Parker and Pierceson Coody: Breakout Golfers to Watch 2024
Welcome to “Breakout Golfers to Watch,” our miniseries showcasing some of the hottest up-and-coming talent in golf. From Ludvig Aberg to Rose Zhang, it’s always entertaining to be in the know about “who’s next.” Brothers Parker and Pierceson Coody are next on our list, following Vincent Norrman, Chan Kim and Gabriela Ruffels.
Parker and Pierceson Coody
Ages: 23
Hometown: Plano, Texas
College: University of Texas
Notable Accomplishments: 2022 D-I NCAA Team Champions
Why They Are Breakout Candidates for 2024: For the first time since Allan and Curtis Strange in 1981, twins will hold PGA Tour memberships. Pierceson and Parker Coody, 23, both graduated from the Korn Ferry Tour this fall following four standout years at Texas, where they led the Longhorns to a 2022 NCAA title. After finishing No. 6 and No. 25 on the Korn Ferry Tour season-long standings, Pierceson and Parker again have the opportunity to continue their parallel journeys. But it wasn’t always guaranteed that the start of the twins’ professional careers would be so synced.
Parker Coody (L) and Pierceson Coody graduated from the Korn Ferry Tour this year and will both hit the PGA Tour in 2024.
David Berding/Getty Images
Pierceson came out of Texas as the top college prospect in the country in 2022. He held the No. 1 spot on the PGA Tour University rankings, which this year would have automatically given him full PGA Tour membership (Ludvig Aberg was the first player to reap the benefits of this new perk). In fact, golf fans might remember that around this time Pierceson was nearly poached by LIV. Identified rightfully as the next generation’s top talent, the Saudi-funded circuit offered him a “multi-million dollar” contract to join in its early stages. Pierceson later revealed that he turned the offer down to chase his PGA Tour dreams.
Granted full Korn Ferry Tour membership upon graduation, Pierceson put together a solid season with one victory. But he ultimately failed to earn his Tour card right away after a wrist injury derailed his fall. Healed and ready to pursue the Tour once again, Pierceson rebounded quickly in 2023. He won at the Panama Championship, the season's third event, and finished T14 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational as a sponsor’s exemption. He then hoisted another trophy in July at the Price Cutter Charity Championship. One KFT start later, a T6 finish was all it took for Piersecon to officially lock up his Tour card for 2024.
Parker didn’t have quite the same head start when he turned pro. He began his professional career on the PGA Tour Canada in 2022 and eventually achieved conditional status on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2023 through Q-School. Despite coming out of the gates with four missed cuts in five starts, Parker managed to find form mid-season and finished the year with four top-5 finishes. So Parker, who is 37 minutes older than his twin, was also a 2024 PGA Tour Card recipient after this season’s Korn Ferry Tour Championship.
The twins might be new blood on the PGA Tour but their last name isn’t. Parker and Pierceson’s grandfather, Charles Coody, is the 1971 Masters champion. He triumphed over Jack Nicklaus and a young Johnny Miller to add a major championship to his resume, which already included two regular PGA Tour victories.
Parker and Pierceson will have large shoes to fill in their professional careers, but if their progress so far is any indication, they won’t have many problems doing so.