A Change Is Gonna Come

My absolute dream job!

Well friends, thankfully my prayers and possibly other people’s prayers were answered and I finally played well this past week in Bloomfield, CT! It’s been a long time coming but I did it! I met a tour caddy by the name of Paulie back in Daytona Beach, FL in March when he was caddying for another player. I spent some time with him last week at the US Womens Open and revealed to him that I had been struggling to perform. He normally caddies out on the LPGA but had a week off and offered his help this week in Connecticut. I jumped at the opportunity because I know his record and his referrals were nothing but positive. I knew a change was gonna come!

Before we hit the links this week, Lucy and I had the opportunity to visit ESPN (my dream job) in Bristol, CT. We had a nice tour of the campus and met some nice people. We ran across a few famous faces and were able to take many pictures. I had no clue how stressful of a job it is but I believe the on-air talent have the easiest job. The people behind the scenes do it all and it’s a 24/7 stressful, stressful job! We went the morning that Steinbrenner died so it was complete chaos.


I'm in heaven!


Maybe one day...

Lucy and I made it to the course that afternoon but as soon as we arrived it started to pour so I rode around in the cart with my caddy just to see the place before we teed it up for our first practice round Wednesday morning. It was Paulie’s birthday on Thursday so we celebrated it at Buffalo Wild Wings Wednesday night with the entire Duramed Futures Tour staff. It was pretty fun to see them off the course and relaxing a bit and sharing stories. They are a funny bunch!

Thursday was an afternoon practice round so that morning I called Hartford Golf Club to see if Lucy and I could come out and practice. They were extremely gracious and allowed us to come out and use all their facilities. It was an old 1920s Donald Ross design and was gorgeous! As we were finishing up our practice session we met this man who offered to get our lunch at the club. Score! He even wanted us to stay with him and his wife at their big house this week but we felt like that would be a bit too much. It turns out his wife is from Oklahoma City and his in-laws still live there. Small world. Lunch was much better than what we are used to so we were happy campers!

Friday was the first round and Lucy and I both had early morning tee times. We had the better-conditioned greens but that didn’t stop me from missing putts. I ended up shooting two over and sat right on the cut line. That has been typical for me to shoot a decent round and then lose it in the second round to miss the cut. I had a different feeling this week with Paulie on the bag and never thought about the cut, just thought about the present and how I wanted to birdie every hole. I had read articles about Paulie’s past players and how he kept them so relaxed out there and I thought that was just typical of a caddy but for some reason, it’s really true about him! He’s very positive, hilarious out there, and knows his stuff! He may be tweeting during practice rounds and chatting it up with the other players before tournament rounds but once the gun goes off, he’s ready to work and is hardly off with distances. I’ve never laughed so much during a tournament than the past week, which I think is a good thing. I wish I could have made more putts for him but my number one goal for the week was to make the cut and have three consistent good rounds. Goal completed! I ended up shooting 72-68-69 for a three-day total of -1 and tying for 21st. It was my season-best finish on the Duramed Futures Tour but I still have some room to gain for the last four tournaments. I definitely need to finish in the top 90 on the money list but top 20 is still in reach to be able to forego the first stage of LPGA Q School.

