It's pretty good being James Piot these days.
"Not too bad," Michigan State golf coach Casey Lubahn said in a recent text, adding a, "Haha."
Piot, a senior from Canton, will make his first start on the PGA Tour this week, playing in the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in Orlando, Florida.
The tournament starts Thursday and was long run by the late Arnold Palmer, who was a tireless booster of amateur golf, and those who thrived in that arena. Piot, last summer, won the U.S. Amateur at Oakmont, becoming the first Michigan native to win amateur golf's most prestigious event.