"IF YOU LIKE GOLF"
online golf column
by
Chris Dortch

June 29, 2006

May Wood had some time to kill Thursday before her debut in the U.S. Women’s Open, so she called in with a weather report. Historic Newport Country Club, located hard by the Atlantic in Rhode Island, was socked in with a heavy fog, forcing her tee time farther and farther back, until finally the first round was postponed.

Wood was obviously disappointed, but after what she’s been through to get to this stage in her career, waiting another day to play in her first U.S. Open won’t matter.

“Whatever happens to me this week, playing in the U.S. Open is a great stepping stone for me,” Wood said. “Just qualifying really gave me a boost in confidence. I feel like I’ve made some great strides with my game—I’m hitting the ball well, I feel confident on the course and I’ve worked hard on my short game.”

It’s hard to believe, but it’s already been two years since Wood left a potential national championship team at Vanderbilt to turn professional. After earning SEC player-of-the-year and first-team All-American honors her sophomore season in Nashville, Wood, reasoning that she’d done enough at the college level, decided to test her game at a higher level.

The ensuing months have been an odyssey for Wood, filled with exhilarating highs and devastating lows. Such is the game of golf for any player at any level. But when you’re trying to make a living at it, the inevitable ups and downs are multiplied tenfold.

At 20 years old, Wood was faced with making adjustments and decisions most people her age don’t have to consider. And when she failed to earn her LPGA Tour card in the 2004 qualifying school, she nearly let self-doubt get the better of her.

Former Baylor golfer
May Wood

“I almost quit,” Wood said. “The game wasn’t any fun. My life was hectic. I began to second-guess my decision [to leave school so early.]”

Help came from an unlikely source. Wood, who uses Callaway equipment, was playing in the company’s pro-am at famed Pebble Beach when she met Mark Love, brother of PGA Tour star Davis Love III. Like most anyone who watches the 6-foot-2 Wood hit a golf ball for the first time, Mark Love was impressed, so he introduced Wood to his brother.

“Davis kind of took me under his wing,” Wood said. “We played a couple of holes, and he sensed that I wasn’t having any fun. He encouraged me and told me I had the talent to make it on the tour. The next week, I went back to Orlando [where she was living at the time] and got a personal trainer, and I started working harder on my game.”

It’s taken a while for Wood to see her diligence rewarded. She tied for 60^th in the 2006 Q-school, which mean’s she’s not exempt. Consequently, she’s played in just two LPGA events this season and didn’t make the cut in either. Wood has also played in three Future’s Tour events this year, with a tie for 9^th in Louisiana her best showing. The $2,000 she won barely covered expenses. But it was a check.

Wood, who found Orlando too “impersonal,” headed back to Chattanooga and the support of friends and family, and began to devote more than half her days to short game practice. Her sports psychologist has offered some sage advice, helping Wood take better control of her emotions, which in the past have led to some course management mistakes.

Finally came results. In the first stage of U.S. Open qualifying in May, she tied for medalist honors at Timuquana Country Club in Jacksonville, Fla. with a 72. In early June, Wood traveled to Spartanburg (S.C.) Country Club and tied for the second-lowest score after a 72 and 76. All of a sudden she was on the biggest stage in women’s golf.

Wood plans on taking advantage. Again taking advice from her psychologist, who advised her to play practice rounds with the LPGA’s finest, Wood sought out Annika Sorenstam and Michele Wie. She actually had a practice round scheduled with Wie, but it fell through. Too bad. Davis Love might have wanted to see that one, considering the comments he made a few months back on the Golf Channel, something to the effect of “wait till people get a load of May Wood.”

“You have to learn from the best,” Wood said. “Would I be nervous playing with Annika? No. She’s the best in the world, but I’m not afraid to play with her. And there are all kinds of things you can learn. It’s a fine line with these players out here—what separates the best from the others. Sometimes it’s who has the best putting week. But the best players are in total control of their games and their emotions. I can learn a lot from them.”

If the fog ever lets up, Wood will go to school this week in Rhode Island. She’s looking forward to the lessons she’ll learn.

“I’ve got the world by the tail right now,” Wood said. “I’m so lucky to be able to play golf for a living. I’ve just got to keep working hard and stay in control of my emotions. The success will come. I really believe that.”

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