horns (or was it taking from the horns of a deer)? 

 

 

 

[Yorkshiregolf81]

a few guys I know in the UK supported themselves with bar work, shop work and getting some local sponsors. It's an incredibly tough life, and IMO where the most compelling stories in golf live. The level of pressure putting for a cheque that covers your mortgage and makes sure your family can afford swimming lessons and food shopping is just different to the sort of millionaires golf we see week in week out. 

[KennyP]

On 3/21/2024 at 1:42 PM, Yorkshiregolf81 said:

a few guys I know in the UK supported themselves with bar work, shop work and getting some local sponsors. It's an incredibly tough life, and IMO where the most compelling stories in golf live. The level of pressure putting for a cheque that covers your mortgage and makes sure your family can afford swimming lessons and food shopping is just different to the sort of millionaires golf we see week in week out.

 

Joe Dean is a prime example. Hell of a player who's been lurking on the mini tours. For those who don't his back story, he played in the Open that Spieth won. Got through q school last year and was back delivering for a supermarket the day after to fund his existence. Hopefully the £170k he won for T2 in Kenya will take the pressure off for a while.

 

 

Edited March 23 by KennyP

[Ironman_32]

On 3/23/2024 at 3:21 PM, KennyP said:

 

Joe Dean is a prime example. Hell of a player who's been lurking on the mini tours. For those who don't his back story, he played in the Open that Spieth won. Got through q school last year and was back delivering for a supermarket the day after to fund his existence. Hopefully the £170k he won for T2 in Kenya will take the pressure off for a while.

 

 

That is a good example. Joe  Dean seems to be able to play, just needed the opporuntity. 

 

I'm seeing some guys whose good/great days are a couple under (which is dead money professionally), yet continue to have played for seasons. Guess they just scratch together cash and hope they figure out a way to make 3-5 more birdies a round?

[MtlJeff]

IsaacBM and Thrillhouse when he used to post here used to share a lot of stories about mini tour life. 

 

Everyone here has already hit the key talking points, basically driving as much as you can, living in hotel rooms or AirBNBs with 6 other dudes, crowdfunding or borrowing from family members, selling shares in yourself (done famously by Zach Johnson, he has talked about this)

 

I have a friend that plays mini tours in Florida now and i see a lot of his updates on social media. He also sometimes asks for donations

[KennyP]

2 hours ago, Ironman_32 said:

 

I'm seeing some guys whose good/great days are a couple under (which is dead money professionally), yet continue to have played for seasons. Guess they just scratch together cash and hope they figure out a way to make 3-5 more birdies a round?

 

Oh yes. There are plenty of dreamers out there as well.

[Llortamaisey]

Frankly, i’m not sure the mini tours could survive if it wasn’t for the guys that have no chance of making it on tour, using poor financial decision-making skills to help fund the mini tours. For every one guy that makes it he needs a few hundred delusional “pros” from fantasy island to help make it happen.

 

I also think the most underutilized form of funding the professional fantasy is a sugar momma. If I could go back in time and relive the delusion, I would find a nice older divorcee in the Scottsdale area and use her ex-husband’s hard earned fortune to help fund the “dream”. What she would require would be a lot more tolerable than debt and added expectations of local investors. 

[stevesteven1]

Heard this about a certain euro who has won on both tours..

 

his club helped him out as an amateur, when his dad stood up to announce his son was going pro he said ‘and if you think you lot are getting any of the cash you aren’t’..