Mickey a la Cart

Lisa D. Mickey will offer an inside view of the Duramed FUTURES Tour and its players throughout the 2007 season. Visit "Mickey a la Cart" for an "extra" view of the Tour from her own "mobile office".

Eyes in the Rearview Mirror

By Lisa D. Mickey
Director of Communications, Duramed FUTURES Tour

I shouldn't have been surprised last autumn when Duramed FUTURES Tour alum Seon-Hwa Lee admitted that she knew all about our top players of the 2006 graduating class. Lee, who had just racked up honors as the LPGA's top rookie in 2006, sat on her couch in her lovely new home in Central Florida and went down the list. She knew that our 2006 Player of the Year, Song-Hee Kim, had won five tournaments. She knew that Kristy McPherson won twice and finally earned her LPGA Tour card after four seasons on the Duramed FUTURES Tour. And she knew the Tour had three 17-year-old pros contending for tournament wins during most of the 2006 season -- all three ultimately earning exempt 2007 LPGA Tour status.

"How do you know so much about our players?" I asked the shy Korean, who earned 2005 Player of the Year honors with the FUTURES, then went on to earn top LPGA rookie honors in 2006 -- a feat last duplicated by alumna Lorena Ochoa in 2002 (FUTURES) and 2003 (LPGA).

"I just know," smiled Lee. "I read your web site."

And Lee, now asserting herself as one of the LPGA's rising stars, also knows where the LPGA's top talent gets its start. She spent two seasons here herself, working on her game, learning English, learning how to pack a suitcase and how to find her way in the family mini-van from McAllen (Texas) to Morgantown (W.Va.). Now, Lee is smart enough to glance over her shoulder every now and then to see who is right behind her.

She knows the depth of talent on the Duramed FUTURES Tour. She knows the hunger and determination our players feel to advance to the next level. And she understands the process it takes to transition from the top rungs of amateur or collegiate golf to the entry level of the pro ranks. Lee did it here on this tour. So did World Golf Hall of Fame member Karrie Webb. And 2006 LPGA Player of the Year Lorena Ochoa. And 2004 Kraft Nabisco Championship winner Grace Park. And 2005 Solheim Cup members Cristie Kerr and Christina Kim. The list goes on, with alums owning a total of 314 LPGA Tour wins and 33 major championships through 2006.

I spend 19 weeks on the road with our players and I see many of their ups and downs. Sometimes players on this tour project the belief that they are somehow stuck in purgatory. They're playing solid golf, but not cashing in like players on the LPGA Tour. They're suffering from road miles, but not reaping the same perks, corporate benefits and public adoration as their LPGA Tour pals. Sometimes they get lost in frustration, blaming all but themselves for where they currently are and where they want to be.

Fortunately, the smart ones find their own peace and learn to patiently plod forward shot by shot, round by round, tournament by tournament while passing through small town after small town. Those who are focused on the right things -- instead of the things they wish they already had -- also figure out how to use the Duramed FUTURES Tour as the "finishing school" they truly need. They learn how to win under pressure. They learn how much or how much not to practice. They learn how to hammer on for 54 holes, never letting up and never coasting. They learn how to master their wedges. And they learn how to close the deal -- whether that means winning tournaments or earning one of the coveted five LPGA Tour cards that loom as the real prize at season's end.

True, nobody has ever gotten rich on the Duramed FUTURES Tour and likely, nobody ever will. But that's also not the purpose. The purpose is to provide 19 tournaments for players to compete for one of five LPGA Tour cards for the following season. The second objective for some players is to use the season on the Duramed FUTURES Tour as a 19-tournament tune-up for LPGA Q-School. That tune-up is against weekly fields of 144 players who are the best young women professionals from around the world. They're not just the best players from California or Texas, or from Canada or Korea. They are from 26 countries. And they all want the same thing -- to move on to the LPGA Tour.

That's the sole purpose of the Duramed FUTURES Tour. This is finishing school. This is where the top players learn to eliminate three-putts, bad rounds or high numbers in crummy weather. This is where they don't have to suffer through that learning curve on national TV under the scrutiny of couch dwellers who are certain they could play better.

For members of this tour, it's not a matter of being good enough for the LPGA Tour. Rather, it's a matter of being ready enough to transition from the minor league to the major league. Our players are close to that goal. In fact, the 2006 scoring average among the top 100 Duramed FUTURES Tour players was 73.46, as compared to the 2006 LPGA scoring average of 72.12 for its top 100 players. The average winning score on the 2006 Duramed FUTURES Tour was 69.15, as compared to the 2006 winning score of 68.08 on the LPGA Tour.

That's close. Really close. And maybe that's why Seon-Hwa Lee is keeping a close eye on players here on this tour. Chances are, Lee is not the only LPGA Tour member with an eye in the rearview mirror watching the up-and-comers on the Duramed FUTURES Tour. And there's certainly good reason for that.

Contact: Lisa D. Mickey, lisa@duramedfuturestour.com.