Ten years ago, Ben Hoffhine had just graduated from Bexley High School and was set to enjoy his final summer in preparation for attending Syracuse University in the fall.

My how times have changed in the last decade, as Hoffhine is now packing his golf bag for inclusion in the Buick Classic at Westchester Country Club (N.Y.) from Thursday until Sunday.

ESPN and ABC will each carry partial coverage of the event.

"Making the cut would be great," said Hoffhine, who is set to compete in his first PGA tour event. "Realistically, I’d just like to shoot even par. I’m just trying to think about playing golf and not the television cameras and crowds and other things like that."

Plans were secured for the Buick thanks to a round of 69 at a PGA qualifying event at West Chester in which the winner would earn a spot in the prestigious tournament. Hoffhine prevailed by two strokes among a bevy of hopefuls from New York City, Connecticut and New Jersey.

Playing in a PGA tournament was a distant dream of Hoffhine as a senior Lion golfer in 1992.

A self-described fifth man on a talented squad which included future Ohio Amateur champion Andrew Montooth, he had other passions.

"Golf then was a third sport for me," Hoffhine admitted.

In fact, basketball and baseball consumed most of Hoffhine’s time in high school, before an anterior cruciate ligament tear his senior year limited participation in the more vigorous sports.

Upon graduating from Bexley in 1993, Hoffhine decided to focus the majority of his athletic efforts into playing golf, a sport he was taught by family members - particularly his maternal grandfather Harold Myers - at age 11.

"I really got into it after high school," he said. "For the last five or six years I’ve really played a lot."

Parlaying that love of the sport into a career, Hoffhine is now a golf instructor near his home north of New York City.

"I get to play 12 months a year," he said. "In the winter I go stay with a friend outside of Orlando and just try to get in as much practice as possible."

An inspiration for Hoffhine throughout his life, the 87-year-old Myers died at the end of April.

Although he will be focused on the task at hand in the Buick, Hoffhine hopes to put the teachings of his grandfather to the ultimate use against the likes of Tiger Woods, Ernie Els and Greg Norman.

"My grandfather taught me everything," he said. "He loved to play golf."

Aiding the rookie in his first start will be the course. Formerly an instructor at Westchester, Hoffhine estimates he has walked the full 18 holes approximately 200 times.

"I will just be trying to hit the fairways," he stated. "Once you hit that high rough it is very difficult to shoot for the greens."

Besides competing for a paycheck (simply making the cut guarantees at least a $7000 cut), Hoffhine figures attracting sponsors is a potential bonus.

The process of gaining a tour card is lengthy and expensive, according to Hoffhine.

"This is obviously a huge event for me," he said. "The exposure helps as well, but the experience is what I’m excited about."

"If you want to get to the next level, you have to play a lot of the great players."