We saw Inception on Friday night after our round and I must say it was crazy! The reviews have all been good but I think I had ADD during the movie because I was going stir crazy. It’s a good one, it makes you think, and I don’t think Leo ever puts out a bad movie. Saturday night after our second round Lucy and I went out to eat with my caddy, her caddy, and another LPGA tour caddy to a restaurant called Max’s Burgers in West Hartford Center. If you are ever in that area, go there! I had the best burger I’ve ever eaten in my whole entire life. Sweet potato fries, the whole nine yards. Yum! Last night (Sunday night), Lucy and I went over to Jane Rah’s host house (who was 98 years old) and had homemade sushi made by the one and only Mama Rah! It was delicious and we ate a billion pieces. As we were driving back to our hotel, I asked Lucy if she was still hungry. We are fat girls so we went to McDonalds and rewarded ourselves with a Big Mac! I haven’t had one in ages but it was a lot smaller than I remembered! We ate really well (as in didn’t starve) but hardly spent any money this week so we are learning how to use our sources haha! I am currently on an airplane back to Oklahoma City for an entire week. I’m so excited to be home for a short while and have a summer! I think I’m going to enjoy this week and maybe not put so much on my plate. I’m getting a shot in the toe this afternoon because the shattered bone is calling my name again so gotta get that taken care of. My mom has some kind of delicious dinner planned tonight because she has reservations. We don’t ever have reservations so I’m ind of interested to see what it’s all about. My dad has golf league so it’ll just be girls night out tonight. I’m planning on going to Norman to practice, see my college sports psychologist and have lunch with an old teammate. I really want to go lay on a float one afternoon in my best friend’s pool and work on the tan lines. It’s the simple things in life that I look forward to. I have a gig on Friday at an Edmond golf course where I have to hit tee shots for my high school and another Edmond high school’s football fundraiser scramble. They will put me on a ladies tee box on either a par 4 or 5 and be able to get it on the green or give the groups a short shot in on a par 5. It should be a fun time. Thanks for everyone who have prayed for me and given me encouragement during the rough past few weeks. I know things are getting better; I just have to keeping looking ahead.

Next up: Syracuse, NY July 26-August 1
Harrisburg, PA August 2-8
Richmond, VA August 9-15
Albany, NY August 30-September 5

US Womens Open

Oh my goodness. What a week! I knew going into the week that caddying in the US Womens Open was going to be awesome but I had no clue how much fun we were going to have!

Lucy had a late first round tee time so we woke up early Thursday and went out to practice while the first half of the field was out playing. We had the place to ourselves and I think it calmed her nerves a bit. Nothing is worse than having a late tee time and sitting around all day. It’s hard not to think about your round and how you’re going to perform and trying not to watch the leader board as the morning wave plays.

The crowds were much much bigger and just hearing the applauses and roars were music to my ears. It’s kind of nice being on the other side of the bag because I didn’t have nerves the whole week. Lucy’s short game made Oakmont look easy leading up to the tournament. She was hitting the ball great and we had an awesome game plan for the course. We got off to a nice solid start and didn’t find any trouble until our 8th hole of the day, #17. It’s the short par 4 hole that Jim Furyk bogeyed in ’07 in the US Open. Our original game plan was to hit an iron up the hill to make sure we kept the ball in the fairway. She chose 5 iron which was the play and landed the ball in the left side of the fairway. We walked up there and had to get the gallery to yell at us to let us know where the ball ended up. An inch above the bunker on the side wall in thick US Open rough. No need to go into detail but we walked away with a triple followed by a double on 18. If we took 4 holes away or even changed them to bogeys it would have made a world of a difference. Instead her first round was an 83 and we had a lot of work to do the next day.

The second round we had another solid start. Had an understandable bogey on 3 but turned around and had back-to-back birdies on 5 and 6. We made the turn at even and found a double on 10. #10 flat out sucks. Not a fan of that hole. Lucy made another putt from off the green on #16 which was sweet. I told her it was going to be a quick putt and she nailed the putt pretty hard, not listening to her caddy. If it didn’t hit the pin it was going off the green. All I could do was throw my hands in the air, pretty much saying “it’s good!!!!” The round was called once we got to 17 green because of lightning. I heard Oakmont got at least 2 inches of rain that night and it was amazing how quickly they turned the course around for the next morning’s finish of the 2nd round. We woke up at the butt crack of dawn and finished our last two holes. She ended up shooting 78 and missed the cut. She was bummed but I had to tell her that she should be proud that she qualified for the Open…I didn’t and envied every shot she was able to hit. I’m really glad she asked me to caddy though. It was hard work and my back and feet hated me for it but I learned so much and realized that that’s my ultimate goal. I want to be in that atmosphere week in and week out. I’m going to work hard and do my very best to not get down on myself and to keep looking ahead for the ultimate goal.


