On 2 November 2022, it was Wednesday and a splendid day at the Club de Golf Alcanada. The sun bathed this beautiful course in Majorca, and a light breeze made the walk even more pleasant. The idyllic scene concealed outstanding tension. The next day, the grand final of the Challenge Tour was to begin, and everyone was calculating what they needed to do to finish the year in the top 20 and secure the DP World Tour card.
The veteran Englishman John Parry was one of them, although his chances were slim. He had arrived in Palma in 34th place on the Road to Mallorca and needed at least a top 3 finish to have any chance. Winning would secure it, but even finishing second required many things to align for him to break into the top 20.
Well, everything that needed to happen, happened. The stars aligned. Parry finished tied for second, and the rest of the results fell in his favour to secure the DP World Tour card in 17th place. He clinched it definitively with a birdie on the 18th hole, which, by a stroke of bad luck, left Alex del Rey out. Golf gave the Brit a second chance. Today, three years later, he will head into Sunday with a chance to win his first tournament on the PGA Tour. He is in fifth place at the Sony Open, three strokes behind the solo leader Davis Riley (-1).
Do not think that November 22 was Parry’s definitive resurrection, far from it. It was just the first spark. It showed that it was still possible to reconnect. He returned to the DP World Tour after enduring a tough journey through the desert, which even led him to play tournaments on the Euro Pro Tour, the third division. However, in that same 2022, he lost the card again and did not regain it until 2024. That is, in November of that year, he was playing on the HotelPlanner Tour, and just a year and two months later, he could win on the PGA Tour.
Needless to say, Parry’s victory (39 years old) is highly valued. It will not be easy for him. The battle this Sunday at the Waialae Country Club will be very tough. Riley (-12) leads with a two-stroke advantage over Harry Hall (-10), Kevin Roy (-10), and Chris Gotterup (-10). Tied for fifth place with Parry are Ryan Gerard (-9) and Nick Taylor (-9). One stroke further back are Corey Conners, Adam Svensson, and Patrick Rodgers. The victory should be among them, although if the wind continues to blow today with the strength of Friday and Saturday, anything can happen. We might even give chances to Si Woo Kim (-7), Hideki Matsuyama (-6), or Jordan Spieth (-6).
No victory, however, would close a story like Parry’s, more fitting for Disney than real life.
