Erik Barnes ready to break through after change of scenery

The first week of December saw Erik Barnes and his wife Ashleigh load up their sons Jaxton and Tucker and move from Sarasota, Florida, to Birmingham, Alabama.

There was no family tie or a big life-event that prompted Barnes to zip across two states. But he’s there now, couldn’t be happier, and is playing the best golf of his career. A change in latitude has helped with a change in attitude, and now Barnes, at 34, is very much on the cusp of earning a PGA TOUR card for the first time.

“I’ve wanted (a PGA TOUR card) since I was a little kid,” says Barnes, “and this is the closest I’ve ever been.”

The golf in Birmingham, Barnes says, is excellent. He’s surrounded by Korn Ferry Tour and PGA TOUR regulars like Sepp Straka, Michael Johnson, and Robby Shelton – to name just a few. There’s a ton of great players in the area, he says, plus access to some top-tier courses like Shoal Creek. With a laugh he says he hasn’t had to “give too much away” with weather either. There was one day when he got a half an inch of snow, but it was gone by the afternoon.

“I know it sounds shocking just going from Florida and jumping to Birmingham, Alabama, but it’s actually been terrific,” says Barnes. “It’s been great. I’ve played with a lot of great players and they’re great guys and it’s a terrific area. We’ve really enjoyed it.”

Barnes jumped in his car for this week’s Korn Ferry Tour event, the Huntsville Championship, as its just two hours from where he now calls home. He’s keen to keep his consistent play going this week as he gets closer to the magic Points List number to earn a TOUR card for the first time.

Barnes hasn’t missed a cut yet this season and has notched four top-10 finishes. He admits there was only one tournament so far when he felt like he wasn’t in the mix, when he finished T59 at the Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard.

“If I was going to describe my season so far I’d have to say, ‘consistent.’ I’ve just continued to put myself in position,” says Barnes. “For the most part in the events at some point on Saturday or Sunday I was within one good round or a few good holes away from being right there.

“When it’s my time I’ll be ready to win and advance on to the next stage of my career.”

Barnes made headlines through the early part of the COVID-19 pandemic when he took up a job stocking shelves at a local Publix grocery store before the Korn Ferry Tour schedule resumed. When he returned through the balance of 2020 and into 2021, Barnes has played some of the best golf of his career. That stretch of golf included his best-career finish on the Korn Ferry Tour, a runner-up result at the Memorial Health Championship presented by LRS.

Barnes didn’t get into many events at the beginning of 2020 because of where his status was. In fact, he played just three of the first eight on the schedule. He earned his way into the top 50 on the Points List at the end of 2020 which afforded him status for the whole of 2021.

“More than anything,” Barnes says of his recent play, “this is just a continuance of what I’ve been doing for two years now.”

Barnes says his immediate goal at the beginning of the year was to get to the PGA TOUR. But with his good play to this point his ultimate goal is to earn the No. 1 spot on the Points List.

The good play has also allowed Barnes the opportunity to pick and choose a schedule that fits him better versus taking on 10 or 11 events in a row.

For now, he says he’s leaning towards skipping the AdventHealth Championship or the NV5 Invitational presented by Old National Bank. He’s had success at the Rex Hospital Open and the BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by TD SYNNEX in the past and he wants to come into those tournaments fresh.

“I don’t want to come into those events having played seven or eight in a row. But my body feels good. I’m older now so I always wake up a little sore,” says Barnes with a laugh, “but as far as overall health is concerned I’m doing great.”

But what about his ongoing motivation?

He’s 34, a father of two, and knows there’s a new generation of guys about 10 years his junior out there trying to achieve the same thing as he.

No matter. There’s an internal flame that’s burning hotter than ever.

“This is an ultimate interior goal for myself, 100%,” says Barnes. “This is by far the best season I’ve ever had, the most consistent I’ve ever played and I’m trying not to look too far ahead … but I want this for me, to prove I can do this.

“I feel like my best golf is still ahead of me, and my game is built very well for the PGA TOUR. I want to get out there so then I can prove that I can compete and that I can play."