Northbrook's Hardy Keeps Building With First PGA Tour Win Behind Him

NORTHBROOK, IL — Nick Hardy may only be in his second year on the PGA Tour, but it hasn’t taken him long to adjust to the jump in competition and the pressure to keep pace with the rest of the field from earlier in his golf career.

The Northbrook native and former University of Illinois star has captured more than $3.3 million in earnings since earning his PGA Tour card prior to the 2022 season. Hardy captured his first PGA Tour victory earlier this year when he won the Zurich Classic of New Orleans when he teamed with fellow American Davis Riley to finish 30 under par to finish two strokes on top to share $1.2 million in winnings.

Hardy is currently ranked 47th in the FedEx standings and hopes to remain in the top 50 players in the world heading into next month’s BMW Championship at Olympia Fields Country Club. Hardy said on Tuesday that the opportunity not only to play on a course in his home state but to compete in front of friends and family members always provides an extra level of excitement.

But he also hopes to keep improving his standing on the Tour, where he says stiffer competition and tougher courses have forced him to stay on top of his game as hopes to remain on pace to be among the field among the field of players that will take on Olympia Fields’ demanding North Course in August.

The BMW Championship, which will be the final event to determine which 30 players advance to the Players Championships, will be held from Aug. 17-20. While Hardy is well outside of that field that will advance beyond the Olympia Fields event as of now, improving his standing in his second year on the PGA Tour has come with some learning pains.

“The biggest adjustment, I would say, is just the week-to-week competitions,” Hardy said during a Zoom call interview with reporters on Tuesday at the BMW Championship Media Day. “There can’t be any holes in your game, basically.”

At 27, Hardy has made a steady progression since turning pro in 2018. In his two years as a PGA Tour pro, he has made the cut in 35 of his 59 tournament appearances and has finished in the Top 5 twice and in the Top 10 three times. But remaining in the hunt for an event championship and then finishing off the task in New Orleans earlier this season, proved to be a test as he said the pressure to finish off his first Tour victory was nerve-racking — a feeling he said he felt throughout the lead-in to his win.

But no matter where he has finished in the field, Hardy said Tuesday said that he has tried to keep his approach to his game the same. He said since joining the Tour, he has started working with a trainer and has kept more on top of his nutrition, knowing now what it takes among the game’s best. He says that as the hunt to stay in the BMW Championship field for next month’s event at Olympia Fields nears, Hardy is striving to remain consistent in order to keep himself among the world’s Top 50 players.

Part of the adjustment has been the steadiness of schedule as he attempts to keep making tournament cuts. Last week, Hardy tied for 21st at the John Deere Classic in Silvis, when he shot 13 under par to earn $84,138. He has made the cut in four of his previous five tournaments dating back to May 28. He tied for 20th at the U.S. Open before tying for 38th at the Travelers Championship and then missing the cut at the Rocket Mortgage Classic. He rebounded with his effort in Silvis and hopes to keep the momentum going.

“It’s a lot of golf,” said Hardy, who will skip the Scottish Open and instead play a tournament in Reno to try to rack up more tournament points. “It’s all about making sure I’m fresh and I think that will give me the best chance to play in the BMW.”

Without getting ahead of himself, Hardy realizes that there will be a few more tasks associated with the BMW Championship should he remain in the field. He says he has already heard from plenty of friends looking for tickets for the event, which is hosted by the Western Golf Association with all of the proceeds going to benefit the Evans Scholarship Foundation. The foundation provides college scholarships for caddies and this year, the foundation awarded 325 new scholarships.

All told the foundation has provided $44 million in college scholarships, which to Hardy, makes competing in his first BMW Championship event even more special, especially if it means returning to a course he played numerous times during his college career at Illinois while surrounded by familiar faces.

“I think it’s just so special having a bunch of friends and family around me,” Hardy said on Tuesday. “It’s a super special feeling. I think just the excitement of hopefully getting to play at home at Olympia Fields in front of friends and family would be amazing —not to just be there, but to play well.”