May 30, 2008
This time of year brings back good memories for PGA Tour pro Cliff Kresge. It was 18 years ago this May that the Orlando native was draining a 20-foot birdie putt on the 54th-hole of the NCAA East Regional to give UCF a berth into the NCAA Championship.
"I remember when we made it to nationals my junior year, we were probably the fifth or sixth seed and we had to be in the top nine," Kresge said. "We made a whole bunch of birdies in our last nine holes to make it by one shot and stay out of a playoff with Tennessee and Wake Forest. That is still listed on my bio as one of my biggest thrills in golf."
After spending one season as an amateur following his UCF career, Kresge embarked on a pro career that has seen its shares of ups and downs, but his long journey is starting to reap the benefits of countless hours of hard work.
In his fifth full season on the PGA Tour, Kresge is enjoying his best stretch of golf as a professional. Through 13 events, he was 48th on the FedEx Cup Point Standings and had already made more than $830,000. Kresge equaled his best career finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational when he tied for third in one of two annual events in his home town.
Determined to succeed at the highest level, Kresge always felt like he could play with the world's best and with a trio of top-five finishes this season he is proving just that.
"It was self-driven more than anything. I just knew I could it," Kresge said. "I knew I could compete with those guys and I knew I could get to the scores they were shooting on the PGA Tour. With some hard work in both the mental and physical aspects of the game, I feel like I've been able to get a little closer to where I think I can be."
The journey has not always been on the straight and narrow for Kresge. The path this former Knight took to reach the highest level of golf is saturated with perseverance, dedication and having a strong will to succeed.
Kresge bounced around mini-tours during the early 1990s and worked as a valet parker among other odd jobs to keep himself afloat. In the latter half of the decade, he was diagnosed with Graves' disease - a condition that causes an overactive thyroid.
"I lost close to 30 pounds and got real skinny," Kresge said of his bout with the disease. "It took about a year to get it under control."
With Graves' disease finally behind him, Kresge spent a couple of seasons on the Hooters Tour before making it through PGA Tour Qualifying School at the end of the 2000 season to earn his card for the 2001 season.
The past eight years have seen Kresge flourish at times earning more than $3 million on the two tours, including his first victory in 2006 at the Nationwide Tour's Oregon Classic that he won in a playoff.
Kresge's accomplishments have allowed him to take on a new challenge and give him a new mission to pursue. His family has been affected by another disease in recent years as his young son Mason was diagnosed with Autism.
At the Arnold Palmer Invitational last month, a small pin promoting Autism Awareness Month was continually seen on several golfers, including Kresge, and talked about numerous times on the CBS broadcast of the final round.
Along with fellow PGA Tour pro Ernie Els, whose family is also affected by the disease, Kresge has set out to bring more awareness to the disease that touches thousands of families in the United States.
"This is very important to me because it affects my immediate family with my son," he said. "We are trying to get the awareness out there more and more. It is near and dear to my heart and I am going to continue to do that in even more tournaments."
In fact, Kresge is holding an Autism benefit on Memorial Day of this year in Columbus, Ohio, to coincide with the PGA Tour's Memorial Tournament. He also is launching a website (www.cliffkresge.net) in the near future.
"We are going to call it `Kresge's Kids' and people that are affected by autism in communities we play can come out and watch golf tournaments in their area," Kresge added. "I am going to continue to work with players like Ernie and hopefully make some progress in bringing more awareness to this."
Another item close to Kresge's heart is his alma mater. He is a proud alum and excited to see how the university and the golf program are gaining national prominence.
"We were probably at the pinnacle of UCF golf when I was there and just after it, then the program went through some rough times," Kresge said. "They fell off the radar a little bit, but I think coach (Nick) Clinard has done a wonderful job to put UCF back on the map."
Kresge has not forgotten his roots and cherishes his time spent as a Knight. "It is near and dear to my heart because it was a big part of my life and my golf career," Kresge commented. He added seeing how much the campus has grown over the past 20 years is pretty amazing. "It makes you want to go back to college."
But for now, Kresge is in a good place on the PGA Tour and he plans to be there for years to come - while also being an ambassador for the things that mean the most to him.
- Ryan Powell
This story appears in the May edition of KnightVision. Produced 10 times per year, KnightVision is the official publication of UCF Athletics. Each issue includes stories about UCF teams, student-athletes and coaches. To order 10 exciting issues from August through June, call 1-888-877-4373 (ext. 121) or 336-768-3400 (ext. 121).