I got one of the best phone calls I could imagine, last night...
My first golf job was at Newnan Country Club in Newnan, GA. I was the Assistant Golf Pro, and I was in charge of the junior program. This was from 1993 to 1996. One of the phenoms in the class was a tiny little girl with a beautiful motion. She was certainly a natural.
Many of the ideas that would take the kids a week to get, she could get in minutes. She had the mind and the confidence of a 20 year old, seemingly trapped in a 9 year old body. We all knew that she was capable of doing great things.
She called me last night with a noticeable excitement. She started with some small talk, but then asked, "Guess what?" I asked what was up. She said, "Nothing much. I just made it into the U.S. Open!"
I was so excited for her, I couldn't stand it. She was so happy to be able to call me, and I was certainly happy to hear the news.
She wants me to make the trip to Minnesota this week, so I can refresh her memory on the technique for putting lightning fast greens. I've got to juggle a bunch of lessons and get a last minute ticket. But, it will all be worth it.
It's a teacher's dream to have some influence in a child’s life and have them accomplish great things. I guess you can tell that I'm very proud of her.
I'm flying out early morning Wednesday then returning early morning Thursday. I'm spending all day with her tomorrow. Her practice round is early tomorrow, then she's practicing the rest of the day.
I had to move a bunch of lessons on Wednesday. I found out too late to plan for more days.
One of the phenoms in the class was a tiny little girl with a beautiful motion. She was certainly a natural.
Wonderful news, Ted. Please . . .
Tell us her name!
Then, fill us in on the details twixt then and now. How old is she? Is she still an amateur? If so, is she on a college team? Does she have professional ambitions? What is her timetable? If she has turned pro, is she playing on any of the tours?
When we finished practicing today, they told her that her time was now 2:30 on Thursday.
I walked 11 holes with her, today. And, we spent a couple of hours on the range and two or more hours on the putting green. It was a great time, and the course is beautiful. It's interesting that Jean can only use driver 4 times. The fairways are rock hard and the rough is deep. So, it makes no sense to use driver on most of the holes. She's going to use many 3 & 5 woods.
When I get back to the Motherland (Georgia), I'll post some of the pictures that I took.
After one round, I recognized a few of the names tied with Jean...
Karrie Webb
Annika Sorenstam
Grace Park
Meg Mallon
Sherri Steinhauer
She ground it out and birdied the last two to finish at +2. I'm proud of her for fighting through the nerves since it's her first U.S. Open, and first LPGA event.
Then, fill us in on the details twixt then and now. How old is she? Is she still an amateur? If so, is she on a college team? Does she have professional ambitions? What is her timetable? If she has turned pro, is she playing on any of the tours?
Tell us more, Ted. We want to root for her!
She's been playing on the Futures Tour. She went to UGA. Here's her bio on that site:
Hybrid Mode
