Ryan Gerard’s life has changed so dramatically, and so quickly, that he finds it hard to fathom that it was little more than a week ago that he just wanted to Monday qualify for The Honda Classic.

“It has only been 11 days,” the 23-year-old said in astonishment. “It feels like this all started a month ago, or even longer.”

On Feb. 20, the North Carolina native was in good position to earn one of four qualifying spots into last week’s Honda Classic. But, when darkness descended on West Palm Beach, Florida, Gerard was one of five players forced to return Tuesday morning to compete in a playoff for the three remaining spots in The Honda Classic.

Mission accomplished. By just making The Honda, Gerard had beaten the odds. More than 100 players had competed in the qualifier for four spots in the field.

Then the improbable turned into the incredible.

In just his second PGA TOUR start, Gerard finished fourth at PGA National, one of the most penal courses on the PGA TOUR. That earned him a spot in this week’s Puerto Rico Open, where Gerard is once again in contention.

Following a 3-under 69 on Thursday at Grand Reserve Golf Club, Gerard offset one bogey with six birdies to post a 5-under 67 in Friday’s second round. At 8-under 136, he will head into the weekend tied for fifth. Another top-10 finish would earn him a start in the Valspar Championship in two weeks. If he can finish alone in ninth place or higher, he also will earn Special Temporary Membership, which would allow him to accept unlimited sponsor exemptions for the remainder of the season. A win would make him an immediate TOUR member and get him into next week’s THE PLAYERS.

“The last week and a half has been just a rollercoaster,” said Gerard. “From not really knowing what I'm getting into, to playing well, to quick turnarounds, flying, … it has been really cool,” Gerard said. “I feel really lucky just to be here and I know I'm playing well. So, I think I just take those two things in stride and go have fun with it this weekend. If I keep playing well, I'll be just fine.”

It was just a few weeks ago that Gerard’s status on the Korn Ferry Tour was uncertain. He started the season with conditional status and ranked 92nd on the Points List entering February. Then he finished third on Feb. 12 at the Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard to vault 70 spots in the standings.

“When you really care about something, you sometimes make it harder on yourself than it needs to be,” said Gerard, who turned pro last year out of the University of North Carolina and won in his fourth start on PGA TOUR Canada. “Sometimes, I just have to take a step back and try and see a bigger picture, try to really enjoy the little things about it. I mean, I'm playing in a PGA TOUR event this week. I'm staying in a hotel on the beach. These are things that are just really, really cool. The golf is just a bonus.”

As much as he wants to become one of golf’s fiercest competitors, Gerard remains convincingly grounded and comfortable in his own skin as a son and friend. Everything else, he believes, will take care of itself.

“I want to be a great player, but golf doesn't define me as a person,” Gerard said. “Since I've started to realize that, it's gotten a lot easier for me to just free up on the course. I still definitely want it badly, so I'm putting in the effort and I'm really grinding out there. I think the combination of all those things have put me in a good spot. When you're hitting it well, good things happen.”