They call this a living?

A special message – They call this a living?

Forgive me for taking a break from my story to share the following with you. I would like to start by stating that these are my opinions and I have not had any discussions with any of the players or tour officials regarding this. It is very hard for the ladies on the LPGA and the Duramed Futures tours to make a living. Let me give you an idea of what they are dealing with.

144 players teed it up in Mason, Ohio at the Futures event recently. Each player paid $500 entry fee to play in the event. For many the week included one or two practice rounds, a Pro/Am round and three days of tournament play assuming you made the cut. Tie for 11th and you win $1,727 while a tie for 36th place and the player takes home approximately $825. (This event paid 84 players that made the cut – top 70 and ties.) After the entry fee a profit of $825 to $1,225 and that does not take into account transportation to Mason, rental cars, a place to sleep and food during the week. Yes some of the players take advantage of hosted housing with some local families and there is some occasional food on the course during the Pro/Am or in the player’s lounge.

In any case how can a player make a living this way? Sure if you win a tournament you can make a few dollars, but if you don’t make the cut you make nothing. And don’t think that it is much easier for the players on the LPGA tour. Yes their purses are healthier, but as you move down the money list you will see how quickly it becomes a struggle. This will become even more of a problem as the LPGA tour is losing more and more events due to the lack of sponsors. And if a player is not fully exempt the opportunity to get into an event is limited to trying to qualify for one of two spots on Monday since most all the exempt players are trying to play all of the events.

So if you enjoy watching the ladies play and want to help, what can you do? First of all if you live in a town where an event (LPGA or Futures) is scheduled, contact the event committee and volunteer to host a player in your home. Believe me you will have a great time and the players will appreciate the support. Secondly if you can help financially support a player, check out the player biographies on both the LPGA.COM and FUTURESTOUR.COM and find a young player from your area to support. If you have difficulty contacting them, try contacting an event where they are playing to leave them a message (see the tournament sites for player lists) or feel free to contact me and I will try to assist.

Lastly if you are not comfortable contacting the players directly I have set up an account where I will deposit any funds received to be distributed to assist young players that are trying to make it on tour based on a need basis. We will acknowledge those providing funds (unless you request not to be listed) with a list to each player that receives funds and will provide everyone with an electronic newsletter to keep you updated as to how our players are doing. 100% of all funds received will be distributed to help the players chase their dream. This is not a charitable contribution, but I will assure you that all funds will be used to help the players and that no one will profit from this effort other than the players. If you have any questions or have any ideas on how we can help the players please contact me by email katz@kapalua-dream.com .

So if you love the game as much as I do and would like to help, send what you can (no amount is too small) and let’s see what we can do to help these great ladies. I realize this is a different approach, but if we don’t do something we won’t have the opportunity to watch “These Girls Rock” in the future.

Stuart Katz
100 Ridge Road
Lahaina, HI 96761

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To follow the experience as it continues be sure to follow this blog as future chapters will be posted soon. You will be able to read about the first full tournament that I caddied, what it was like working with Angela during the US Open qualifier, what the caddie is expected to do and much more.