SOUTHAMPTON, Bermuda (AP) — Egor Eroshenko has already made history by becoming the first Russian to play on the PGA Tour. Things got even better on Friday when he became the first Russian to make the cut.
Eroshenko scored 31 on his last nine shots to post a 4-under 67 at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship. This extended his weekend as he took part in a tournament recognized by the official world golf rankings for the first time.
“I’m super excited,” said Eroshenko, who played four years at the University of Central Florida. “I'm still in a fog and don't understand what's going on, but I hope I can have some lunch and realize that the breakthrough has been made and hope for a good weekend.”
His 36-hole total of 3-under 139 comes a week after his LPGA Tour girlfriend Nataliya Guseva finished second at the Lotte Championship in Hawaii. Guseva made her own history as the first Russian woman to receive an LPGA card.
She decided to skip this week's LPGA event in Florida to fulfill a promise she made with Eroshenko.
“She was playing Asian swing and didn’t know if she was going to play hoakalei,” Eroshenko said, referring to the course in Hawaii. “Then, maybe a week before she decided to play Hoakalei, I said, 'Well, I signed up for the qualifier on Monday, and if I make it, you're going.' She said, “Yeah, deal.” And I did it.
“I was lucky enough to be able to support them this week. This also meant that there was a familiar face running around and cheering on the highs and lows. That was just great.”
Eroshenko won the qualifying match held two weeks ago in Orlando, Florida. The PGA Tour could not find any record of a Russian participating in any of its tournaments.
There are only four Russian players listed in the OWGR, led by Mikhail Morozov at number 3,736. He mainly plays the Pro golf Tour in Germany. By making the cut, Eroshenko will move past him and lay claim to being Russia's highest-ranked male golfer.
Guseva, who played college golf in Miami, won the Epson Tour in Utah last year and received her LPGA card. Her second-place finish last week in Hawaii placed her 25th in the Race to CME Globe, one spot behind Rose Zhang.
Eroshenko has been busy since leaving UCF. He missed Q-School for the early stages of the PGA Tour and plans to attend Q-School for the Asian Tour.
He used his girlfriend's caddy in the Bermuda Championship. And it helps to have another golfer – Guseva – in his gallery in Port Royal.
“I'm crazy. I play golf, golf, golf. “I get too caught up in myself and worry too much,” he said. “So yesterday she was like a mental coach. She said, 'You're crazy. Just stop thinking about this and that.' This was a huge help and just took my mind off golf and scoring.