I was able to meet Christina Kim in the locker room during the rain delay and got my picture with her. She was really sweet and I was happy I finally got to meet her. We were on the putting green early Saturday morning warming up and were putting at the same hole as Kristy McPherson. I like her golf game and since she’s American, I said “hey good luck today. We’re pulling for you.” I think she was slightly caught off guard because she said “who me? Thanks! Ya’ll have fun today!” …she went out and shot 78 I believe and knocked herself out of contention. I apparently jinxed her. Paula Creamer was walking past us that same morning and I said “good morning” in a cheerful voice and all she mustered out was a “morning” and didn’t even make eye contact with me. Hmm…I guess it was too early in the morning for her. I was able to give Wendy Ward a hug and had a quick chat before she headed out and played awesome on Saturday to put her in the final group on the final round. She’s a fellow Ping girl and veteran out there so I was pulling for her to play well the last day. I played with her in February in Phoenix and really enjoyed playing with her. She recommended me to this amazing chiropractor in Scottsdale because I had the worst crick in my neck. Very nice lady so I had to cheer her on. Sunday rolled around and of course I walked by Paula Creamer before she teed off so I told her “good luck today!” And she looked at me (finally) and gave me a quiet “thank you.” I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt and assume she was in the zone. Lucy thinks I was trying to jinx her but I was sincere when I said it! Lucy, her dad, her brother-in-law, and me went out and watched the entire final round. It was the coolest atmosphere and just a blast to watch them play the same course we knew. I’ve never seen anyone win a major championship in person so we stayed til the end, had a great view and afterwards snuck under the ropes and were on the 18th green with Paula when she gave her acceptance speech. I’m really glad an American won and it was definitely her time to win a major.





Lucy and I are on our way to Hartford, CT right now. We are taking a tiny detour because I thought going along the coast would be prettier than going through Scranton, PA. I’ve only been to NYC once so the whole northeast part of the country is new to me.

I’m really excited because I found a great tour caddie to work for me the last couple of tournaments of the Futures Tour season. He’s caddied for a lot of great players and is definitely wanted by a lot of players but for some reason he wants to carry my bag. I’m already grateful and excited to see how well we can play these courses. One more week in Connecticut then flying home for a week to get refreshed and say hi to the family, dog, and friends before I head out for another 3 weeks.

I didn’t get a whole lot of practice this week in Oakmont but hopefully there isn’t much rust and more course smarts in my head to take me on to a victory. I feel like I have my back against the wall right now because I’ve been in a somewhat huge slump of playing consistently well and I really need to finish in the top 90 on the money list so four great finishes is what I’m looking for. Please keep me in your prayers this week. I’d really appreciate it. Take care everyone!

Ohhh. Akmont.

Ahh! Finally wifi! I had to find a McDonalds in Oakmont, PA to get some internet on my computer. We are staying in a 100 year old home this week for the US Women’s Open and they don’t happen to have internet.

For everyone who has been busy must know that the US Women’s Open is this weekend! July 8-11. It will be on ESPN2 Thursday and Friday from 3-7pm est. On the weekend, coverage will be on NBC. Set your dvrs! It’s going to be an amazing championship.

I’m caddying for my good friend, Lucy Nunn. I’ve done many caddy gigs before and I must say that I get more animated on their ball than my own. Hopefully the mics won’t catch what I have to say tomorrow afternoon when the ball is in the air or not stopping where we need it to. They claim the greens are rolling around a 15 on the stimp. Piece of cake right? It’s a shame that last week we were on greens that looked like shag carpet. I think Lucy has the green speeds down pretty good but I will feel sorry for her next week when she’s back on the Futures Tour playing in Connecticut with me and they are back to rolling around a 9 ha!

Lucy and I drove in to Pittsburgh on Sunday night and headed downtown to Square Station for the 4th of July. We took a tram up to Mt. Washington and joined hundreds of thousands of people overlooking the Allegheny River and downtown Pitt. It was pretty fun minus the fact that when it was over, it took us an hour and a half to get back to the hotel because of all the traffic. Bad move on our part and I must say that if I never see another firework again, I’m okay by that. That’s how bad the traffic sucked!

