After kicking off his professional golf career last October, Brayden Eriksen is heading back to Europe for the second leg of the Gecko Golf Tour.
Eriksen — a Kwalikum Secondary School graduate who went on to play at Utah Valley University — will be making the trip back to Spain next week to begin the last half of the tour, which will wrap up March 21.
“I’m really excited to get back over there,” Eriksen said. “I’m feeling pretty good about the way things have been going in terms of the work I’ve been putting in over the holidays, but I’m ready to get back on the Gecko tour and play some competitive golf once again.”
Eriksen got off to a hot start in October, leading after the first round of the first tournament he entered. He would go on to finish in fourth place in the first of two straight tournaments where he finished in the money.
Once the Gecko tour wraps up, Eriksen plans to head over to the U.K., where he will take part in a qualifying tour to see if he can crack the Euro Pro tour.
If Eriksen manages to accomplish that, he’ll be one step closer to the lucrative European Tour, but for now he’s just taking things one-step at a time.
“Hopefully I’ll be at my best when I head over to the U.K.,” Eriksen said. “When I’m back in Spain, I’ll be staying with another player on the tour who is also heading back to the U.K. for that tour, so I’m going to do the same.”
“It’s just a great experience and the more I can get out there and play, the more I’ll be able to work on my game and get myself in the best position I can to advance in my career.”
His first few months in Spain weren’t too overwhelming for Eriksen, whose quick start helped calm his nerves and showed him that he had what it took to play with the rest of the field on the Gecko tour.
“I got more comfortable as time went on,” Eriksen said. “Once I played in a few tournaments, I started to see some more of the same faces I had been seeing around the town and on the courses, so that really helped me away from the course.”
“It was nice though, I was able to just get in there and focus on my game and myself without having many more distractions around.”
“This time, I know what to expect when I get back there and I feel I’ve made some good strides to fix some of the problems I was having with my game in the last couple of tournaments.”
Getting in practice at Pheasant Glen Golf Course while he was back over the holidays, Eriksen said he’s ready to put his best foot forward in the second half of the tour.
“I’m ready to go,” Eriksen said. “It was nice to come back home but I’m itching to get back out there on the course.”
