Florida Golf Monthly - Eric Compton

America's Best Junior Golfer
In 18 years this Miami area player has overcome more than two lifetimes of diversity.

Erik Compton was like any other 12-year-old boy in Miami. A baseball, a bat and a glove were his calling cards. Baseball was his game and he was good at it. He shared the same dreams as any other 12-year-old and had no doubt his dreams would come true. When you're 12, every dream comes true. Erik was going to be a major league baseball player. The only question was whether or not he'd have to play a few games in the minors before he made the big leagues.

On February 26, 1992, Erik Compton had a head-on collision with reality that permanently altered his dream. The 12-year-old athlete-on-the-rise underwent a successful heart transplant operation. Rather than be devastated, he shifted gears and dedicated himself to a comparatively new sport for him, golf. Today, he is ranked as the top junior player in the United States. Instead of bearing the reputation of "the kid who had the transplant and plays golf," Compton has earned the right to be thought of as the best golfer in his age bracket, who, by the way, had a major operation six years ago.

"He's a good kid," says his obviously proud father, Peter Compton. "He could have decided to be a victim and decided that sports was over for him, but he kept going on."

It wasn't that the younger Compton automatically dismissed baseball from his future. He tried to pursue the game, but he didn't have the stamina. Fortunately, golf offered a different athletic challenge.

"It started real slow," recalls Compton. "I had hit balls a little before the operation, but didn't take it too seriously. Afterwards, I tried hitting 5-irons and it was hard. At first, I was hitting them 75-yards, then 100-yards and then 150-yards. It took time."

One of the major reasons it took time for Compton to adjust wasn't just his unfamiliarity with the game and the golf swing. "The medicine I had to take really affected me," he says. "I was bloated and gained a lot of weight and I'd lost a lot of muscle mass."

His father remembers those times very well. "Six weeks after the operation, I took Erik out on the golf course," says the elder Compton. "They had elevated tees and I had to assist him onto the tee. The next summer, Erik was playing in a junior tournament in Naples, walking and carrying his own bag."

What Peter Compton didn't add was, between the time of Erik's operation and the summer of 1992, the Compton family had to overcome another devastating blow. In August, Hurricane Andrew roared through Miami and took the Comptons' house with it. So, after taking their first deep breath following Erik's surgery, the family had to face the devastation of the loss of their home. "We were out of our home for a year," says Peter Compton, "and we moved to a community close to Doral. We lived near a par 3 hole, and after school Erik would go out and play as many holes as he could and he quickly got to be very good.

"We never thought about moving out of the area," he adds. "Erik was in the sixth grade, and his brother, Christian, was in the eighth grade, and it just was not the time to uproot the family and move away. That year was a good character builder for all of us."

Out of the ashes of the destruction of the family home rose an opportunity for Erik and the game of golf to really take hold of each other. "I started playing a lot after that," says Compton. "At first I couldn't break 100. Then I was breaking 90 and then 80. Everything was coming together. I started practicing real hard and was going to the driving range all the time. I had a lot of buddies who I played baseball with who were starting to play golf, so it wasn't so hard to beat balls a lot. It was fun then and now it gets a little intense."

From late June through July, Compton had a playing schedule that was quite intense indeed. He had a six-week swing through what has developed into a major national junior schedule, but you don't climb to the top of the national rankings by backing down from such challenges.

"It was six straight weeks of tournaments," says Compton of his schedule, "and it was hard being away from home. But it was something I had to do. This is my last year of junior golf, and I want it to be successful. I had a good time, but it was a lot of travel. I guess that's something I'll have to get used to for college and hopefully afterwards for tournaments."

Compton is anxious to get to the University of Georgia, where he became the first heart transplant recipient to earn and receive an NCAA athletic scholarship. While Compton may be anxious to get to the campus, coach Chris Haack is equally anxious to greet his prize recruit. Once he understood the parameters of having Compton in his program, Haack had no reservations about tendering him an offer.

"I first noticed Erik last summer after the Rolex Junior Championship," recalls Haack. "The first thing I thought was, what a great human interest story this young man is. As for the effect the surgery has had on his golf, his scores tell the tale. At first, it was hard for me because I didn't understand about his heart transplant. Then I saw him practice, and his work ethic is the same as everyone of his ability."

