ATLANTIC BEACH, Fla. -- Seamus Power’s mother Philomena passed away when he was just 8 years old, leaving his father, Ned, to care for Seamus and his older twin brothers, Jack and Willie.

Seamus began playing golf three years later. As he continued to improve, it became apparent that travel to junior events across Ireland wouldn’t be cheap.

Ned Power owned a farm outside Waterford, Ireland, raising cattle and sheep, and although the farm provided a modest income, it wasn’t enough to fully support the athletic exploits of Seamus and his two brothers.

So Ned took a second job working nights at Boston Scientific, where he laser-welded defibrillators. Much of the extra income supported Seamus’ travel to junior events.

The motivation was simple: Ned wanted to give his children every opportunity to succeed.

“I wanted my sons to follow their dreams,” Ned said last week from Ireland. “I took a couple wrong turns in my lifetime and, like any parent, I would like to see my sons reach their dreams.”

Seamus’ game progressed throughout his secondary-school career, to the point where he was offered a scholarship to East Tennessee State. His scholarship became available after Rory McIlroy signed a letter of intent but decided to turn professional instead.

Seamus spent four years at East Tennessee State, graduated with a degree in accounting, and paid his dues on the mini-tours before earning his Web.com Tour card for the 2015 season.

The 29-year-old kept his card in his first full season. He needed just seven starts in his second season to win the United Leasing & Finance Championship (becoming the first Irish-born player to win on the Web.com Tour). He finished ninth on the Regular Season money list to earn his TOUR card for the 2016-17 season, which begins next week with the Safeway Open in Napa, California.

“It’s nice to get there, but you’ve still got to get your foot in the door a little more,” Seamus said. “It’s fantastic, still kind of sinking in … but it’s something I’m looking forward to, something I’ve worked hard for.

“A lot of people have helped me along the way, and I know they’re just as happy for me, and I’m happy for them to be a part of it. I’m just looking forward to getting started.”

Reaching the PGA TOUR gives him an opportunity to reflect on his father’s sacrifices.

Ned would work either from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. or the 4 p.m. to midnight shift at Boston Scientific. He would manage the farm and grab some sleep between shifts.

“I didn’t want a demanding (second) job; I could cope with a mundane job,” said Ned, who worked at Boston Scientific for 10 years. “I set out to enjoy it. I enjoyed working with the younger people and helping them out when I could.”

Seamus competed in a variety of sports before turning his focus to golf. He was one of the top 10 junior racquetball players in the world. He also competed in hurling, Irish football, badminton, handball and racquetball.

A golf scholarship to a college in the States became his goal.

East Tennessee State had built a strong program with a high proportion of European-born players, including many from the British Isles. Seamus got along well with coach Fred Warren from the get-go, making the school a logical fit.

Seamus spent a productive four years in Johnson City, Tennessee, where he developed his game against Division I competition and acclimated to American life.

“I adjusted pretty quickly, for whatever reason,” Seamus said. “I embraced it, liked the whole thing. Obviously being away from home was tough, but I enjoyed it. Great teammates, great place, nice people. My coach and teammates made it easygoing.”

He impressed his coaches and teammates with his positive nature, talent and unique skills. He’s ambidextrous and can hit a golf ball 300 yards both right-handed and left-handed, and even has an acumen for certain trick shots.

“His hand-eye coordination is exceptional,” Warren said. “I remember one day at the practice area, he said, ‘Coach, throw me a ball,’ with a club in his right hand, and he batted it 100 yards with his right hand. A one-hand bat.

“Then he switches to his left hand, hits it left-handed and smacks it out there another 100 yards. I was like, ‘This is crazy.’”

Warren also remains impressed by Seamus’ ability to balance a rigorous course load and a Division I sport – he notes that he’s coached several business majors in his 30-plus years at East Tennessee State, and Power remains the only one who graduated with a degree in accounting (magna cum laude, no less).

Power was even offered several academic scholarships throughout Ireland before given the opportunity to attend ETSU.

“I said, ‘Seamus, are you sure you’ll be able to take accounting and play golf?’” Warren said. “He said, ‘Yeah.’ And he did.”

"I took a couple wrong turns in my lifetime and, like any parent, I wanted to see my sons reach their dreams."- Ned Power on his motivation to work a second job to support his three sons

Breaking onto the Web.com Tour wasn’t as seamless, though. Seamus fell short at Q-School on four consecutive occasions – including a one-stroke miss at First Stage in 2010, a one-stroke miss at Second Stage in 2011, and another narrow miss at Second Stage in 2012.

In the meantime, he established a residence in Charlotte and honed his game on various mini-tours -- including a dominant stretch on the eGolf Tour. It wasn’t easy financially, but funding from the Irish Sports Council helped keep the dream alive, and he earned enough from mini-tour success to sustain his dream.

Then he broke advanced to Q-School’s Final Stage in fall 2014, finishing T5 to secure strong status for the 2015 Web.com Tour season.

He kept his card with a 67th-place finish on the money list, rebounding from four straight missed cuts to begin his Web.com Tour career. After his one-stroke victory at Victoria National Golf Club in early May, a TOUR card was in his sights.

“If I ever had the moment where I felt like I wasn’t good enough, I would’ve quit on the spot,” Power said. “I never had that feeling; the thing that was going to get me was the financial side of it … things like, ‘This is just taking too long,’ because you have to live your life too, and you have other important stuff going on.

“People would ask me, ‘How long would you play?’ and I would be like, ‘If I realized if these guys were just too good, then I probably would’ve quit straight away.’”

That never happened.

Ned Power remembers Seamus telling him that his swing wasn’t good enough as he readied to move to the United States for college. But the swing continued to progress – through four years at East Tennessee State, four years on mini-tours, and two seasons on the Web.com Tour.

Now the kid from Ireland gets his shot on the PGA TOUR. No matter how things unfold, his dad will be in his corner the entire way. He always has been.

“Looking back, I don’t know how he did it,” Seamus said. “No idea how he did it. He did everything. I’m sure it wasn’t easy.”

Yet he found a way.