Canadian says that he’s older, wiser, and going back to golf’s top tier with a different attitude this time around, Bob Weeks writes.
Nov 01, 2023 at 03:42 PM ETAfter spending the past four years playing primarily on the Korn Ferry Tour, he’s set to rejoin golf’s top tier starting in January.
But Silverman managed to turn a sponsor exemption into a playoff win at the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic in January, and, along with two other runner-up finishes including a playoff loss, ended the season in fifth on the Korn Ferry Tour points list and 153rd in the world rankings. Hard work is nothing new for the Thornhill, Ont., native, who didn’t take up golf until his mid-teens and famously shot 116 in his first golf tournament. He stayed with his dream of playing professional golf because, he admitted, he didn’t have a Plan B. Since those early days, he has made a career out of believing in his abilities and putting in plenty of hard work. No stone has been left unturned in his search for golf success.
That relationship was formulated in March 2021 when the two met at a Golf Canada gathering in Florida, where top golfers sat down with the governing body to provide feedback on what its role should be in the development of the country’s best players. In the last few years, with Leishman’s help, Silverman has sharpened all parts of his game. He’s added seven miles per hour clubhead speed, through use of the Stack System, a program of weighted swing sticks created by Sasho Mackenzie of Antigonish, N.S. That’s allowed him to keep up in a game that increasingly favours longer hitters. His short game and putting also get lots of attention to complete a well-rounded arsenal.