Sometimes in life, there are things that you just know are going to happen. It may be that someone is going to become a doctor because their parents are doctors or someone is going to play basketball because one of their parents played basketball. Well for one junior golfer, it has seemed as if he would always play golf. Bodie Patton first picked up a golf club when he was 4 years old and has loved to golf ever since.
When Patton was four, he and his family moved to Eureka, Missouri, and moved in right next to a golf course. From that day on, Bodie Patton was obsessed with the game, and being so close to a course made it easy. He started playing rounds of golf with his dad shortly after, and his love for the game grew. Patton first started playing for the Junior PGA when he was five and played his first competitive match at seven. You could even say that golfing was in Patton’s DNA, as both of his grandfathers played almost every single day, and they too lived right next to their respective country clubs, too. Last year, as a 9-year-old, Patton joined the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour and what would you know, he won his first tournament in St. Louis back in November 2023.
To start his 2024 campaign, Patton has placed first in both tournaments he has played in. His first tournament of the year was the Miami Shores Junior Open where he shot a 163, and most recently, he played at the TPC Deer Run Junior Open, where he shot a 173. After that win at the TPC Deer Run Junior Open, we caught up with Patton and talked to him about his time on the Tour and what that last win was like.
What do you enjoy most about the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour?
“I enjoy the great courses we get to play on”
How did it feel to get your most recent win on the tour?
“It felt really good.”
How do you prepare for a tournament?
“I practice at the Legends Country Club in my hometown and I try to play every day. I hit in the simulator if the weather is bad. I try to practice some part of my game for at least 1-2 hours every night”
What are your career aspirations?
“Make the PGA tour!”
What do you want people to know about you?
“I am a 4th grader and golf is my favorite sport. I live across the street from the golf course and I like to practice on the putting green all the time with my friends. I have fun traveling to golf tournaments.”
Well, this 4th grader has already impressed numerous times on the Hurricane Tour, and there is surely more to come. Bodie Patton is a great example of hard work and dedication paying off. His love for the game and the time he spends on it is apparent when he talks. That passion and love for the game, paired with his work ethic, are going to carry Patton far.
