Maddog's Blog
Chasing my dreams one shot at a time
It is time to give you all the scoop on my LPGA debut! I arrived in Hawaii Saturday afternoon and was greeted warmly by my host family, Bob and Judi Allen. Bob and Judi hosted me last summer at their other home in Morgan Hill, CA when I was an alternate for the US Women’s Open. It was great to be with familiar faces right on property at Ko Olina. I couldn’t have felt more comfortable. Sunday morning was dedicated to watching the Masters. If you thought Sergio’s victory was exciting, try watching it in the company of several Spaniards. That was a Masters I will never forget. The first tee was wide open when I wanted to start my practice round Sunday afternoon, so I teed off alone with Larry. As we were walking down the fairway, another caddy ran up to ask if his player could join. We said yes, and to my surprise, his player was Cristie Kerr. I spent the next nine holes listening intently to her talk with her caddie (and sometimes me) about the course conditions and her strategy for every possible shot. Five days later, Cristie went on a birdie barrage to shoot 62-66 on the weekend and win the tournament- her 19th career LPGA victory. In her post-round interview, she mentioned trying to stay out of her own way while she was lighting up the final nine holes. This was also the advice she gave me during our practice round: just stay out of your own way and let yourself play golf like you know how. If a twenty year veteran is still working on the same thing she recommends to rookies, I think that’s a good sign I should be patient with the learning curve out here. My first round tee time was late morning. I slept well and didn’t feel jitters on the first tee shot. My adrenaline came as we walked down the first fairway and the realization it was finally go-time sunk in. I could feel my heart rate quicken and hands shake slightly on the first three holes. I love this rush; it is one of the reasons I became a professional athlete. I think the adrenaline actually helped me to start off -1 through the first eight holes because it has a way of making me focus more acutely on what is immediately in front of me. I had been struggling with my swing over the previous few rounds, and things unraveled halfway through the day. I was missing fairways and missing greens and not saving myself with scrambling. The final number was 77. I tried to dig the secret out of the dirt on the range after the round but didn’t make any progress until reviewing old swing notes at home later that evening. With one key in mind for round two, I hit the ball more solid and was cruising along at even par through seven holes. On the eighth tee, I rushed my shot selection and didn’t back off despite doubting the club in my hand. I put one in the water and walked away with a triple. I held myself together just fine after that (despite knowing I had zero chance at making the cut) until our group began rushing to try to finish before sunset. I made bogey then double before we got stopped on the 17th green. My mistakes on account of rushing are textbook examples of getting in my own way. Lesson learned. The next day, our group came back to finish the round at 7:45 AM. My playing partner Lindy Duncan was at even par, one shot outside the cut line. She barely lipped out her birdie chance on 17 green. Facing the difficult par-4 18th hole knowing she needed a birdie to play the weekend, Lindy HOLED OUT her 6-iron from the fairway for eagle. It was epic! I felt very at ease all week. Except for everything being a few notches nicer (as 10x the sponsorship money will allow), the bones of the tournament were just like the Symetra Tour. I was used to all of the little details- from practice round regulations to yardage books to registration- but greatly appreciated the added perks like a locker stocked with ProV1s and generous player dining. One thing is for sure: if I’m going to miss a cut, Hawaii isn’t a bad place to do it. Until my weekend opened up, I hadn’t even left the Ko Olina property. I made the best of the two days by exploring the island with friends. In between my last blog and the trip to Hawaii, I played two Monday qualifiers and one Symetra event in Mesa. You’d never guess from the scores, but there have been a lot of positive things going on in my game. I’ve gained distance with my driver, my chipping has continued to improve, and I’m really comfortable over my putter right now. My ball striking has just been inconsistent, and I have had trouble putting everything together at once. However, I have seen some great progress during this last week at home and am optimistic moving forward. …and speaking of forward, here’s what is up next: I am currently second alternate for the LPGA event in Dallas this coming week. I will play the Monday Qualifier there to try to guarantee myself a spot in the field. Regardless, I will wait around through Thursday in case anyone withdraws. Cross your fingers! I am not even going to bother trying to provide a schedule past Dallas because it is all very much up in the air. If you are ever curious as to whether I am playing a specific event, feel free to reach out and I'll give you my best estimate. Thank you all for following along!
