(CNN) -- Just hours after landing his first PGA Tour golf title in a 13-year professional career, Dallas resident Harrison Frazar was delighted to see his beloved Mavericks match that feat by claiming a first NBA championship on Sunday.
The American, who turns 40 next month, revealed earlier this year that he was considering quitting as he struggled on the circuit after returning from yet another in a long list of injuries.
He turned the corner by qualifying for this week's U.S. Open in Bethesda, Maryland and then beat Robert Karlsson in a playoff at the St. Jude Classic to guarantee a tour card until 2013 and also earn an invite to next year's Masters at Augusta.
"I wanted to send a text to Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd and those guys and say I know right know exactly how you feel," Frazar told the PGA Tour's website after his first success in 355 starts.
"All the years of hard work and criticism, the years of not knowing where you stand and questioning who you are as a person or a player. And to all of a sudden find yourself on top, I know how they feel. I'm not equating winning a Tour event to winning the NBA championship, but there are parallels."
Frazar has leapt 439 places in the world rankings to 144th, and is now 40th in the PGA Tour's FedEx Cup standings -- up from 170th.
He won at the fourth extra hole, condemning Sweden's Karlsson to a second successive playoff defeat in the tournament after last year losing to England's Lee Westwood.
"As time went on, here was this unattainable beast," Frazar said."I realize 13 years ... it should not have been that hard. I put it on a pedestal for so long. I idealized it so much where it made it difficult to function."
The world's top-three golfers will be paired together for the first two rounds of the U.S. Open on Thursday and Friday at Congressional Country Club.
No. 1 Luke Donald will tee off alongside his predecessors Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer.
Germany's Kaymer is the only one of the trio to have won one of golf's four major titles, having triumphed at the 2010 PGA Championship.
Donald and Kaymer skipped the Memphis event last week, where Westwood tied for 11th in his title defense as he finished seven shots behind Frazar and Karlsson.
Karlsson, who has moved up to 17th in the world rankings, will play with American Bubba Watson and Australia's Adam Scott -- who is using Tiger Woods' caddie Steve Williams while the 14-time major winner is sidelined due to injury
Frazar will partner compatriots Chad Campbell and Marc Turnesa, while fellow American Phil Mickelson will line up with Dustin Johnson and Northern Ireland's world No. 8 Rory McIlroy as he seeks his first U.S. Open triumph.
Defending champion Graeme McDowell will play alongside South Africa's British Open titleholder Louis Oosthuizen and 21-year American Peter Uihlein, the world's top-ranked amateur player.
Matteo Manassero, 18, will have the company of the Molinari brothers Francesco and Edoardo, also from his native Italy, as he seeks to become the youngest player to win the tournament.

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