FARGO — No longer is Tom Hoge any sort of newbie on the PGA Tour, not after winning at Pebble Beach, not after being a regular at the four majors and not after playing twice in the Masters.
He’s 35 years old, has a four-month-old baby boy and is getting ready for his third time around Augusta National. Hoge and his wife, Kelly, are a traveling family now; all three were at the three week PGA Tour swing through Florida.
“Luckily he’s been sleeping through the night most nights and that’s been a little bit easier,” Tom said. “We survived and I played OK, so kind of passed that first test.”
He was recently inducted into the Texas Christian Athletics Hall of Fame, which came on top of a Fargo South High School Hall of Fame induction in 2022.
Nope, he’s a veteran guy.
“I guess I’m officially old getting into more hall of fames now,” he said. “In a way it’s a little bit weird being in the middle of my career to be getting that because I feel like there’s still a lot to be accomplished in the game.”
Like giving the Masters a run. He missed qualifying for it last year and missed the cut in 2023 with a pair of 74s. He finished in a tie for 39th in his initial Masters the prior year. He said those tournaments gave him an idea of what kind of golf shots he needs to hit this week.
For instance, hitting a higher shot into the greens takes on a greater importance because of the speed and firmness of them. He considered changing golf balls, but isn’t pulling that trigger.
“Knowing my focus, what kind of shots I have to hit out there,” Hoge said. “It certainly has been on my mind for a long time that I want to play well in these majors, on these tough golf courses, that require not only distance but a higher ball flight. Do I need to make changes with that? It’s something I’ve been trying to juggle for a little while now.”
He also considered going to a new “mini-driver” at Augusta that would play more to a draw than his usual fade. For instance, getting around the corners on holes 2, 10 and 13 does not favor a fade.
“The course has a draw bias,” he said.
Hoge has been solid in 2025 making the cut in nine of 10 tournaments with three top-10 finishes. That includes the last two where he finished in a tie for third at the Players Championship and last weekend a tie for fifth in the Valero Texas Open, a tournament where he went into the final day with a chance to win.
“I guess the beauty of golf is you always want to be a little better and keep improving on that,” Hoge said. “Yes, it’s been a good start but I look back and things could be a little sharper and that’s my focus now and for the rest of the season.”
Daniel Dunn/IMAGN IMAGES
He heads into the Masters 18th in the FedExCup standings and 47th in the Official World Golf Rankings. He recently passed $24 million in career earnings. He has full status and is already qualified for all four majors.
“I was always trying to play my way into the majors last year so it’s nice to know right off the bat the schedule,” Hoge said. “But I think the Masters is always the highlight of the year and the schedule always focuses on that.”
That schedule includes more than him and a golf course now. Hoge said he’s sought advice from other players on how best to handle a young family on the road. The PGA Tour has a traveling daycare at host cities.
“And then what sort of accommodations or houses you need and that sort of stuff, what’s best for them,” Hoge said. “You try to figure that out as best you can to try and make this transition a little bit easier. Going forward most weeks, they’ll be with me.”
Jeff would like to dispel the notion he was around when Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press, but he is on his third decade of reporting with Forum Communications. The son of a reporter and an English teacher, and the brother of a reporter, Jeff has worked at the Jamestown Sun, Bismarck Tribune and since 1990 The Forum, where he’s covered North Dakota State athletics since 1995.
Jeff has covered all nine of NDSU’s Division I FCS national football titles and has written three books: “Horns Up,” “North Dakota Tough” and “Covid Kids.” He is the radio host of “The Golf Show with Jeff Kolpack” April through August.
