Erik Compton was born in Miami, Florida where he learned the game of golf. At one point Erik was the number one junior golfer in the United States and the 1998 AJGA Rolex Junior Player of the Year. He accepted a scholarship to play golf for the University of Georgia, where he went on to become a two time All-American playing on the 2001 Palmer Cup and Walker Cup teams.
Erik is best known throughout the golf world for his two heart transplants. His first heart transplant came in 1992, at the age of 12 and his second in 2008. For this, Compton was honored with the Ben Hogan Award in Augusta, Georgia during the 2009 Masters tournament. In 2012 Erik received the Babe Didrikson Zaharias Courage Award from the U.S. Sports Academy. In 2013 Erik was among many distinguished recipients of the Donate Life Champion award; an award given to role models in the sports community who have made a difference by inspiring others through their support for organ donation.
In 2010, after his second heart transplant, Erik continued his pursuit of golf making the cut in five of seven PGA TOUR events. The 2011 Web.Com Tour season lead Erik to earning his PGA TOUR card for the first time. With three top-5 finishes including a win in the Mexican Open, Erik had assured himself a spot on the PGA Tour for the 2012 season.
Whether mentoring transplant recipients at home in Miami, or hosting youth clinics for local transplant patients at a PGA Tour event, Erik gives back the support and encouragement he received as a patient.
I got to talk with Erik about fatherhood, the work he does in raising awareness for organ donors, and golf.
Art Eddy: Before we talk golf and fatherhood I want to ask you about your foundation and the Play Through with Erik Compton campaign that you are teaming with Donate Life America and Genentech.
Erik Compton: This month is donate life month. We are doing our educational push to become an organ donor and the lack there of donors right now. There are over 125,000 people waiting for a lifesaving transplant. I talk about how to become an organ donor. You can go to donatelife.net or at my foundation erikcompton.com or at the DMV. You can register to become an organ donor. You can even speak to your loved ones if that is something that you are interested in doing.
If you lose your life you can’t make that decision. Somebody else has to make the decision for you. That is why we try to put the word out there. It is something that you should talk to with your family. We also have inspirational people out there who are living donors that have donated a kidney to their loved ones. It is amazing that there are so many gracious people out there.
AE: You are a two time heart transplant recipient. I am guessing that you don’t sweat the small stuff. How has that changed your outlook on life since those two procedures?
EC: (Laughs.) I do sweat the small stuff. I am a tough person. I am not the easiest guy to deal with. That is why I am successful though. I stand up for 
what is right and what is wrong. I have an opinion. I have always pushed myself to become a stronger person and to want to be the best. That also goes to people who are waiting for a transplant or going through a transplant or whether they have other adversities like cancer. Any adversity in life you have to push yourself and believe in yourself. You got to believe that you are going to come out on top.
My success on the golf course came from never giving up and having parents who pushed me to never give up whether it was physically or mentally. There were times where I thought about it, but you get that extra little push. You never know how much that little extra step can take you farther in life.
When I qualified for the US Open it took me 36 holes in one day and then four holes and a playoff to get the last spot in the Open. I thought about quitting during that round. I turned around and took second place at the Open that year. That made a big difference in my life. It was a huge difference financially and emotionally. If I didn’t take that extra step I wouldn’t have known how far I would have gone.
That is an example of sports, but you look at the extra step that I took whether it was in the hospital or after and being in recovery. We do a lot of great work with our foundation. To be able to talk to patients and be able to help out and to be able to be an ear to listen and inspire. As this show talks about the relationship between the family. I have a daughter who is seven years old. She was born in the year of my second transplant. I think the focus of my wife being pregnant and her birth was a positive detour for us. She is now a great gymnast. She has so much energy. To be able to share golf with her and for her to be jumping all over me when I come home from a tour gives me that much more energy to want to be healthy.
AE: Switching to fatherhood now, what are some of the core values you look to instill in your daughter as she grows up?
EC: Kids are kids. They are going to make mistakes. They are going to do stuff. I try and let her enjoy the positives of people. I believe that it takes a village to raise a kid. We have my parents who are involved. She is with other kids. She is learning what is right and what is wrong.
Just sitting down and telling your kids that you love them the way that they are. Some kids are not that lucky. They don’t have a father figure. That is something I learned really at a young age. I remember being in the hospital. There was another girl there who was about seven years old. Her parents left her there to die. She had cancer. They never showed up. They never showed up for her. I remember her coming to my room. She was in a wheelchair. She would ask me if we could go for a walk. That is ingrained in my mind because she couldn’t walk. I pushed her around in the wheelchair.
I try to tell my daughter that story without her getting too upset. I don’t really protect my child from realities of life. Eventually she is going to have to run into those things. I think she is mature for her age. She understands how lucky she is. We also spoil her too. (Both laugh.) She is a PGA Tour daughter. She gets to enjoy a lot of the fruits of traveling and seeing the world. You have to ground them and teach them what is important and then champion them when they are doing great.
AE: What was the first thing that popped into your mind when you found out you were going to be a dad?
EC: I was just excited. I kind of predicted it. Somehow I knew we were going to have a little girl. She has been fantastic. On the other side I look at my brother who is very successful in his own right. He has been with me every step of the way with my transplant. He has adopted two kids. Two kids from different parts of the world. To see the happiness that they have experienced is great. For him to be a dad and to get all of the kids to play together during the holidays is just important. Our kids are important.
AE: What advice do you have for new dads out there?
EC: I think it is to get involved with your kids. To listen to them and encourage them. To give structure and be involved in what they are doing. It is not always the decisions you want for your kids. You have to listen to what they are good at. My parents listened to me. They knew I was a good athlete. I wasn’t a great student, but they worked with me for school. They praised me as an athlete. They made me believe. A lot of parents don’t do that. I think it is important to let our kids chase their dreams.
Life of Dad Quick Five
AE: What is your favorite family movie that you guys like to watch together?
EC: The Minions movies. We have a lot of fun with those. Those are fun.
AE: Do you guys have a favorite song that you all like to dance to?
EC: My wife and daughter when I am on the road seem to know all the songs. They can sing any song that is on the radio. It is pretty amazing.
AE: Describe the perfect family vacation.
EC: We were in the Bahamas not too long ago. (My daughter) was on the water slide. She really likes to swim. We went on a family vacation skiing. I really enjoyed that. I don’t know if my wife enjoyed it as much as I did. (Both laugh.) With my Nordic background I really like the snow, but I think it is just the chance for all of us to be together and have fun.
AE: Favorite course to play is….
EC: My favorite course to play is probably Augusta National. I really enjoyed playing there last year.
AE: At what age did you know that you were going to be a professional golfer?
EC: Nine years old.
Follow Erik on Twitter at @ErikCompton3 and check out his website at ErikCompton.com