The 19^th Hole

July 1, 2007

It All Pays Off

Cristie Kerr is finally a major champion.  She did it eleven years after she was low amateur at the very same host course – Pine Needles in North Carolina - on which she has won the US Women’s Open.  The journey of Kerr from low amateur in 1996 to major champion in 2007 is one that deserves some attention and reflection.

Kerr turned pro after her performance in the 1996 Open, which was the first of Annika’s victories in the championship.  At the time, Kerr had just graduated from high school and had closed out her amateur career by winning 22 of her last 25 events.  To say the least, Kerr was cocky and expected to take the LPGA Tour by storm.  That did not happen.

Years later, Kerr admitted she was lost in the professional world.  Friends were hard to come by for her, especially being the youngest player on tour.  Life on the road was difficult and took a significant amount of adjustment.  Her golf and general physical fitness were significantly lacking.  Most significant was that the competition on the LPGA Tour in no way resembled the amateur fields she mowed down just before turning professional.

Kerr was left with a decision: improve and potentially thrive, or settle and simply survive.  By dropping fifty pounds over the course of two years, Kerr went from a size 16 to a size 4.  That was the first sign of improvement.  Watching footage of Kerr before the physical transformation and after showed a person who went from self-doubting to beaming with confidence – the kind needed to win on the LPGA Tour.

That confidence and weight loss resulted in better swing mechanics, but did not immediately pay off in a victory.  It was not until her sixth full season on tour in 2002 that she picked up her first win.  It took 140-plus starts, but Kerr had finally broken through on the LPGA Tour.

That was not good enough, though.  Kerr wanted to further improve and become the best American golfer.  That desire was largely fueled by self-determination, but also was likely influenced by the headline grabbing done by golfers of her same pedigree.  Michelle Wie, Morgan Pressel, and other golfers that turned pro outside of high school to much fanfare likely garnered her attention and spurred her.

Kerr continued the professional transformation.  The first win was a struggle and critics said that Kerr lacked the ability to close out golf tournaments.  She looked to respond by not only contending more often, but winning with greater frequency.  In an age where American female golfers have found it increasingly difficult to win golf tournaments, Kerr had managed to win eight times in the past four seasons. 

She is the highest ranked American player in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings – ahead of those younger players that now learn from her experience. 

Kerr underwent a significant personal transformation as well.  Realizing the growing numbers of young golfers on Tour – Creamer, Pressel, Gulbis – Kerr took an opportunity to befriend these ladies and impart knowledge on them that just was not available to her when she was their age.  In part, those relationships have helped her come a long way in shedding her tough image with other players and fans.  It was one she acquired as a child because of the issues she had with weight and appearance.  She finally could shed some of that brashness and let people see the real her; a person that a lot of people like.

Still, she lacked a major championship.

For someone who plays as meticulously and methodically as Kerr, to win that major required one final step of personal transformation.  In the offseason, she married Erik Stevens – who worked for her representation firm.  In finding love, Kerr may have finally been able to be happy enough on and off the course to achieve what she desired most.

The quest to become a great golfer required Kerr to become a better person in all aspects.  Now with a US Women’s Open trophy and a very large paycheck to boot, Kerr may have found the combination of things in life that will make her the great champion she envisioned years ago. 

The moral of the story is that if you have the confidence in yourself and your talents that things will work out that they eventually will.  It may not happen as quickly as you would like, or in the way you imagined, but it will happen.  And then there is no where to go from there but higher.

Ryan Ballengee is host of The 19th Hole Golf Show, found at The Golf Newsnet.com.  Having graduated from the University of Maryland in 2004 and 2006, Ballengee brings the perspective of the younger golf fan to the microphone and his columns.  Over the nearly five years he has been broadcasting and writing, Ballengee has developed a reputation for a unique interviewing style that asks both the difficult and fun questions. You can also get The 19th Hole on the go through podcasting by clicking here The Golf Newsnet Contact Ryan via e-mail at the19thholeshow@hotmail.com.