PGA Tour rookie’s dramatic first cut story will make your week

Taylor Dickson knows what a spot in the Sony Open means better than perhaps anyone else in the field.

Dickson, 32, has played professional golf for exactly 10 years, and Thursday morning’s Sony Open was his first day as a full-time player on the PGA Tour. Before Thursday morning, he had struggled 10 years in the golf desert — five on various mini-tours and another five compete on the Korn Ferry Tour — and received the sole sponsor exemption at last year’s Myrtle Beach Classic.

That’s probably why the Dixon family decided to hop on a flight to Waialae the second week in January: Taylor had finally he succeeded and the Sony Open would be his big debut.

A dramatic qualifying experience through the Korn Ferry Tour Championship earned Dickson one of the few coveted KFT PGA Tour cards for 2025. He would be able to play most of the tournaments on tour in the new year, which that left only one question: Where first? The season-opening Sentry is a signature event with a limited field, which put it out of the question. But the Sony Open, the second event of the tour season, was on hold.

It takes a village to climb through the murky depths of pro golf into the high-priced excitement of the PGA Tourand it seemed fitting that Dixon’s village should be there in person as he received the greatest achievement of his professional life. About a dozen members of Dickson’s crew joined him at Waialae, and he rewarded the cheering section with an opening round of 69.

It looked like the high would end there for Taylor. He began his second round at the Sony Open with two early bogeys, pushing him to 1 over for the tournament and four shots off the cut. It looked like Dickson was headed for a missed cut, his major PGA Tour debut ending after just two rounds.

But then a funny thing happened: Taylor Dickson started making birds. The first came on the 17th, a par-3, then after the turn on the 1st, a par-4. Then, on the 8th hole, another par-4, Dickson birdied one long putt for another birdie, earning a standing ovation from his small gallery of supporters. He walked the 9th hole, the 18th, with the pins set: a fourth and final birdie on the par-5 and he would make the cut at 3-under, a par or worse and to go home early.

Dickson did his job from the tee to the green on the 9th, putting himself 20 feet from the hole with a birdie putt. He watched the putt up and down, and finally hit it, sending his ball into the hole. Seconds later, it went in and the crowd on the 9th hole went wild, including Dickson, who threw his ball in the air in celebration.

“I just put it in and people went crazy,” Dixon said afterward with a smile. “I kind of went crazy. I threw it in the air, I didn’t catch it – unathletic – but he is a wonderful man.”

As he made his way from the 9th green to the clubhouse, Dickson’s fan club was filled with hugs.

“It’s my family, they’ve been with me the whole time,” he said. “And that makes the week the best, without a doubt. We’re playing the next two days and it means the world. We’re going to have fun.”

Now Taylor Dickson has secured his 2025 PGA Tour first payday, and has the opportunity to make a weekend run in his first full-time PGA Tour start. It was the return of the week on the PGA Tour — and the continuation of a career built on a single unifying premise.

“Just know never give up, just keep going.”

Watch Taylor’s dramatic run to the finish in the video below.