Golf has been difficult for Peter Kuest lately for a variety of reasons.
Oddly enough, the California native from Fresno is currently playing the greatest golf of his professional career. The 25-year-old BYU alum finished at 21-under 267 after qualifying on Monday, three shots out of a playoff, and it earned him a spot in this week’s John Deere Classic, where he probably only needs to cut to qualify for PGA TOUR Special Temporary Membership.
Nobody was aware of Kuest’s late father, Peter Kuest, Sr.,’s impact on that outcome or how much he was in Kuest’s heart at Detroit Golf Club, though.
The German immigrants that made up Kuest’s paternal line were more interested in football than golf.
The first junior football league in Fresno was founded by my grandpa. At Fresno State, my father played collegiately, and from there, until he was 32, he played semi-pro. By that point, his knees were in very bad shape, so he had to give up.
The elder Peter Kuest carved out a profession as a painting contractor for almost four decades to support his family, which would eventually include his wife Cindy and their two boys, Peter Jr. and Kyle. Cindy kept the books her husband kept.
Peter Jr. mostly played baseball and football.
Due to my tiny size, I attempted to play basketball, but it didn’t work out. In the seventh grade fall, I decided to add golf to my list of sports.
Kuest shattered his arm overthrowing a pitch while pitching for his high school team in Fresno in the eighth grade. After surgery, there was a discouraging three-month wait before he was given the all-clear to pitch once more. Golf was the first activity for which he was cleared because it has a low impact.
Despite being skilled at the sport, he didn’t take it seriously.
“When I was a sophomore in high school, I realized that I wasn’t really practicing golf as much as I was just having fun at the course,” Kuest stated.
Kuest’s dedication was beginning to weaken as he arrived home one afternoon to discover a painter’s work clothes spread out on his bed. The message underlying his father’s startling act was for Kuest to “go all in on something” or start working for his father.
“My parents gave my brother and me everything. Coming home and seeing the painting attire was difficult since I didn’t want to do it. But I can see what he was attempting to do. To get me moving, he began poking the bear.” he said.
“He switched from baseball to golf and started drawing attention with his abilities. Kuest played in junior varsity during his freshman year since he knew his high school golf team at Clovis West needed a player, pushed his way into the system as a sophomore and served as team captain his junior and senior years.
“I didn’t get recruited for college since I started playing golf late. As a result of frequent family visits to Silverado in Napa, California, we got to know Johnny Miller and his family. Todd Miller, Johnny’s son and BYU’s assistant golf coach, was the last person we contacted. He recruited me after coming outside to see me play. BYU captured my heart. It was surrounded by places where I could go skiing, hiking, and fishing and do whatever I wanted.” he said.
For Kuest, everything was going quite well. He attended the PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament in Savannah, Georgia in November 2021 with his younger brother and caddie Kyle.
The story then abruptly turned in a new direction.
“My mum immediately contacted us when my dad suffered a heart attack, Kuest recalled. As soon as we touched down in Salt Lake City. Since my grandpa had previously suffered from a heart attack, we didn’t first consider it to be serious, but he pulled through.” Kuest said.
Peter and Kyle were instructed to return home right away the following morning. The outlook was not favorable. Once they arrived, they spent what would turn out to be their last night with their father, who passed on the next morning at the age of 61.
“He was the reason we were able to participate in sports and compete, therefore it has been tremendously difficult. He gave all up for us. I truly wanted to improve my golf game so I could relieve some of his financial burden and even help Dad retire after working so hard for us for so many years.” he said.
Not only did Kuest’s father encourage his boys to participate in athletics, but he also served as their chief source of inspiration in all that they did.
“My father had a way of inspiring that would irritate you. He would be honest with you and let you know when you were lax. It annoyed you, but it was effective. He did everything out of love and a desire to see the best in us.” Kuest said laughing.
Kuest has struggled over the past 16 months as he juggles his new job while attempting to support his family. Kyle, who is now 22 years old, has taken over his father’s painting company.
“I’m really pleased with him. I doubt I’ll ever be able to handle everything Kyle is managing to maintain the company’s profitable. Both of us are attempting to assist our mother in sorting things out.” Kuest said.
These “things” include paying the mortgage in addition to just scraping by each day.
“We need to. Our family’s foundation was destroyed when we lost our father.” Kuest said.
Kyle is still in Fresno operating the painting company and spending more time with their mother while Kuest is still residing in Utah.
“When I’m not playing, I return. The Catch-22 is that I hope I don’t have to go home too frequently because I’m playing well enough to keep going,” he said.
Guest acknowledges that he didn’t foresee his success at Rocket Mortgage last week coming so quickly, but he continues to operate under the same principles that have brought him this far.
“Last week, I didn’t know if I was prepared for all that attention, but I wanted it. I wished to experience life at its pinnacle. It provides the drive. I enjoy performing for large audiences. It inspires me and is amazing.” he said.
Kuest keeps moving forward while still being aware that he is simply human. He received a diagnosis of alopecia last autumn, an autoimmune disorder he thinks was triggered by stress.
“After my father’s death, it began. The body produces inflammation, but because it detects no problems, it is unable to target a specific target. It attacks a person’s hair follicles even when they are healthy. When that happened, I started losing my eyebrows and my hair started thinning drastically. When my father died. I was unhealthy, stressed out, and had lost a lot of weight. To try and fill out the shirts a little bit better, I adjusted my diet and started working out every morning.” he said.
He is currently receiving medical attention because if his condition is not consistently managed, flare-ups would happen. Kuest maintains his confidence despite defeats in his own estimation.
I consider myself to be tenacious and a hard worker. Thanks to my father, I have a strong work ethic. It doesn’t matter where you place when playing golf. Whether you place first or last, the next day you go to work.
Kuest’s strategy for playing competitive golf is influenced in part by his conviction that there will always be another shot to take and another week to play. And regardless of how well he performs, he invests a lot of time and effort into, if nothing else, feeling confident in himself.
“I work to maintain stability. I’m a reserved man who simply goes about my business. I don’t express myself very much, especially on the course.” he said.
This is not to suggest that he doesn’t feel emotions.
“I’m confident I can compete. That’s what I grew up doing, thanks to my father. And we’ll continue to do that for my dad. Simply attempting to get a little bit better every day seems to be helping. But at the end of the day, all there is left is golf. I’m merely doing my best in this situation. So be it if we go out and have a nice week. If not, my family back home is still there, and I know they still adore me.” he said.
