Say What: Ewan Porter

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Editor's note: Ewan Porter first played on the Nationwide Tour in 2005 after earning his card through the PGA TOUR National Qualifying Tournament. In that rookie season,Porter, a native of Australia, played 17 tournaments and made three cuts. His best finish was a tie for 50th at the Rheem Classic, and he ultimately ended 213th on the money list. His second try on the Nationwide Tour has been significantly better, though. In his second start of the season -- at the Moonah Classic in Fingal, Victoria, Australia -- Porter fired a final-round 66 to win his first title. Currently fifth on the money list, Porter took some time to talk to Laury Livsey of the PGA TOUR's communications staff for another edition of Say What:

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Ewan Porter

PGATOUR.COM: What's your favorite U.S. city?
PORTER: New York City. And Boston is a close second. I love the party lifestyle you can lead there. I've never spent too much time in either place, New York City twice -- two days each time -- but I just love the whole atmosphere.

PGATOUR.COM: How old were you when you began playing golf?
PORTER: I was 11. In Australia it's pretty common to participate in every sport growing up, which I did. I got into golf because my dad played in a social golf club. Track and field and rugby were my main sports, but there was a golf course right next door to the ovals where I used to do those sports, and I got into golf that way. I'd say I started getting serious when I was 13.

PGATOUR.COM: What were your track events?
PORTER: The 100- and 200-meters. But my main events were shot put and discus.

PGATOUR.COM: How far could you put the shot right now?
PORTER: Oh, geez, I haven't tried for years and years. It depends. We were throwing three kilos back then, which is bordering on seven pounds. I was probably around 11 or 12 meters. I was very serious about it, but then when I was 13 or 14 and there were 6-foot-5 Samoan and Filipino guys with beards, that's when I sort of gave the sport away.

PGATOUR.COM: How old were you the first time you broke par?
PORTER: I was 13. But I was terribly inconsistent back then.

PGATOUR.COM: Was golf an everyday thing for you as a junior?
PORTER: After school, my mom or dad would take me to the golf course every afternoon. I'd get to the golf club by 3:30, and I'd have chipping and putting contests with the other boys down there -- the other juniors. It was a good time that way. You learned to be competitive in a friendly environment.

PGATOUR.COM: Did your homework ever suffer?
PORTER: Uh, later in school Mom and Dad got a little disappointed that I tended to miss out on a lot of the school side of things. But I always had an idea of what I wanted to do, and I was confident I'd be playing professionally one day.

PGATOUR.COM: How did things go after you turned pro?
PORTER: I was too young, I was naive. I got a bit of a shock to the system when I realized how good the guys were. I played in Australia when I first turned pro, then I came (to the U.S.) and played the mini-tours when I was 20. I played the Asian Tour when I was 21 and made the Nationwide Tour when I was 22.

PGATOUR.COM: How many pages do you have left in your passport?
PORTER: Out of the 35 pages in my original passport, I have two pages without stamps on them. So I'm just about done, because we have Canada this year (Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic), I'm going to the U.K. twice more before the end of the year and then back to New Zealand.

PGATOUR.COM: Where's your home base in the U.S.?
PORTER: I have been living in Scottsdale. If I get my PGA TOUR card, I'm definitely going to get a place here. I'm tossing out between Florida or Scottsdale -- pretty much the same as everybody else.

PGATOUR.COM: Are you leaning one way or the other?
PORTER: I know Scottsdale like the back of my hand. The weather is great, the golf courses are fantastic, it's really a fit place and I enjoy the young, fit atmosphere there. The bars are hip, the restaurants are hip and you have a lot of choices.

PGATOUR.COM: What's your favorite Phoenix-area restaurant?
PORTER: Sapporo, for sushi. No question.