After reaching the top rung of the PGA Tour ladder with solid play to begin the summer, Eric Cole is already preparing for the most crucial season of his PGA Tour career with starts this fall. He's in the field this week at Port Royal, where he's missed the cut in two previous appearances. That brief history is surprising given the shorter, precision-driven game, which has given the 38-year-old his competitive edge. He ranks inside the top 15 in strokes gained on and around the green and top 20 in birdie average (4.17), and has sub-70 scoring averages in the first three rounds of his 2026 tournament starts. The lack of total production is hard to completely ignore, but the positives about what the former PGA Tour rookie of the year does inside the ropes are too. There is a case to be made for either direction, but it wouldn't be surprising to see him finally find some success here this week.