“It feels amazing,” said Pak, who moves from No. 51 to No. 9 on the season-long Korn Ferry Tour Points List. “I don’t really have words to describe it. I worked really hard for this and it's nice to see the results are finally paying off … I want to have a long career in this game, and this is just one of the steps to it.”

The top 30 on the season-long standings, finalized after the Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance in October, will earn 2025 PGA TOUR membership. Pak is now positioned to earn his first TOUR card at season’s end, a testament to his resilience when things got tough.

In 2021, Pak finished atop the inaugural PGA TOUR University Ranking to earn automatic Korn Ferry Tour membership. Rather than competing on the Korn Ferry Tour that summer to pursue a TOUR card, though, he competed in six TOUR events on sponsor exemptions; the goal was earning enough non-member FedExCup points to secure a card. The plan didn’t pan out, as he missed five cuts and finished 39th at the Barracuda Championship. Pak played a full Korn Ferry Tour slate in 2022 but notched just one top-25 showing, losing status at No. 145 on the Points List.

“I've definitely doubted myself when I first turned pro and I really struggled,” Pak said. “A year-and-a-half ago, I had no status anywhere, but I have a lot of people that love me and support me, and I couldn't do it without them.”

Pak had envisioned being a PGA TOUR member by 2023, but rather he was competing on PGA TOUR Canada, two rungs below the game’s highest level. It meant reshaping his definition of success and returning to the game’s inherent grind. He did just that, winning the Elk Ridge Saskatchewan Open presented by Brandt and finishing No. 8 on the season-long Fortinet Cup standings. That meant a direct ticket to Final Stage of PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry, where despite a tie for 113th he was assured some Korn Ferry Tour status for 2024. It meant low-level conditional status, though, with a direct mandate for the season: take advantage of opportunities when they come. Pak followed the blueprint at the Club Car Championship at The Landings Golf & Athletic Club, where he Monday qualified, made the cut and fired a final-round 63 to finish tied for third.

It's hard to say one round can change someone’s life, but the final round in Savannah might hold that meaning for Pak. Not only did it infuse confidence, but it bolstered his position in subsequent reshuffles of conditional members – meaning he’d have a full slate of Korn Ferry Tour starts to test his game, compete and chase his first PGA TOUR card.

One such start: the Compliance Solutions Championship, where Pak rode a blend of talent and confidence to a signature moment, one that he’ll remember for years to come.

“I started working with a sport psychologist (Gio Valiante) about three months ago and he's really helped me kind of redefine my whole psychological point of view on the game of golf and it's helped a lot,” Pak said Sunday afternoon. “I think back then when I first started, it was really tough for me because I had some high expectations. I kind of put too much pressure on myself and I didn't have the success I wanted.

“It was really tough, but I've really kind of flipped the switch there and … the results are showing now, and I think he's helped quite a bit.”

The results prove it.