I am sitting here
reflecting on what has taken place over the last twelve months. When I
say here, perhaps I should be more precise. I am sitting in the garden
of long standing friends in Ormond Beach, Florida having just spent four
hours grinding away on my wedge play at the local course. This is my time
to relax although the practice can never stop. It is truly the only way
that I feel I can maintain a competitive edge at this level of play. My
daily routine of drills, whether it be short game or full shots, comes
as naturally to me now as cleaning my teeth. Certainly a different story
from my approach way back in January when as a 'fresh face' on tour I relied
on luck and a little talent to carry me through. I now realise that, while
good fortune does have a small part to play, the real key is strength of
mind and the will to succeed. This can only be brought about, at least
in my case, through self belief, fueled by continued work on my game. I
have discovered that in golf, as with most other things, you make your
own luck.
So the professional
calendar is at an end and since my last missive to you I have had a busy
time of it trying to secure some kind of status with which to carry myself
through to next year. The aim of every player is to try and avoid Qualifying
School in Daytona which takes place at the end of October and is the last
opportunity to secure any kind of a playing 'card' for the following season.
Those that have achieved a reasonable standing on the Money List do not
suffer the stress of Q. School The top ninety players automatically gain
a fully exempt card allowing them entry into, just about, all the events
on the tour while the next forty, or so, girls achieve a nonexempt or part
card which will still mean the chance of playing in a fair number of tournaments.
After that it's down to conditional cards.
You may remember that
as a conditional player I have had to Monday Qualify for the two 'spots'
on offer in each of a number of events during the last twelve months. Of
course if a player does not even make a conditional card then it's good
bye LPGA, at least for that year. Being aware of all this I knew I had
plenty to do at the beginning of October. I had managed to accrue some
money with a few reasonable finishes but to gain, at least, a nonexempt
position and guarantee some kind of return next year I had, by my calculations,
to win a further $2000.
I had one tournament
left to do it and the pressure was on. The final event of the season in
which those players below the top ninety may endeavor to improve their
lot is the First Union Betsy King in Kutztown, Pennsylvania. I arrived
hoping to achieve a good result but, in my heart of hearts, fully expecting
to have to return to the rigors of Qualifying School. As things turned
out I did return to Daytona but with a further $6000 added to my account.
A top twenty-five finish at the Betsy King had, indeed, secured the nonexempt
card I had been looking for and I would play on the LPGA next year.
My aim now was to
try for one of the nineteen fully exempt cards to be had at Q. School.
Despite very heavy rain just before the start I was full of confidence
as the first day approached. My game was up to the mark and I had even
purposefully skipped the opportunity to Monday Qualify in a couple of West
Coast events in September so that I might practice in Daytona in preparation.
For reasons I don't fully understand Q. School begins on a Tuesday and
finishes on a Friday whereas a normal tour event runs from Thursday to
Sunday. At 1:30 PM on Tuesday, October 19 I stood on the tee full of hope
and determination.
I then went out and
shot an 80. This is not the kind of start that wins tour cards. I really
can't say why I should have had such a poor round. There is no specific
reason. The course itself is quite innocuous to look at but, with hindsight,
I believe that if not treated with the utmost respect it has a knack of
rearing up and biting the unsuspecting player in the backside. The next
three days proved the point, I think. David, my full time caddy and better
half, had been very sympathetic of my distress at the end of that first
day. He even suggested that with some kind of a guaranteed place for the
year 2000 I might wish to throw in the towel and forego any further torture.
I declined his offer.
If I was going to
fail it would not be without a fight. The following day after a night of
more rain the course was like a sponge. I teed off early and shot a 72.
This equated to a 68 given the conditions and moved me from 118th place
up to 91st. Whatever might happen in the following two days it was certainly
a better effort. Thursday saw another 72 to put me at 56th place. Unlike
other tournaments the 'cut' was made after three days here and I would
play on the last day. This was particularly important to me as I could
take comfort in knowing that if all else had failed I would at least have
come away in a similar position to the previous year.
When I awoke on Friday
morning it was quite clear that there would be no play that day. Rain had
fallen through the entire night and the final round was postponed for twenty-four
hours. Again I teed off early on Saturday and, as I discovered upon my
return to the clubhouse, while a large part of the field had dramatically
fallen away, I had produced the low round of the day with a 69. I waited
nervously until the last group came home. From an appalling beginning I
had dragged myself in to the top twenty.
Nineteen fully exempt
cards to be had and here was I tied with six others for 17th position.
There would be a play off. Seven girls for three hallowed places The seven
of us were split in to a three ball to go first and a four ball to follow.
As I had literally pulled the last number out of the hat it came as great
relief, in the wake of the other tee shots and dreadful nerves, to see
my ball make fairway on the first of the extra holes. The format was to
be the best score over three holes. The survivors would then go on to 'sudden
death.' I wont bore you with a detailed rundown of my trials.
We all have our own
golfing stories to tell. Suffice to say despite a couple of shaky moments
I found myself on the sixth play off hole as three of us competed for two
remaining cards. In the end 'birdies' took those last treasured spots to
become a fully exempt LPGA tour player. Stephanie Sparks holed an eight
footer for one of them and yours truly made a two foot putt to clinch the
final place. I now look forward to a comprehensive schedule of events next
season and as always I wish for good things. Of course nothing is guaranteed,
even armed with a full tour card, and it is with some sadness that I say
farewell to a few friends in 1999 whose golf has not been kind to them.
I hope to see them again in 2001.
The remainder of the
winter will be spent in getting myself as prepared as possible for the
start of the season in two months time. People may ask what lessons I have
learnt through, this, my first year on tour. Considering how close I came
to failure, on more then one occasion, during the last twelve months I
think the most obvious pointer to success in golf, as in life, is to never
give up. As the old saying goes "it ain't over 'til it's over."
Given a choice I don't
think I would have done it any other way. Thank you one and all for your
support. Have a good Christmas and a prosperous New Year.
