When former BYU golfer Peter Kuest was struggling to find his footing as a young pro, a financial boost from a Utah golf program helped keep his dream afloat.
“It really helped out a lot. I haven’t really had many sponsorship opportunities. Just to receive that was huge,” Kuest said recently.
Then the 25-year-old quipped: “I could eat a little better. Instead of McDonald’s, I got Chipotle.”
Well, Kuest can feel good about adding avocado now.
The former Cougar star is in the midst of a breakout season in which he has racked up more than $675,000 in PGA Tour winnings over the last 10 weeks. And as he headed into this week’s 3M Open, Kuest has his eye on even bigger prizes.
Not that it’s changed him much.
“My life hasn’t changed,” Kuest said. “You know, I’m still just a golfer. I like to go fishing and hang out with my friends. It’s not like I’m a rock star touring the world. I’m just going out and playing some pretty sweet courses and seeing the country.”
Kuest’s own world tour started with a missed cut at the Valero Texas Open back in April.
A month later, however, the former Cougar shot a final-round 63 to tie for 14th at the AT&T Byron Nelson, earning a $163,000 payday in the process. He went on to finished tied for 57th at the RBC Canadian Open ($20,160).
Then came Kuest’s red-hot July.
He started the month at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit, where he picked up some pointers during a practice round with the event’s 2022 champ: Utah golfer Tony Finau.
“It’s always nice to play with Tony,” Kuest said. “Just seeing what he’s hitting off the tee and how he goes about it. Talking to him about different things. Each night he would text me something here and there. It was nice to talk with him throughout the week.”
The tips seemed to pay off. Kuest grabbed an early lead in the tournament and finished tied for fourth — good for $370,333.
He followed that up with a T17 finish at the John Deere Classic ($112,850) and tacked on another $8,000 last weekend at the Barracuda Classic.
What’s changed?
“I wouldn’t say anything’s really clicked, it’s just a lot of hard work over the last few years,” Kuest said.
He added: “I didn’t have many opportunities to play this year. I just had to make the most of them. And I feel like I’ve done a pretty good job of that.”
Indeed. And Kuest has earned some more opportunities on the tour because of it.
This week it’s the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities.
Next week he should have a place at the Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, N.C.
“Definitely just lock up my [full PGA Tour] card for next year,” Kuest said of his goals for the rest of the year. “I’m not really sure the path. We’re just kind of taking it week by week, trying to talk to some different people here and there about how it all works.
“… I always knew I could compete out here. It was just getting the opportunity and then doing it.”
