As a PGA Tour rookie, Roberto Castro has endured the ebbs and flows of an up-and-coming professional athlete trying to find a foothold on his sport’s biggest stage.

But in his own words, the 27-year old Milton native said year one on the PGA Tour couldn’t be going much better.

“It’s been great honestly,” said Castro, a 2003 Milton High School graduate. “Like anything in life you have your ups and downs, but I’ve gotten to meet a ton or really cool people this year, gotten to visit a different city every week, and done some great things so far this year.”

His trip to golf’s highest level follows four years of collegiate play at Georgia Tech (2004-07), three years on a series of mini-tours, and a cup of coffee on the Nationwide Tour in 2010.

Castro earned his PGA Tour card by finishing in the top 25 on the Nationwide Tour’s 2011 money list — finishing in 23rd place (earning $186,563) in his first full year of Nationwide competition.

“The past few years I have felt like I was good enough to get to this level, I was just hoping I got a chance to find out if it was,” said the 27-year old Milton native. “That is what has been so exciting about this year; I’ve had my shot to see how I stack up against the best in the world.”

Against the best that the golf world has to offer Castro has performed admirably, making the cut in 13 of the 17 events he has entered.

Castro finished 14th in the Puerto Rico Open on March 8, played his first professional tournament on Pebble Beach Feb. 9, qualified for the U.S. Open for the first time in his career, and notched his first PGA Tour top 10 in his most recent tournament — finishing in a tie for seventh at the Greenbrier on July 8.

The top 10 finish, which included a hefty $177,510 check, vaulted Castro to 110th on current PGA Tour Money List (earning $581,968).

A finish in the top 125 would guarantee another year on Tour in 2013.

“I feel like my game is good right now and I just have to keep focusing on doing what I have been doing well. If I keep doing that I feel like I’ll be just fine and might even be able to get in contention for a win soon.”

After taking last weekend off, Castro will play in the PGA Tour’s next three events (True South Classic, RBC Canadian Open, and the Reno-Tahoe Open) in hopes of qualifying for the PGA Championship the following week.