courtesy of Patrick Peterson
- NFL cornerback Patrick Peterson is a casual golfer but an even bigger family man.
- Peterson once let his daughter Paityn putt on his final hole at a celebrity golf tournament.
- The decision cost him two strokes, but created a life-long family memory.
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Patrick Peterson's commitment as a father once overshadowed his commitment as a golfer.
The All-Pro NFL cornerback let his daughter Paityn, who was two years old at the time, putt on his final hole at the 2018 American Century Championship – a celebrity golf tournament that is held every July in Stateline, Nevada.
"I let her putt on 18 for me. She just missed the putt but that's probably the coolest golf story I got," Peterson told Insider. "I didn't know she wasn't supposed to, that's why it cost me two strokes."
Peterson ultimately finished the tournament in 19th place but doesn't regret the decision.
"My baby had a good time," Peterson said. "I knew I'm not going to win the tournament because I don't put enough time into my game … When I go there I'm looking to play respectable, but I don't believe my game right now is good enough to compete to win, but once I'm all done and retired I believe I'll have more time to really dial my game in to start competing."
Peterson is set to play his 11th NFL season at 30 years of age this year. He and his family will also be getting a change in scenery for the first time in his career after he signed with the Minnesota Vikings in March, ending a 10-year run with the Arizona Cardinals.
But these days Peterson's own sports career is not the only one he's focused on.
In addition to the final putt at American Century, Peterson has helped make golf a part of Paityn's routine just as much as his own. He regularly brought her to golf outings with his Cardinals teammates, where she helped as a caddy and even got some putting work.
"She wants to be the person that gives you the numbers, so she looks through my range all the time and finds out what my number is," Peterson said. "She doesn't like the concept of swinging at the ball just yet, but she has five putters like me and whenever I go out she'll grab one of her putters and she'll putt my ball for me."
Peterson has also helped his daughter make her own moments on the soccer field, signing her up for the youth affiliate of Phoenix Rising FC of MLS. But her youth soccer career wasn't initiated by Peterson's parental demands, she instead initiated it on her own in March when she saw kids at a park playing soccer and wanted to do it on her own.
Peterson merely signed her up and bought her with the necessary gear, but did put her through his own custom conditioning course to prepare her for the physical demands.
"I told her 'it's a lot of running,'" Peterson said. "She passed the test when she went working out with me, a little mini-camp I gave her to see if it was something she would like, and she enjoyed it, so I signed her up."
Paityn will only get one year at Phoenix Rising due to the family's impending move to Minnesota, but Peterson will continue to let her explore her own athletic passions without forcing anything on her.
At just six years of age, Paityn currently aspires to follow in the footsteps of Peterson's wife Antonique, who has served on the front lines during the COVID-19 pandemic as she completes her residency in the ICU at a local hospital.
But Peterson and his wife's second daughter Parker, who is just over a year old, could follow a path more similar to Peterson's. He even potentially sees athletic training or sports medicine in Parker's future.
"My girls watch my every step," Peterson said. "They watch their mom as well, so you could say they have two great role models to look up to and trying to have a head start on a successful life."