Cole

Hammer

The Texas Longhorn has been busy this season, racking up four paydays in eight starts on the PGA TOUR despite his lack of status. It’s no surprise then to see that he’s using his final allotted sponsor exemption for the season. He sits 46 FedExCup Points away from reaching Special Temporary Membership which would allow him unlimited invites for the remainder of the season. Hammer is hoping his comfort in the area will work in his favor this week on a tough track, “Playing well on these harder golf courses is definitely a confidence builder and this week is no different. I’ve played this course a couple times in college and I’ve really enjoyed it. It’s definitely a driver’s paradise. If you can put it in play, then you can really attack it. I’m looking forward to that challenge.”

Playing on a sponsor’s invite this week, the young Texas Longhorn alum raced out to the first-round lead this week and still shared a piece at the midpoint. He lost 3.5 shots to the field on Saturday but got nearly all of those back today (+3.2). Speaking on the importance ot today’s round, “iI probably means the most of any round I’ve played before. But honestly, in my opinion I did such a good job of blocking that out today. I was really in the present moment on each and every shot. For whatever reason, I was less nervous today than I have been in a very long time and I think I’m just slowly starting to get more comfortable out there. I’m excited for what’s next.” This will be his first top 25 on the PGA TOUR and the top-10 finish earns him a seat at the Sony Open in January. He also scoops up 93 Non-Member FedExCup Points which puts him at 120 for the season (175 being the target for Special Temporary Membership).

Hammer got going in the wrong direction early Saturday, playing Nos. 3-5 in 4 over including a double bogey on the par-4 fifth hole. He was bogey-free from there but only added two birdies, moving backwards on a day when most of the leaders were able to score in the 60s. The former Texas standout is playing this week on a sponsor exemption, and while his hopes of becoming the first sponsor invite since 2020 to win on Tour, he still has a chance to snag a spot in the Sony Open field in January if he manages to move back inside the top 10 on Sunday.

It’s tight at the top after 36 holes at Sea Island, with one shot separating the top six players, but Hammer is among that group after following up his career-low with a 4-under effort on the more difficult Seaside Course. The former Texas standout now has a share of the 36-hole lead on Tour for the first time, as this is just the third time he has made the cut in 15 career starts. Hammer had an eventful scorecard Friday, with seven birdies against three bogeys. He’s looking to become the first sponsor exemption to win on Tour since Martin Laird two years ago in Las Vegas, and he’d be the first non-member sponsor invite to win since Matthew Wolff broke through at the 2019 3M Open.

Playing on a sponsor’s invite this week, the 23-year-old is trying to make the most of his opportunity at Sea Island. He took on the Plantation Course today and walked out with 12-of-14 fairways hit, 15 GIR, and a nine-pack of birdies. “I was almost blacked out there for a little bit. It went by in a heartbeat, but at the same time was a long day. It was cold and, like I said a little bit ago, I had very low expectations. And I’m glad I did because it was a tough day out there, there’s no question. I figured par was a good score today and I found myself making putts for birdie early on and then just kind of kept going from there, but what a day.” Hammer has no PGA TOUR status and only conditional status on the Korn Ferry Tour. He talked about last week’s T27 at the Houston Open (home event) being a big confidence booster for him. This will be his first time holding a lead or co-lead on the PGA TOUR with his previous best position being T7 after R1 of the 2019-20 Houston Open.

The 22-year-old Hammer shot a career-low round of 63 in Round 2 and followed it up with a 7-under 64 on Saturday. He ended with a 2-under 69 to finish at 20-under 264, seven shots behind winner Paul Haley II. Hammer, who recently finished his senior season at Texas as member of the NCAA championship team, claimed the No. 5 ranking in the PGA Tour University Class of 2022 and was the Big 12 Conference champion in 2021. Hammer has competed in three U.S. Opens and two Walker Cups, and in 2018, he won the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball, partnering with Garrett Barber. Additionally, he won the Mark H. McCormack Medal in 2019 as the best amateur golfer in the world.

The 22-year-old Hammer made his first professional start last week on the Korn Ferry Tour, where he missed the cut at the Wichita Open after rounds of 71-72. “I’m glad I got that start under my belt before coming here. I feel like I’ve gotten myself into pressure situation now so I’m excited to use that experience,” he said. “I learned a lot about myself and how I need to prepare for tournaments. I’ve been in college for four years and basically been told how to prepare every week. And now that I’m on my own I need to, well last week was a good way for me to figure out what works for me and what doesn’t.” Hammer is member of the second class of college seniors to earn status through PGA Tour University, where he finished fifth in the standings and earned KFT status for the rest of the 2022 season. He also is exempt into the final stage of the KFT Qualifying Tournament.

The University of Texas junior is still an amateur but punched his ticket into this event by winning the 2019 McCormack Medal which is given to the World No. 1 amateur at the end of each season. The Houston native has dropped a bit in those rankings since then, currently just 20th in the WAGR and 49th in the Golfweek/Sagarin Ratings. Unlike most amateurs in the field, Hammer will have the advantage of already playing in a U.S. Open. He was just 15 years old when he played in the 2015 edition at Chambers Bay (77-84 / Missed Cut). Gamers should keep their expectations low this week but certainly keep a close eye on him on the leaderboard to see if he can find a spark.

The University of Texas sophomore started on the 10th tee this morning and found trouble early with a double bogey at the 11th. Hammer didn’t panic and instead chose to bounce back with a 4'11" birdie splash at the following hole. He would sprinkle seven more birdies before his day was done including a 23'8" birdie bomb at the 18th. The Houston native could have seen this round get derailed early after the big number and he also found six bunkers on his journey today. All in all, it was a strong showing for the World No. 2 ranked amateur. He walked off the course gaining 1.1 strokes on approach and 4.2 strokes putting.

The young Houston native is a Sophomore at the University of Texas and cracked the field through a sponsor’s invite this week. Hammer currently ranks 2nd in the World Amateur Golf Ranking but did spend some time at No. 1 this year. That led to him winning the McCormack Medal in August and he also won the NCAA Freshman of the Year award. If there is any question on whether he can perform right away on the PGA TOUR, just look at the NCAA Championship semifinals this summer when he outdueled Matthew Wolff who is now a PGA TOUR winner. Hammer has eventual superstar potential on the PGA TOUR but will his star be ready to shine this early?