We woke up early Monday morning and went to the airport to pick up the sweet Lexus SUV courtesy car for the week. I got to follow behind in her beauty of a Honda CRV. I’m not complaining, she let me drive the Lexus that night back to the airport to pick up her folks. After we got the Lexus, we drove across town to Oakmont to get the keys, etc. for the house we rented for the week. It was a smart move because we are two blocks away from the course and it’s so nice being in a house rather than a hotel room that we are so used to being in.

Lucy and I went to Oakmont CC Monday around lunchtime to register and walk the course. We ate in the clubhouse and that’s when I knew it was going to be a fun week. Brittany Lincicome, Juli Inkster, you name it, they were all around. I had to act cool like they were normal people but they aren’t, they’re great golfers! We walked the course, which took some time but were able to see a lot of things and jot down a lot of notes. The folks flew in Monday night so our shenanigans had to end quickly.

Tuesday morning rolled around and I woke up and practiced at this pretty 1920s Donald Ross design called Green Oaks Country Club in Verona, PA, 10 minutes from the house. It’s a perfect place because it’s not ever crowded and the place is in magnificent shape! I had a quick range session then went back to get Lucy and the fam to head for lunch at Oakmont. I have my own caddie house down by the range and it’s filled with nothing but guys. The food they have is very manly, Italian sausages, bbq….stuff a girl doesn’t want to eat in 90+ degree temps. I had Lucy bring me down a sandwich from up above where the fancy people eat and drink. She warmed up and then we were on our merry way to #1 tee box.

It was a long practice round but we learned a lot from playing it just once. We played with a 14 year old who is a stud and Lucy’s old teammate Kelli Shean, who will be a senior on Arkansas’ team next year. She’s a great player as well. It was a blur of a night because we were back at the course just a few hours later (7 this morning.) A quick warm-up session and we were back walking down #1 fairway. We kept saying, “I feel like we were just here.” ….Maybe because we were. The crowds enjoy the practice rounds because they are able to get autographs, pictures, and it’s just a more laid back setting. I like to watch the men laugh when they watch the balls on the greens go sailing by. I told Lucy Monday afternoon when we were first stepping onto the property, “There’s no reason to be nervous because everyone who is watching you wouldn’t be able to break 100 out here. They are very quick to judge a golf shot but they’d never be able to do what you do out here so let’s get in our own bubble and play our own golf like we did at Lawton Country Club as 12 year olds.” …Lucy and I go back further than that but it makes me feel old when I say we’ve been both doing this for over 15 years. We may look young in the face but as a team, we have over 30 years of golf experience. Yikes. Old. I’m done talking about years now.

I have seen Lucy play thousands of golf shots and I’ve never seen her hit it better than now. She’s ready and I think our game plan is smart and doable. As long as I keep her smiling down the fairways for the cameras and calm on the inside, things will go well for us. I wish more than anything I could play this week but I know my time will come. It’s a learning process and I’m just thankful I get to be on the bag this week and see everything first hand before I tee up my own ball in the US Women's Open.

We are having a huge cookout tonight at our house with more Razorback’s (Stacy Lewis, Kelli Shean, coaches, families, etc.) This Sooner will probably be sporting an OU hat tomorrow because I’ve seen too many hog things this week and I need to get back to my roots. I hope everyone had a great week and is looking forward to watching some great golf this weekend!

Keennntucckkyy!!

Alright. One round down. One round where I felt like I grew as a player. I didn’t score as well as I would have liked but my mind scored well under par. I’ve been doing a lot of analyzing of my game and figuring out why I haven’t been scoring the way I should be. I was a happier person out there today and I got more into the process of my game rather than focusing so narrowly and critically of results. Putts didn’t fall like I wanted them to but I realized early on that I can make the best stroke on those greens and sometimes they just won’t fall. The speed of the greens this week are slow, slow, and more slow. They are bumpy, especially in the afternoons but that’s just the way it goes sometimes. I have my good friend Phil on the bag and he helped me stay positive and we were able to talk out shots and lines. I wish I could afford him to be on the bag every week. He teaches me a lot about this sport and it’s nice to have a guy around! I’m getting sick of seeing females so much!



