At 32, Taylor Dickson is a little young perhaps to be called a “journeyman” tour pro. That said, it took the North Carolina native five years playing on an assortment of mini tour and another five years toiling on the Korn Ferry Tour before he finally earned a PGA Tour card last fall by virtue of his finish on the KFT points list. Suffice it to say, the grind of it all meant that his first official start as a rookie (after just one career start before hand) would have special meaning.

It’s also something that Dickson would share with many who helped make his dream become a reality. In playing this week’s Sony Open, several members of Dickson’s family came, too, to witness the milestone.

Unfortunately, it looked like their trip would be a little shorter than hoped for. After Dickson opened with a one-under 69 during Thursday’s opening round at Waialae C.C. in Honolulu, he made a couple early bogeys after teeing off the 10th hole to start his second round Friday. With the cutline hovering around three under par, it was going to require Dickson turn things around pretty fast in order to make it to the weekend.

And yet, that’s just what Dickson did, birdies on the 17th and first hole, got him back to one under total. And a birdie on the eighth hole after making a 20-footer left him one stroke off the number with one hole (and a rapidly setting sun) to play.

Dickson’s drive on the par-5 ninth flirted with the fairway bunker, bouncing through and settling into the left rough. A decision to layup with his second shot looked potentially problematic when he caught a flier and ended up closer than he hoped to the hole. His third shot stopped 19 feet from the cup, leaving him with the simple if daunting proposition: make it to make the cut or, well, vice versa.

Suffice to say, if you weren’t watching in the gloaming, you could hear what transpired next. Dickson’s ball disappeared into the hole, and the crowd went wild—including Dickson who needs a little more practice perfecting the putter toss.

“Just rolled it in, and people went nuts,” Dickson said afterward with a grin. “I kinda went nuts. Threw my putter in the air, didn’t catch it — unathletic — but it’s awesome man.”

Thankfully, the PGA Tour caught the moment on video, which you can see here.

“It makes the week better.” ❤️

Taylor Dickson’s family watched on as he birdied his final two holes to make his first cut as a new TOUR member @SonyOpenHawaii. pic.twitter.com/pbJzjFMtJD

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 11, 2025

“It’s my family, they’ve been with me the whole time,” he said. “And it makes the week better, no doubt. We’ll be playing the next two days and it means the world. We’re gonna have fun.”

A three-over 73 during Saturday’s third round left Dickson in 74th place with 18 holes to go. His first PGA Tour payday as a member won’t be huge, but it will be satisfying, nonetheless.

This article was originally published on golfdigest.com