Miracles keep q-school in perspective for Compton

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• COMPTON UPDATE: Compton shot a 2-over 74 and is tied for 49th after day one | Crandon Park scores

Erik Compton won't lie: Playing in this week's first stage of the PGA TOUR National Qualifying Tournament in Key Biscayne doesn't carry the same pressure as the usual grueling trip to q-school.

Not now, and probably never again.

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Five months ago, Compton was lying on a table in an operating room, having his second heart transplant. That surgery took place seven months after he suffered a near-fatal heart attack that had him running red lights and highway tolls as he was frantically driving to Miami Jackson Memorial Hospital while calling his family and friends to tell them goodbye. He suffered the heart attack in the emergency room, where doctors were able to keep him alive.

So you think Compton is stressing about 72 holes of golf?

"I'm not supposed to succeed, so there's really no pressure," Compton said Monday night. "I'm playing well, and I want to do well, but in the end that doesn't matter. I've won the battle of my health. Nothing that happens this week is going to change my life."

That's the kind of perspective one gains when you're not yet 30 -- Compton is 28 -- and you're already on your third heart.

Compton's first heart gave out when he was 12 because of a condition known as cardiomyopathy, which is a disease affecting the heart muscle. That's why he took up golf in the first place, as a way to rehabilitate and recover from the cardiac transplant.

Doctors told Erik and his parents that a transplanted heart usually lasts about 11 years, but when you're not yet a teenager and you're just happy to be alive, who worries about such details?

Compton kept playing golf, and getting better. By the time he was in high school in Miami, he was the top-ranked junior golfer in the USA He went on to become an All-American at the University of Georgia. He turned professional in 2001 -- becoming the first pro golfer with a heart transplant -- and soon qualified for the Nationwide Tour. His best finish there was losing a four-way playoff to Bradley Hughes at the 2004 Preferred Health Systems Wichita Open.

Compton also made five cuts in the 11 tournaments he played on the PGA TOUR, usually at the event at nearby Doral Resort & Spa. But those closest to Compton say it was amazing he accomplished much of anything in recent years because of the growing problems with his first heart.

"People have no idea what this kid had to deal with on a daily basis," said noted instructor Jim McLean, a close friend. "No idea."

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Compton says that not only was his heart failing in recent years, but so were his kidneys. He says people thought he was getting fat, but he was bloated from all the water he was retaining due to the ailments.

After the heart attack last fall, Compton was back on the donor list. In May, he had to be admitted to Jackson Memorial Hospital because his heart was deteriorating. His cardiologist called with some good news: Don't leave the hospital because we found a heart for you. Still ...

"I knew when I went on the operating table," Compton said, "there was a chance I wasn't going to ever wake up."

The surgery was successful, and soon Compton returned to golf -- but as a teacher. He started giving lessons. But it wasn't long before he started hitting a few balls ... then a few more ... then a few more.

Compton decided to enter q-school but knew he didn't have the stamina to walk 72 holes in four days. So he petitioned -- and was granted -- a waiver from the PGA TOUR that will allow him to use a cart during q-school. He recently finished second in a one-day mini-tour event.

"I haven't played four straight days of golf since the surgery," said Compton, who's close to his normal weight of 150 pounds for the 5-foot-8 pro. "I know the battle won't be my golf swing."

Compton faces long odds to get out of this stage at Crandon Golf Club in Key Biscayne, Fla., especially with players such as Ty Tryon, Robert Floyd and James Driscoll in the field. But Compton knows all about beating the odds. He recently got married and his wife, Barbara, is expecting their child on Feb. 26 -- the same date he received his first heart transplant.

Compton, a resident from nearby Miami Beach, realizes he's playing for more than himself this week. He is using his platform to encourage people to donate organs. "It's literally the gift of life," he said.

As journalists, we are taught not to root for players, but for the best stories. In this case, I'll do both.