I was paired to play with my close friend Lucy Nunn today so we had a little fun trash talking each other. We’d get mad at each other if one outdrove the other and we had some bets going on towards the end of the round. I’m caddying for her in the US Open next week so it was good to see her game up close and personal in a competitive setting before next week’s huge tournament. I have a feeling I can help her and if the tv decides to show us, she’ll have a smile on her face because I’m good at getting people relaxed and their mind’s off of golf….is that a good thing? Probably not for a major championship. Oh well!




Stuck one close, only because a Dairy Queen dipped cone was riding on a birdie-birdie finish.

I have another late tee time tomorrow afternoon so I’m planning on getting some good sleep tonight and enjoying another beautiful day out in the sticks of Kentucky!

Pullover! No It's a Cardigan But Thanks for Noticing

Normally I just forget to update the blog but this time it was on purpose that I didn’t post. It’s been a rough couple of weeks and I was not my normal self mentally. I was full of negative thoughts and wasn’t happy about my game and what I was doing and how I was thinking. For the second straight week in a row, I missed the cut by 1 shot. In Illinois, my most recent tournament I shot 69-73. The first round I had 3 three putts so it wasn’t the most perfect round. The second round I played pretty solid for the first nine and turned at even par. I began to have weird “what if” thoughts and it got in the way with my game, which caused me to have five consecutive bogeys with one late birdie, but missed playing the weekend by one single shot.



My mom and I loaded up and drove 10 hours home last Saturday. I got pulled over by a rookie cop in the middle of nowhere Missouri…I was going 83 in a 70 and the conversation with the state trooper ended with him saying “sorry” and “you guys can go now if you want.” Haha bless his heart. We laughed all the way home. He won’t make it very long in that profession. I think I was older than him and outweighed him by a few.

I was able to spend Sunday with my dad and family for Father’s Day which was nice. I saw my head pro Brent Cryer a few times throughout the week and played with some friends and members at The Greens in Oklahoma City.


My best friends

I also forecaddied for three days at Gaillardia Country Club for their member guest tournament. My guys didn’t play very well but taught me a few lessons. They weren’t breaking 100 yet they maintained a confidence that they could still make putts, even though they weren’t. Also, I had a confidence in them that they could pull off any shot and a slight mishit was still all right. This taught me to open my eyes up and see that the tiniest mishit I make or a small mistake I make is nothing to fret over. I still have to go find the ball and hit the next shot.


My awesome group I caddied for

My mom and I flew out to Lexington, Kentucky this past Monday to see her best friend of 40 years. They haven’t seen each other in over 25 years so it was neat to see them together. We had dinner with her friend’s family and then stayed the night in Lexington. We got up Tuesday morning and made the quick trip down to London, Kentucky to register and play 9 holes for a short day of practice.

This town is another small town with not much going. Lucy and I have played 2 hours of tennis, I’ve seen a chiropractor and horse masseuse, have seen two movies, and I’d have to say that’s about it. The people here talk so funny. If people who know me think I have an accent, they haven’t seen anything til they come here!

My friend Phillip Bryan, men’s assistant golf coach at Louisville, is coming down to caddy for me starting tomorrow. I hope that he can bring me positive thoughts for the weekend. I’m paired up with Lucy tomorrow afternoon…I just can’t get rid of her! I’m caddying for her in the US Women’s Open next week in Oakmont, PA so we are spending a lot of time together, not to mention traveling and staying together in Connecticut the following week. You can follow live scoring on futurestour.com. Have a great 4th of July weekend everybody!!!

Land of Lincoln!

One week down, one more to go. Last Sunday, my mom and I began our two-week journey up to Ohio. I drove the entire way up there while she sat patiently in the passenger seat, reading magazines, texting, facebooking, and making fun of small town names with me. For example, Effingham, IL…great name!

