Amateur Hour

by Haley Cameron

I was walking down the twelfth fairway at the Bellingham Golf & Country Club, when I struck up a conversation with the 20-something in my group who was sitting comfortably at 3-under-par.

It was day two of the Western Washington Women’s Invitational, and we were in the final group.

I asked about her plans of professional golf beyond her impending graduation.

“Oh, I don’t plan on touching my golf clubs for at least three years after college,” came the response that shocked my naïve 18-year-old ears.

As a freshman golf fanatic, who found it hard to believe that anyone else in the field of 60 didn’t have professional aspirations, the idea of quitting altogether seemed next to impossible.

I figured this was the result of poor coaching, pushy parenting, or some other cause of fabled ‘burn out’, and let it go as a unique case.

A year later I was paired with two exceptionally talented girls in an NCAA Div I event at Wigwam Golf Resort, just outside of Phoenix, Arizona.

Having shared the driving range with a slew of mini-tour players vying to make a paycheque at an All-American Tour event which shared our facility that week, professional golf was once again on my mind.

After we were through with introductions and small talk, I asked one of my playing partners about her professional plans. As she replaced her head cover, having just bombed a drive 240 yards down an intimidating, bunker-lined fairway, she replied that she had already cleared room in her parent’s basement for her golf bag’s future home.

The other girl simply nodded, implying that she too planned to give up the game as soon as her scholarship ran dry. Following much prodding and prying I learned that both girls had entered university with professional aspirations, but eventually realized that the nomadic lifestyle wasn’t for them.

Now 19, and not-quite-so-naïve, I too was beginning to wonder if professional golf was in the cards for me. However the trend I was seeing seemed centered on an ultimatum that I couldn’t understand: pro golf, or no golf.

Our media-crazed society likes to focus on the ‘phenom’ stories: golf’s biggest celebrity, Tiger Woods, who rose to incredible success before turning 20; Michelle Wie, who signed a rumored $10 million dollar endorsement deal with Nike before graduating from high school; or current Canadian superstar Brooke Henderson, who at 15 already has a professional title to her name.

Elite junior players are judged based on their chances of professional success, but are rarely exposed to the advantages and opportunities associated with an amateur future in this lifelong sport. Maintaining amateur status and pursuing competitive golf are seen as exclusive of one another.

This all-or-nothing mindset is reflected in the field distribution at British Columbia Golf’s Amateur Championships.

At the B.C. Men’s Amateur this summer, only 28% of the field was aged 25-39, while the bulk of the championship – 66% to be precise – was under the age of 23.

On the women’s side these statistics are even more extreme, with a mere 8% of the B.C. Women’s Amateur being represented by the 25-39 age group.

According to British Columbia Golf’s Executive Director, Kris Jonasson, an emphasized drop-out among women can be largely attributed to family responsibilities. It is to be somewhat expected that fewer women play competitively during their child raising years.

However the low participation of the Mid-Amateur age group is evident in both genders, supporting the fact that when the motivating factors of college or professional golf fade out, they take many competitive careers along with them.

Sure, there’s the issue of 'burn-out ' - as kids who dedicated more than half of their lives to golf graduate from university realizing that maybe they don’t have what it takes to make the pro circuit after all. If they aren’t already exhausted from the overwhelming balance of academics and athletics, then this new realization (did I just waste the best years of my life?!) is enough to drain them completely.

But after a break from the game, these talented players should recover from ‘burn-out’ and return to competition, boosting the participation levels of that 25-39 Mid-Amateur age group... shouldn’t they?

Unfortunately, the opportunities for players at this stage of their golf careers are often overlooked, as the decision not to play professionally stands up as a decision not to play at all. The training outlines studied from a young age plot a route to professional glory, not amateur success, and the growing popularity of golf epitomizes the PGA and LPGA tours as the ‘be- all-and-end-all’ for any truly talented player.

As a 15-year old girl with a smooth swing, many envious middle-aged men would approach me on the driving range to ask about my handicap, my coach, and – of course – my LPGA dreams.

