Making the cut: The PGA Tour's Luke List is checking all the boxes of success

Luke List reacts after shooting a bogey on the eighteenth hole and dropping from the lead Sunday during the final round of the Stadion Classic in Athens, Ga. List tied for second place with a score of 16 under par.

Luke List

Looking at the numbers, golf fans can see the sudden emergence of 32-year-old Luke List.

His rise has been as striking as a well-hit 8-iron, and the pace of his success has been as quick as a downhill putt at Augusta National.

In mid-February, List had climbed into the top 20 of the Fed Ex Cup points race, which serves as the unofficial PGA rankings. He moved into the top-200 in the world golf rankings and had managed to make almost $900,000 in his first seven tournaments of the 2016-17 season.

Consider this: List had made almost the same amount of money and posted the same number of top-10 finishes (two) in his previous 62 PGA Tour starts since 2003 combined.

List's place in the points standing as of Valentine's Day was ahead some of the game's most familiar of names, including Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson.

When presented with the numbers, List laughs and agrees with the suggestion that he's an overnight sensation - 13 years in the making.

"I guess you could say that," List says. "I could see how people could think that way, but this is where I always expected to be."

Wish List

From very early on, List was considered a can't-miss kid. He was the anchor of multiple state championship teams at Baylor, and an All-American collegiate player at Vanderbilt. He was the runner-up at the 2004 U.S. Amateur tournament, an event that ranks among the most prestigious titles in golf. He qualified for the U.S. Open when he was in high school and made the cut at the Masters as a teenager.

"That kid has all the shots," golf Hall of Famer Fred Couples said after playing with List at the Masters in 2005. "He can be a star out here."

There are thousands of great players who never got their break: the crucial birdie in a high-profile tournament or the financial backing they needed to make playing this game for a living possible.

At times, the promise of List's talent has been diverted by the demands and the detours of the tour.

"The lifestyle and the thoughts of being a professional golfer can seem really glamorous, you know," List says, "but unless you are committed to the process of getting better everyday, it can be a tough way to make a living."

To-Do List

For List, not unlike a lot of guys trying to make an living with golf clubs, the first steps can be the most thrilling. And the most difficult.

"People see Jordan Spieth and hear about the money," List says of the 23-year-old golf superstar who has nine PGA wins in 100 career starts. "What Jordan has done is amazing, but that's the exception, really."

For guys like Tiger and Jordan and Rory and Phil and the few one-name stars with multi-million-dollar sponsorship deals out of the gate, the chase for making their mark supersedes the chase for making a living. In a business sense, professional golf is a billion-dollar-a-year enterprise, anchored by the PGA Tour with its seven-figure payouts at each stop.

But unlike professional team sports, the players cover their own expenses, and in a lot of ways they are like small business owners banking on their skills to pay the bills. There are employees - swing coaches, caddies, trainers, et al. - and they get checks whether players do or not. There are extensive travel expenses that range from getting to the events to paying for lodging.

"Yes, it can get expensive," List says, "and you have to understand it's a business. But at the same time, I have to try to get myself to forget that on the course and just play."

For a lot of players, sponsorships - be they corporate enterprises or local backers - can help make the ends meet or even provide seed money.

"He's had a great relationships with his sponsors along the way," says Bonny List, Luke's mom who teaches at Heritage Middle School in Ringgold, Georgia. "I am so proud of what he's overcome and how he has stuck to his dream. It hasn't always been easy, and I know he's thankful for the people who have helped him along the way.

"But he never flinched and never stopped working to make all this happen," she says.

Task List

Luke List, the player, has always been well-known and well-regarded for how far he can hit a golf ball. He routinely is among the game's longest off the tee - his 317.8-yard average off the tee leads the Tour this season - but for the first decade of his professional career, there seemed to be something missing.

For awhile it was experience. Then, at other times it seemed to be one errant shot per round - normally on or around the green - that was the difference between missing the cut or getting a check.

"Sure, I thought about it sometimes. I thought about doing something else," said List who got his degree in human and organizational development from Vandy. "It's tough when you're not playing your best and missing cuts. But it was never more than the occasional thought, because I knew I could get better and I still had more to give to the game."

Elite performers in every profession have great skills and great confidence. List is no different, and he's not the only one who believed in his game.

"Luke has always been someone I've looked up to," fellow Baylor grad and PGA Tour professional Harris English told the Times Free Press last summer. "He sort of helped pave my way at Baylor. It's awesome to see him have such a great start to the year, because he's one of the most talented players I've ever seen. He's poised and ready to make a run for many years on tour."

Says List's mother, Bonny: "I just prayed for putts and perseverance, to be honest."

Priority List

When asked to describe his growth and improvement in the game and away from it, List had the same word.

"Balance," he says. "Just being balanced on and off the course."

In the last two years, List has never been better swinging a golf club. The swings in his personal life, however, were dramatic.

His father, Mark - a beloved part of the local swimming and athletic community - died in 2015 after getting an infection. It's a loss the entire family feels every day, according to Bonny.

"Luke takes care of me," she said. "He has handled all of this so well. I couldn't be more proud."

In March, List will celebrate his one-year anniversary to wife Chloe, and those who know List say married life suits the man. And the golfer.

With his career earnings closing in on $3 million, List now is looking for ways to grow his game and his foundation, which looks for ways to help kids through golf.

The game was always there for List, but the transformation from player trying to make the Tour to a player trying to make his mark on the game happens at a different pace for everyone.

"It can be tough to make yourself relax when every putt is worth thousands and thousands of dollars potentially, but that's when you are going to be your best," List says.

"Now, I need to keep getting better and get to the point where I'm playing in all the major tournaments and invitationals as well."

At that point, Luke's "check list" will be complete.