We drove 7 hours to St. Louis, spent the night, and drove 5 hours on to Cincinnati the next day. It was my first time to Cincy so I didn’t know how humid the weather could get. It was unbelievably HUMID! Memphis-like. My friend Lucy and I went to King’s Island Amusement Park Tuesday afternoon after my one-hour driving range session. We had an absolute blast riding all of the roller coasters and acting like little kids. I took my camera on almost every ride and found out at the end of the day that I was breaking a park rule by doing so, whoops!



Wednesday morning I was selected to play in the tournament’s pro am. I was paired up with a fun group and ended up shooting -12. We missed the prizes by 2 shots but I had a great time and met some cool guys. That night I had to go back up to the course for the Pro Party. We have one each week with the sponsors of the tournament. I won an iTunes gift card so I was a happy girl.

Thursday afternoon I had my one and only practice round with my usual group, Lucy Nunn, Kendra Hanson, and Jane Rah. Since Jane is higher up on the money list than the rest of us, I made her sign a contract that if she won she had to pay for all of our tickets back to King’s Island. She was tied for the lead after the first round but ended up getting 9th which is great for a 19 year old!

Friday was my first round of the Teva Championship in Mason, OH and I teed off at 1:30pm. I played alright and made some good putts but also missed two short ones and three putted a few too many times. I shot -1 and stood 5 shots off the lead. The next morning we had a four-hour rain delay that pushed my 12:20pm starting time to 4:25pm. I didn’t think there was any way we could get the round in but as we sprinted up the last par 3 and got our short knocker of the group to tee off on 18, we finished the last hole in the dark while the other girls had to come in due to the horn sounding off because of darkness. I was really thankful we didn’t have to get up and play one hole early Sunday morning. We leisurely got to the course the next morning to find out that I missed the cut by one shot. It was my second cut to miss and kind of heartbreaking to know that I played awful in the second round and only missed it by one. I could count on 2 hands the number of opportunities I had to make birdie or save par and I didn’t. I know every good player misses cuts and I just cannot let this get me down. It is one of many tournaments I play in and just because my swing is going through a lull, I’m going to work extremely hard to make sure that never happens again.

My mom and I decided to drive west and see some of my friends in Carmel, IN. But first, I went to Crooked Stick Golf Club to rate a top 100 golf course. I had no problem getting on and played a quick 18 with their first assistant professional. I warmed up next to Alice Dye giving a lesson to a member and then met famous golf course architect Pete Dye on the first tee box. Pretty neat because I always tell people he is my grandpa and he designs so many great golf courses. He was a pretty cute old man and it made my day! Little did I know that when I was on my second to last hole, I took my cart the wrong way and almost went right into a member’s tee shot. That member happened to be Peyton Manning. I wanted to go over there and get a picture with him but the assistant pro said that he is the one member that they shy away people from. Danget! At least I got to see him up close and personal though. I slow played the rest of the way around just in case he came back by the clubhouse. He never did but maybe one day I’ll get to really meet him. We had a home cooked dinner with my friends, the Savich’s, in Carmel and had a great night off from the typical restaurant and hotel room. They are the funniest people I know! Lots of laughs and stories but then we had to leave them be because the girls had a big tournament the next morning in south Indianapolis.


Grandpa Pete Dye and I!

Monday, my mom and I drove 2 hours west to Decatur, IL. It is the original home of the Chicago Bears. That’s about all it is home to. The exit we took for Decatur had a big blue attraction sign that had absolutely nothing on it. Awesome. We get to spend an entire week here too!!! This week is the Tour Championship so it will be a four round tournament starting on Thursday morning. We were only allowed one practice round on Tuesday because they had three pro ams this week. As most people know, the weather has been crazy lately. At home, OKC got 11 inches in just a few hours. It must’ve travelled up to where I am because this is what we got last night:



They are going to make one par 5 a par 3 because it is completely underwater. The tee times have already been moved back an hour and a half and who knows what will actually happen tomorrow morning before the first group tees off.


My practice round group: Tara, Jane, and I....the ones who never use pull carts!


My first official day to ever use one of these!

Since we didn’t get a practice round today, Lucy and I had a nice long morning practice and then hit the tennis courts this afternoon. We played for a solid two hours so I can only imagine how sore I’m going to be in the morning.