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After all the excitement of earning my LPGA Tour card in December, my life has turned upside down. The last few months have been nothing but private jets and publicity ops. Or… maybe not quite. Come to think of it, 2017 hasn’t looked a whole lot different than my previous four years as a pro. I have been busy practicing and preparing as usual, trusting that the processes that got me this far will lead to success at the next stage, too. I have had one road stint so far this year. The trip was kicked off with LPGA Rookie Orientation in Daytona Beach, FL. I learned the intricate ins-and-outs of the LPGA, got to know fellow rookies, and met staff members. Really, though, the two and a half days of education could all have been summed up in one lesson: 101 Ways To Get Fined on Tour. Since orientation had already brought me all the way to Florida, I decided I might as well make the short trip from there down to the Bahamas for the year’s first LPGA event. I attempted to Monday qualify because my status did not earn me a position in the limited field. The Monday round was a wild one- I made six birdies, three doubles, and four bogeys in 30-40 mph winds to miss qualifying by six shots. This was fairly typical of early season play for me, some positives mixed in with a mess of rusty mistakes. As always, though, the tournament provided solid experience to file away for next time. With seven days to kill in Florida before I flew out of the Fort Lauderdale Airport again, I migrated over to Naples, FL for the week. There I was graciously welcomed into the winter homes of my Rochester, NY host family the Parkers and then their fellow Rochester friends, the Lines. As I’ve said before, host families are what make tour life special for me. I'd like to give a huge thank you shoutout to Jamie and Mary Ann Parker and Rick and Judy Lines for treating me to an incredible week of practice, good wine, and ocean views! My fourth and final stop was the Caribbean island of Tobago. Monifa Sealy, a member of the Symetra Tour, hosted a pro-am in her home nation to raise money for local junior golf programs. Forty female professionals played for our own purse alongside amateurs from Trinidad and Tobago. There were a few wrinkles in the operations of the first-time event, but overall it was an amazing time experiencing a corner of the world we might have never otherwise visited. Highlights included a glass-bottomed boat tour of coral reefs, some gorgeous golf holes along the ocean, and a ride around the island. I arrived back in Phoenix February 7th, and I started answering daily to the question, “So when are you leaving?” on February 8th. You will find my upcoming schedule below. I am just barely on the outside looking in for the Phoenix and San Diego LPGA events, but I should be playing in Hawaii! After that, I expect to be playing a good amount of LPGA domestic events. I will give a better idea of my post-April schedule when I know it. I shot 73-67-72 to finish 3rd at the last Cactus Tour event. I still find these local tournaments to be incredibly useful for getting (bigger) tournament ready. You can follow those scores here. My major project of the last few months has been securing the financial support necessary to tee it up on the LPGA Tour. As you might imagine, this is an expensive endeavor. I have thus far reached about 60% of my goal for the year. If you or your company are interested in partnering, I would love to hear from you. Here are my new sponsors for the upcoming season: TR Toppers is the leading candy toppings supplier in the United States. If, for example, you have enjoyed chopped Reeses Pieces or brownie bites at a frozen yogurt shop, you most likely have TR Toppers to thank for that! Snake River Farms is an Idaho family owned and operated business dedicated to producing the highest quality beef and pork in the country. Hungry for some American wagyu filet mignon? Or perhaps some Korbuta pork belly? Snake River Farms will deliver their incredible products directly to your doorstep. Use the code LPGA17 at checkout for free shipping on your first order. The John and Carol Hepworth family are also partners. They are being represented on my bag with the simple letters “H.F.M.M.”, a personal reminder of their goal for me this season.
Thank you all for reading and following along. I'm looking forward to sharing more as this season really gets started.
Hey everybody,
I am now a member of the LPGA Tour. Man, have I wanted to say that for a long time! On December 4th, I finished T-21st at LPGA Q-School to receive a conditional card for the 2017 season. “Conditional” means I am lower on the pecking order of tournament sign-up priority than those with a "full” card. It also means that I can move up or down within my category (i.e. “reshuffle") based on my play. Every player receives a priority number that determines their place in this pecking order. Mine is 156. There are 144 players in full field events, so you can see how close I will be to getting in. By my estimate, I should get into a minimum of 10-12 tournaments. I am happy with my efforts last week. With the help of my new coach, Gabe Hjertstedt, and a whole lot of hours logged at the practice tee, every part of my game was feeling sharp. My swing is back to where it was last year: lots of fairways hit and consistent, solid iron play. Misses were very minimal. My wedge distance control was dialed. Most notably, I progressed from having the full on chipping yips this summer to chipping successfully with confidence last week. And finally, I switched putters three weeks ago and saw some huge improvements. I had just one three-putt in 90 holes, was about 95% from 5 feet and in, and saw three putts go in from outside of 50 feet. Even with my game in shape, we all know that Q-school is a different beast. As my caddy Larry Smich put it, it was like I got through the week because "my will overcame all obstacles.” He also took to calling me Katniss from the Hunger Games, so apparently I had some ferocity about me :) I knew that my four years of backing from the LLC is ending on Dec 31. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to stomach another year on the Symetra Tour without a single LPGA opportunity. I knew that I had done everything within my power to prepare, and that the only person who could get in my way was me. So, I decided to just go out and grab it. This brings me to the final round. Here’s my timeline of the day: 4:15 AM: I wake up anxiously 15 minutes before my alarm. I putted tentatively the last two rounds, so I decided to reacquaint myself with my all-time favorite golf book: “Putting Out Of Your Mind” by Dr. Bob Rotella. In the chapter entitled, “Putting Under Pressure,” I read Dr. Bob's anecdote about Jim Carter (former PGA and current Champion’s Tour player, not the president). This name hadn’t stuck with me on previous reads, but it did this time because I have been working out with Jim at Exos for the past year. I took it as a good sign. 4:30 AM: I put down the book with two great thoughts in my head: 1) Trust your routine under pressure 2) Putt to make it! 7:25 AM: My stretching and physical prep felt good. Warm up felt good. Ready to do this! 7:30 AM: First drive down the middle of the fairway, but my heart has suddenly relocated from my chest into my throat. 7:33 AM: Tight first iron swing leaves me short-sided on the downslope of the front greenside bunker. I blade that over the green. Make a decent pass at the buried Bermuda lie, but leave that short of the green, too. Fluff that chip on to fifteen feet. 7:45 AM: I can’t feel my hands. Somehow the putt for double bogey drops. I hand my putter back to Larry and have to ask, “What did I just make there?” It feels like I blacked out. 7:50 AM: LOTS of deep breaths. Try to act normal and chit chat with Larry. I make a par on number two, but my heart doesn’t get out of my throat until I make a nice downhill four footer for par on the third. 8 AM: Back to just regular level of Q-School nerves, which kind of feels like walking down a dark alley at night. You’re not in a total panic, but your senses are on full alert, you jump at sudden movements, and you mutter a lot of reassurances to yourself. 9:25 AM: Roll in my first birdie of the day on the par-5 8th. New spring in my step. 9:30 AM: 9th hole. My playing partner pulls her second shot into a hazard short of the green. I determine the spot where I believe it last crossed into the hazard. Everyone in the group agrees... except for her outspoken caddy. He is adamant it crossed two yards right of the spot I have given, not coincidentally where she would have a clear shot at the green. Because the player doesn’t know where it went in, the rules official defers to the judgment of the fellow competitors. 9:35 AM: I birdie 9. Walking to the 10th tee, while only Larry and I can hear, the other caddy snaps at me, “That was a bullsh*t move, Maddie. I know you were trying to make my player drop where she didn’t have a shot.” This could not be further from the truth. I gave my best judgment where it crossed with no thought to the shot she would or would not have to the green. Larry retorts, “You better let it go. You already have a bad rap. Don’t make me call the official back over here.” Other caddy: “Yeah well karma is going to come around and bite you in the a**.” 9:36 AM: Larry and I look at each other. We both know I did nothing wrong and that this particular caddy is known for his malicious antics. We decide we are going to let that go and not speak of it again until after the round. 10:05 AM: I drain a 50-footer from above the hole for another birdie on 10. Karma, I guess. 10:40 AM: Wind has picked up and is gusting hard. I make bogeys on 11 and 12. 11:45 AM: My goal everyday has been to birdie two of the last three holes. I’ve got a 30-foot slider for birdie on 16. One thought in my head: putt to make it! This putt hits the back of the cup with so much force it bounces straight up 6 inches before falling in. If it had missed, I could have been dropping out of the water hazard. Karma again, I guess. 12:30 PM: Two great swings, but settle for par on 17. 12:35 PM: An enormous scoreboard behind the 18th green clearly shows TOP 20 at -4. With gusty winds, the rest of the field still out there, and LPGA cards on the line, I thought I’d still have a chance at at least a playoff if could get to -3. I hit driver, 9-iron to about six feet. Echoing in my head: “Trust your routine, putt to make it.” Major fist pump when the ball rolls in, dead center. 12:36 PM: Walk over to the other caddy with an outstretched hand for the usual post-round pleasantries. He completely rejects my handshake and storms off. 12:40 PM: The waiting game begins. Larry and I take a seat at the clubhouse and alternate between leaderboard refreshing and reviewing our year together. Larry stuck by me as I missed cut after cut and my confidence was at an all-time low. Not many caddies would do that. I am beyond grateful to him for believing in me and not ditching out months ago for a better bag. My trust in him and his calm, veteran approach were integral to my late success. 3:00 PM: Results are all in. I’ve finished one shot short of a full card. I don’t hang my head for a second, though, because I knew I gave it all I had and that my conditional status is good enough for a lot of opportunities next year. ———-- After four years of playing the Symetra Tour, my number one priority in 2017 is to play in as many LPGA events as possible. With that said, I plan on playing several Symetra Tour events in the early part of the year to keep tournament sharp. My first LPGA start could come as early as January or February in the Bahamas or Australia, but my first nearly-guaranteed start will be April 10-15 in Hawaii. This is an exciting time. As one chapter of my career with my LLC comes to a close, I am now looking to begin new partnerships for my 2017 season on the big stage. Thank you all for the texts, calls, and comments. I can’t wait to share the next step of the journey with you: working towards that first LPGA victory. Links of interest:
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