Once Haack was comfortable with this, he liked the idea of having Compton on his team more and more. "I don't have to treat him any differently than any other players," says the coach. "We just have to understand that he goes on a different gear. If he says he's tired and he says he's had enough, that's it. We have to be cognizant of this. He knows his regimen. He knows he can't party all the time and that he has to get his sleep and plenty of rest. As a result, he's a lot more responsible than most incoming freshmen."

The University of Georgia's prime location certainly helped Haack in the process of recruiting Compton. "Erik's parents had some big issues," he explains. "Wherever Erik would go, there had to be a good heart hospital nearby, and we have Emory just 45 minutes down the road. They also wanted to make sure he was in a good environment. At this point, Erik doesn't require any special care. He has to take his 12 pills a day and he has to have a heart biopsy once a year."

Granted, it's a coach's dream to have a talented performer whose priorities are sleep and rest rather than being a stud on the campus party circuit. But like it or not, Compton is a little different than the usual freshman recruit, and acceptance by the rest of the team is an issue.

"All the kids met Erik and liked him," says Haack. "He came in here like any normal kid. He cut up with them and listened to the same music and watched the same TV shows. I knew when the guys met him, they'd think of him as just another average kid. One of the things that impressed everyone is, he doesn't like to focus on his heart problems. He just wants to be recognized for his golf achievements, and that's a real good thing."

Sure, Compton would like to be recognized solely for his golf achievements, and his record gives him that right. Yet, he's mature enough to know that what transpired on February 26, 1992 will always be a part of his resume.

"I know this is always going to be a part of my story," says Compton, "and the only reason I let it be known is, it might help promote organ donations. I'm one who got that gift and I know what it means."

In truth, Compton's story might also be a textbook lesson in character. At the age of 18, his perspective has been altered through experiences that might have crushed another person. Yet, he thinks of himself as just another average kid looking forward to college and improving his golf game.

"I never thought about not making it," he says of his struggle to learn golf and remain active. "I've always been upbeat. I think it was easier for me because I was so young. I didn't dwell on it. I think kids are better at handling these things. They don't realize how serious anything is and they enjoy everything they have."

When it came time to make the decision to have the transplant, all Compton had to rely on was his father's promise. Let's face it, for just about any 12-year-old, what more could there be? "One of the promises we had," says Peter Compton, "was the surgery would give his life a quality he wouldn't have if he didn't have the transplant. I promised Erik that if he went through with the surgery, it would all be worthwhile. I think he's happy."

Today, his son is happy, and it's not just golf that makes it all worthwhile. "I have a good balance in my life," says Compton sounding years older than 18. "It's not all golf. I like to hang out with my friends. I have a girlfriend. I like fishing a lot and I like travelling to other things than golf tournaments. And being in Miami, I like the beach. When I get out on the course, I'm ready to play. I've seen so many burnouts and kids with head problems who are getting too much pressure from their parents. I'm lucky. My parents have always made sure that golf isn't the only thing."

Compton's father admits that his guarded actions don't always come easily. They are a work in progress. "I've had talks with myself about being a stage father," he says with a laugh. "I always ask myself if I'm participating through Erik. I gauge myself against the other fathers I see out there."

Meanwhile, his son is gauging his game against those of his peers. He sees the Junior Player of the Year title slipping away with little or nothing he can do about it. "I might have a good lead in points during the summer," he says, "but it's going to be hard because I won't be playing in many more tournaments. I'm sure someone will catch me."

Rather than worry about what the end of the year might bring, Compton is busily analyzing his game. He sees some problems that few others with his record might notice. "I've got to get used to shooting low scores in big tournaments," he laments. "My putting comes and goes. I think 10-foot birdie putts should be automatic. My tee game is fine, and my greens in regulation numbers are good, but I'm not doing well on the par 5's. I think my strategy is bad. I've been trying to hit every par 5 green in two, and it's costing me. Instead of being 2 under on the par 5's during a round, I'm 2 over. That's four strokes, and that's a lot during one round. I think I have to have better strategy and course management."

This has taken on more importance because Compton's game plan is to take his game to a new testing ground. "I'd like to try to qualify as an amateur for some Tour events during the next year," Compton says. "I want to see where I stand, because I want to play out there someday. I know to do that, you have to have sound strategy, and I've got to rethink mine."

As Compton is finding, the question of why something that once worked well suddenly works no more is one of the great imponderables of golf. Unlike most, he has one other question that will probably go unanswered.

"I wonder," he asks wistfully, "if the person's heart that I have was a good golfer."

Who knows? But it appears it was transplanted in the body of a champion.