Welp, time to get some rest! Hopefully we can play all 18, for all 4 days and without rain delays! I don’t think we would know how to play without rain! Hope everyone has a great weekend and is enjoying their summer. I realized today that I have been home for one full day in Oklahoma this whole month. I’m ready for some home cooked meals, my bed, and my dog! Next week! Gotta make some money before I go home though!

What I’m Listening to: Drake - Thank Me Later
What I’m Reading: I Was Told There’d Be Cake by Sloane Crosley

Major life changing news for me: My best friend Caitlan was hired this past week at Kempler Energy in South Beach Miami! I have a hard time seeing my best friend move across country but I'm so proud of her for graduating in 5 years with her undergrad in industrial engineering annnnd receiving her MBA. Another close friend, MJ Desbiens, was recently hired as Arkansas State's Head Womens Golf Coach! Another huge hire and I know she is going to take that team to the top. She has already moved to Jonesboro and I didn't even get to say goodbye to her. My weekly lunch buddy has left me so now I have to travel 7 hours one way to have a meal with her...I will do it! So proud of you MJ! And finally, another one of my best friends, Whitney, has started her first summer in PA School at the University of Oklahoma. She is going to be one of the best PA's ever but the next two and a half years are going to be brutal for her. Please keep these three girls in your prayers. They are doing great things in the world and I'm so thankful to have them in my life!

Colorado Mountains

Team Dye

Well the week in Denver has come to an end but it has been a memorable one to say the least. The family flew up with me on Tuesday morning to Denver for the Colorado Women’s Open. It is a women’s professional event but includes a simultaneous pro am like the PGA’s AT&T Pro Am tournament. I took my brother Adam as my partner this year, knowing we could tear it up. I, however, didn’t carry my weight the first two days…

I shot 74 in the first round with only one birdie. It was a matter of not hitting as many greens as I should have and not making any birdie putts that I normally drop. I was sitting two strokes ahead of the cut, looking to move on up during round two. …My golf game had other plans. I started off the day with a tee shot that hit the cart path and missing the hazard by 2 inches. Whew! I finally caught a break. However, on the 2nd hole I went on to double from 131 yards out in the middle of the fairway. Got one back by getting on a par 5 green in two shots and two putting for birdie. A few holes later I doubled from 107 yards out in the middle of the fairway. Not cool! The 16th hole, my approach shot didn’t make it over the tree and came straight down. I had an awkward 60-yard pitch that I pushed out to the right and hit the same tree and flew into the hazard. I dropped, hit it over the green and proceeded to get that up and down for a beautiful triple. The following two holes I went on to three putt. 9 over, 45. I had my back against the wall at this point.

I can go to some pretty dark places in my head and I’d like to think I can do this but eventually bring myself out of it. When we were walking down #1, our tenth hole of the day, my mom asked if I was awake. Yep, pretty sure those doubles and triple were a cold splash of water right in my face. I was definitely awake but wishing I was in a nightmare to wake up and realize I didn’t just shoot a freakin’ 45! I put myself in deep holes all the time, holes that I can slowly crawl myself out of. Well this, was a dang mine! 9 over on top of the 2 over I shot the day before…I was looking to be in contention on the final day but now I’m thinking I’m missing the cut by a mile and hopefully making the cut for the pro am team competition. I find every green on the second nine and one birdie to finish 45-35. Now that 35 looks awesome but let me tell you, I missed a 2 foot putt on my 17th hole and my chip on the 9th, my eighteenth of the day lipped out and went six feet by, where I proceeded to two putt for par. The 35 was not that pretty.

So here I am, shooting 74-80, on a course that I tore up last year and a course that I should tear up every time I play it but I kept my spirits up because I knew there would be another day with the pro am competition.

