El Paso's Tanner Gore changed his career in Kansas City, and it's full steam ahead

At Tanner Gore’s childhood home back in El Paso, Texas, there is a handwritten message on a sticky note. It’s stuck to a mirror and it says, “professional golfer.”

The date on the note is 2012. It’s still up there and he hasn’t yet brought it down. There’s no real plan to, yet.

“Since I put that note up, I was like, ‘Alright, this is what we’re going to do,’” Gore said. “I’m just really grateful things have worked out the way they have. It’s a grind, and I’m just happy to be where I’m at.”

Gore, 27, lost in a playoff to Harry Higgs at last week’s AdventHealth Championship after Higgs dramatically holed out for eagle on the 72nd hole and then made birdie on the first extra hole. Despite the loss, Gore won plenty from the week in Kansas City. He entered the week on low-level conditional status after finishing tied for 119th at PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry’s Final Stage last fall and was bouncing around between PGA TOUR Americas and the Korn Ferry Tour – and struggling mentally because of that. Things changed at the AdventHealth, where he carded a second-round, 7-under 65 (his career low round in a TOUR-sanctioned event) en route to a two-stroke lead through 54 holes.

That was his first career lead/co-lead after any round in a PGA TOUR-sanctioned event, after earning his spot in the field via the Monday qualifier – something he almost didn’t do at all.

Gore admitted he nearly headed to Colombia to play in the Inter Rapidisimo Golf Championship on PGA TOUR Americas since he merely needed a top-30 finish to guarantee his spot in the top 60 in the Fortinet Cup standings after the Latin America Swing (for full status during the North America Swing). Instead, Gore decided to try to qualify for the Korn Ferry Tour last week – it would be his fourth event of the season – because his Korn Ferry Tour status meant he would have decent status for the North America Swing regardless.

“It was tough on my mental game because I was trying to juggle two tours at once. I had too high expectations on both,” Gore said. “Me going to have fun and just let the expectations down really helped me out that week, which was great. I was just applying that mental side to my game. It wasn’t physical. And I was rolling into the tournament (from the Monday qualifier). If it worked then, why wouldn’t it work in the tournament?”

Gore said he underwent a hearty mental pivot at about the quarter-mark of 2024, saying he’s trying not to worry too much about “the outcome” and just keep sticking to “the process.” He’s trying to be more of himself on the course.

“Being me is being serious for 20 seconds in the shot and then being goofy. Whomever knows me knows I’m pretty mellow and chill in between shots and I was just having fun out there and letting it fly,” Gore said. “Definitely last week I tried to do that. I worked with my mental coach and (she) said, ‘Life can get hard.’ Especially when you’re traveling on the road and then with golf, too – it can start to take its toll on you and your golf, and you not know it. I said, ‘I’m not having fun,’ and she was like, ‘Forget about it and go have some fun. Go do your thing.’ Wherever the ball goes, it goes, and I can rely on the practice that I’ve done.

“It was the first time in a long time where I felt like I finally did that and got the outcome I wanted, so it was great.”

Gore, who skyrocketed up the Korn Ferry Tour Points List from No. 162 to No. 28, is now inside the magic number to earn a PGA TOUR card next season (the top 30 on the season-long standings after the Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance will earn 2025 TOUR membership). Whatever questions he had about status and next-steps and flight itineraries are no longer – he is on the Korn Ferry Tour for the balance of 2024. He said he hasn’t reflected on pivoting any goals from the beginning of the season, however, because when he has expectations of himself and his game, that’s when he starts getting in his own way.

“Whether I finish top 30 at the end of the season or don’t, if I have no expectations and I just go play some golf and have fun doing it, I think the rest will take care of itself,” Gore said, “and I’ll be where I need to be.”

Noted.