Sanchez learned to play in Central America, as an eight-year-old growing up in Guatemala City. His father, Felipe, cut a five-iron to length for him. Felipe bought his son a set of "really short woods" a year later.

"I'd go and hit behind my dad," Sanchez said. "He's the number-one factor behind my playing; he likes golf and wanted to ingrain the game in his kids.

Sanchez played golf at The Country Club in Guatemala City with his brother, Jose Javier.

Five years later, their sister, Nancy Sophia, learned to play. Their mother, nancy Castillo de Sanchez, also learned to play as golf slowly became a central part of Sanchez's youth.

"Even when I was eight, I could tell that golf was a very bonding experience with my dad and brother, and, later, a family experience. Now, on Sunday nights, I can talk to my family about Tiger Woods winning the Masters or who's winning on the PGA Tour."

It wasn't always easy for Luis to stay attached to the game. At age ten he stopped playing, but when he moved to Mexico City four years later, he started again. A subsequent relocation to Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1989 followed, but by then Luis was playing full-time.

Boyda, who grew up in Portland, Oregon, started playing competitive golf as a sophomore in high school.

"It's not like other sports, where there's constant action," Boyda said. "You have five minutes to think between every shot."

Over the past four years, Boyda has followed one tradition without fail--he always marks the ball the same way, with one dot above the 'Titleist' logo and one below. But golf has also left a lasting imprint on both players, carrying them through the bumps of a season toward the arc of their future.