We went back to the hotel, showered, and headed over to Boulder so Adam and my sister-in-law Jennifer, could see Pearl Street and all the weirdos that it contains. Us girls went to a lot of different stores while the boys sat outside and people watched. We saw some straaanngge people! There were great photo ops everywhere! We found a yummy Mexican place to eat called The Rio (I believe?) I don’t drink often and especially not lately so since the day sucked so bad I needed a frozen strawberry margarita to make my insides feel a little better. Turns out I had two to make myself feel on top of the world. Two is the limit at this restaurant. We had a fabulous time eating along the street, cracking jokes and speaking inappropriately. By the time dinner was over, I found out that I had made the cut on the number! There lived to be another day!

We drove back to our hotel and I passed out til morning. Best sleep I have had in a long time. Woke up feeling like I had been given a second chance to get myself back into gear. My dad wanted to caddy for me once again but I told him no for the third straight day. I just knew that if I had my bag with me, I couldn’t blame anything on anyone except myself. So he went on to push Adam’s pull cart…something my dad is very good at doing. That and cleaning our dirty balls. Ha!


My dad "caddying." Note us getting ready for the next hole in the background. God love em! :)

I started off the day by sticking an 8 iron to 6 feet. I over read the putt and missed it. Screw it, move on and try again. I stuck my next approach to four feet. MADE IT! Alright, things are feeling back to normal. The next was a par 5 where I put my approach in a bunker about 60 yards away. I stuck a gap wedge shot out of there to 6 feet. Draino! It was raining on the greens we were on. The 14th tee was moved up so I busted driver just to get the ball somewhere around the green. I was 20 yards out and made the chip for eagle! Holy moly, 4 under thru 5 holes. This was getting kind of fun. I block my next tee shot and put it in a nasty fairway bunker looking at a pretty difficult pin up ahead. I somehow manage to put that shot to 12 feet away. My triple hole from the previous day, number 16 was next and I missed the green. I had an easy chip that I somehow managed to thin 20 feet too far. I made the come back putt for par. I stuck the next par 3 tee shot to 6 feet that I went on to par. And finally the 18th, our 9th of the day, I put to 12 feet that fell in for birdie. 5 under, 31, on that side. Less than 24 hours prior I shot 45 on those 9 holes. Who does that? I still don’t believe I shot a 45.


My near hole-in-one

I knew I still had a lot more golf to play and I had to keep digging out of that 10 over par hole I put myself in. 5 more birdies was the goal. I had plenty of opportunities, hitting every single green and hitting every single fairway. I found only one birdie on the second nine and that was on #5, par 3 that was 154 yards. I hit a 9 iron and saw it bounce in front of the hole, tap the pin and finish 5 inches from the cup. I was so disappointed. How could that thing not go in?! I had a tap in birdie and pared the rest of the way in. 66, -6, +4 overall. I moved from T44th to T12th. Not awful but man the whatifs! I like that I graced my presence in each category. I saw the 70s, 80s, and 60s all in a matter of three consecutive rounds. Team Dye shot 64 today, 68 on round one and 66 yesterday, -18 which got us 6th in the pro am competition. Adam was able to get two brand new Vokey wedges with his golf shop money so he was a happy boy. I wish I could’ve helped more in the first two rounds but I was glad to play well in front of him and show him that I’m not wasting my time playing professionally. I think he believes I can do it, but it’s nice to show the brother I can score well. I made a decent check of $2200, which will be nice to put back into the golf account and hopefully see a few more bigger checks in the coming weeks.



We are currently flying back to OKC for one full day then heading northeast in the car to Mason, OH. I am thinking we will stop in St. Louis Sunday night to check out my friend Sammy B’s new town and then head on to Ohio Monday morning. I am thinking about playing and rating Canyata Club in Cincinnati since it’s a top 100 course. There is also King’s Island Amusement Park which I’ll be finding some free time to visit. I’ll play in the Futures event in Ohio Friday, June 11-13 then drive over to Decatur, IL to play in another Futures event June 17-20. I’m thinking about rating a course called Camargo Golf Club in Illiniois that is another top 100 course and a must-see! Mama Dye and I will be driving home on Father’s Day and will stay home for one full week before I head out for another three weeks.

I’m so tired and can’t wait to see my puppy dog and get into my own bed! We had a great week full of laughter and memories and I’m so glad the entire family got to go with me. Hopefully it won’t be the last. Until next time…