Seven years later, with a degree in hand and four years of varsity golf under my belt, the question remains virtually the same: “When are you getting your pro card?” No matter how I reply (“I have other career goals”, “I’d rather keep golf as a hobby”, “I’m too much of a homebody to live out of a suitcase”) it’s usually the same response – “You’re giving up!?”

At the 2011 B.C. Women’s Amateur in Port Alberni, it was announced that the Women’s Mid-Amateur trophy would be named after local hometown hero Jackie Little.

Little, a B.C. Golf Hall of Fame inductee, already had 5 B.C. Women’s Amateur titles, 2 Canadian Senior Women’s titles, 2 B.C. Senior Women’s titles, and a Women’s Mid-Amateur title to her name. (Since 2011 she has added one more B.C. Senior Women’s title to this impressive resume.)

It struck me as the British Columbia Golf executive committee listed Little’s accomplishments that Jackie was not only talented, but also brilliant.

Having maintained her amateur status, raised a family, and pursued a career path she enjoyed, she had found the best of both worlds.

Though I’m sure it ranks highly among Little’s collection of honors, she doesn’t list this presentation ceremony as her proudest moment.

That milestone goes instead to her first B.C. Women’s Amateur title, and more specifically still, the look on her son (and caddy’s) face as she made a birdie on the first playoff hole to clinch the title.

Fellow Canadian Senior Women’s champion, Alison Murdoch claims a similar memory as the penultimate moment of her competitive career. Murdoch, who has four prestigious Royale Cup titles to her name, lists her first Canadian Senior Women’s title as the greatest milestone in her lengthy amateur career.

She too reflects particularly fondly on the event having had her daughter on the bag that week. “That she would want to do it, and be so helpful, made it very special,” Murdoch reflects.

The priorities of family life cannot be limited to women. Introduction is hardly necessary for Canadian Golf Hall of Famer Doug Roxburgh. With 4 Canadian Amateur titles, a record 13 B.C. Amateur titles, and the recent addition of his first B.C. Senior title, Roxburgh may be one of Canada’s most decorated amateur golfers.

While many would argue that Roxburgh is our country’s best player to never turn pro, the Vancouver-based accountant, and past Director of High Performance with Golf Canada says that he never seriously considered pursuing golf professionally. For Roxburgh too, family played a large factor in his desire to remain as an amateur.

Despite representing Canada internationally his whole life, Roxburgh maintains that a nomadic lifestyle is not for him. While he has enjoyed competing around the globe, he doesn’t like being away from his home and his family for extended periods of time.

And although Roxburgh’s participation in more than twenty professional events over the years has proved to him that he may have the game to compete at the highest level, he has never regretted his firm choice to keep his amateur status.

This trio of British Columbian success stories unanimously admits that the lack of an arena for professional golf in decades past also affected their decisions to remain as amateurs. With few mini- tours, and minimal funding, being at the “top” still meant moving from motel to motel throughout the golf season.

But while top professional purses pay out in six and even seven figure sums today, the road to glory still isn’t paved with gold. It is estimated that one year on a professional golf tour costs anywhere from 50,000 to 115,000 US$, so while that top 1% who “make it” may be treated to a life of luxury, the large majority would be better off pursuing competitive golf without the paycheque pressure.

Roxburgh, who worked closely with aspiring young professionals through Golf Canada’s High Performance program, doesn’t rule out following professional dreams, but he does suggest doing so with reason and rationale. “Do not turn pro unless you have developed an outstanding resume as an amateur,” he offers.

Murdoch has similar advice, warning of the costs – financial and otherwise – of life on the road. And while all three players agree that with the right plan in place, today’s youth should absolutely follow their dreams, they encourage the younger generation to also consider investing in dreams of amateur golf.

As Little, Murdoch, and Roxburgh can attest, the trophies, the trips (and an occasional new barbeque) offer an alternative to professional golf that need not be overshadowed.

About The Writer:
Born and raised in B.C.'s Okanagan, Haley Cameron recently graduated from the University of British Columbia, where she played four years of varsity golf with the Thunderbirds while earning her BA. Currently based in Vancouver, she enjoys combining her two loves - golf and writing - as a freelance contributor.