Who is golfer Eric Cole? Exploring the American player's career

American golfer Eric Cole is doing very well at the St. Jude FedEx Championship. If he keeps up his current pace, he could not only have a good result but also make the great leap he has missed in his professional career so far.

Cole was born in Palm Springs, California (1988), in a family completely dedicated to golf. His father, Bobby Cole, had 13 professional victories, while his mother, Laura Baugh, played 25 seasons on the LPGA Tour. She didn't achieve many victories but had more than 70 Top 10 finishes.

Eric Cole, 2023 St Jude Championship Golf (Image via Getty).

With such a pedigree, Eric Cole was linked to golf practically from the first day of his life. He played at the senior and amateur levels with good results, including a stint at Nova Southeastern University.

Cole turned professional in 2009 and began competing on the Minor League Golf Tour. He has spent most of his career in that developmental tournament. Cole has won 56 tournaments at this level, including the 2009 and 2021 Tour Championship.

Eric Cole's major golf achievements

He earned the Korn Ferry Tour membership in 2017 but has played relatively little on that circuit. In 67 tournaments at this level, Eric Cole has made the cut 36 times, with three third-place finishes as his best result.

Eric Cole, 2023 Wyndham Championship - Round Three (Image via Getty).

Cole has also played on the PGA Tour Latinoamerica and the PGA Tour Canada. In the former circuit, he played just one tournament in 2020, where he finished T26. In the PGA Tour Canada, he hasn't played much - two tournaments in 2021 - with a Top 10 and a Top 25.

As for the PGA Tour, Cole has played at this level for only 33 tournaments, 30 of them during the current season. He obtained his official membership during this same year, 2023.

His season on the PGA Tour has been up and down, with 10 missed cuts. His best result came at the Honda Classic last February, where he finished runner-up.

Other good results came at the Mexico Open at Vidanta (T5) and the RBC Canadian Open (T6). He finished in the Top 25 at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the AT&T Byron Nelson, the Memorial Tournament, the Travelers Championship and the Wyndham Championship.

As for the majors of the season, Cole participated in two with quite good results. At the PGA Championship, he finished T15, while at the US Open, he finished T39.

Despite missing 10 cuts between September 2022 and May 2023, Cole managed to stabilize his game. Since that date, he managed to string together eight consecutive tournaments without being cut. This, coupled with his previous good performances, earned him his spot towards the FedEx Cup playoffs.