Overcoming adversity is par for the course for the top golfers in the world. If you can’t effectively deal with various types of hardships, you’re not going to be successful over the long haul.
Perhaps that’s why Stacy Lewis has emerged as one of the world’s best women’s players.
Of the 24 golfers from the U.S. and Europe who will compete this weekend in the Solheim Cup at Colorado Golf Club in Parker, no one has played better this year. The 28-year-old American has not only won three times so far in 2013, but she’s coming off a victory this month at the Women’s British Open, the fourth major championship of the season.
And, mind you, Lewis didn’t exactly have a shabby 2012. Her four victories gave her LPGA Tour Rolex Player of the Year honors, making her the first American to earn that award since Beth Daniel in 1994.
That’s all very impressive in and of itself, but to put it into perspective, it must be kept in mind what Lewis has endured to reach the rarefied air she has.
The story has been well-chronicled, but it becomes even more remarkable as Lewis accomplishes ever greater feats.
For 7 1/2 years beginning at age 11, scoliosis (abnormal curvature of the spine) forced her to wear a back brace 18 hours a day. After her senior year of high school, she underwent surgery in which a rod and five screws were inserted into her back. She wondered whether she’d ever play golf again, and she did have to redshirt her freshman year at the University of Arkansas.
That was a decade ago, and it’s hard to believe she’s come from those depths to achieve what she has in golf, a sport which puts such stress on the back.
“It’s not something I ever dreamed of,” Lewis said in a recent interview with COgolf.org. “I never thought as a kid I’d be the best in the world or be the top American. It’s crazy to sit back and say, ‘I’m the top-ranked American in the sport of golf.’ It’s just not normal for what I did. It’s not the normal path.
“It’s such a cool feeling to be here and to lead your team and to be one of 12. I don’t know what to say. When I got to No. 1, I never expected to be there and it was just really cool.”
Lewis overcame her back problems to win the NCAA title as a junior at Arkansas. And in her five years as a pro, she’s won eight LPGA Tour titles, including two major championships. But the last year and a half have been particularly stellar, with seven victories.
Sitting No. 2 in the Women’s World Golf Rankings, Lewis is only looking up at South Korea’s Inbee Park, who won the first three major championships of 2013 before Lewis ended the run at the Women’s British Open.
“This tells you about Stacy as a person and the quality of her character: She made it to No. 1 in the world at the beginning of the year, then within a month got passed,” U.S. Solheim Cup captain Meg Mallon noted last week. “I think if you had told her you’re going to be passed but were going to win a major championship — the Women’s British Open — she would have said, ‘OK, I’ll be fine with that.’
“She struggled a bit this summer with her putter, but she turned it around. And once she turned it around, she knows what to do with it. She goes out and wins like she did. So she’s really an impressive player and an impressive person.”
All that Lewis endured as a youngster helped make her both that impressive player and impressive person. But it really wasn’t until six or seven years ago that she entertained thoughts of being a touring professional. However, winning the NCAA title in 2007 and SEC championships in 2005 and 2008 certainly got her thinking. Oh, and by the way, at a time when many top women’s players skip college golf, she earned two degrees from the University of Arkansas, in finance and accounting.
Then, in short order, Lewis won the LPGA Tour qualifying finals in the fall of 2008.
“As a kid I wanted to play college golf and that was all I wanted to do,” she said. “It wasn’t until I got to college and I had some success there that I really thought, ‘I could do this for a living.’ I never really watched golf or paid much attention to it. I’ve definitely worked my way up through the ranks.
“I’ve been fortunate since I’ve gotten on tour that I’ve gotten to know some of the older players, (and) gotten to know Meg really well. They’ve really helped me a lot with the learning curve and how to deal with all the other stuff. The golf part it easy; it’s dealing with everything else.”
And now she comes to the Solheim Cup having just broken a string of 10 consecutive major championships won by Asian-born players.
“That’s how her career has been,” Stacy’s father, Dale Lewis, told Golfweek magazine. “Every time she gets down, she just bounces back up and takes another step.”
Solheim Cup: The Essentials
What: The 13th Solheim Cup matches between the U.S. and Europe, held biennially.
Where: Colorado Golf Club in Parker (8000 Preservation Trail).
When: Practice rounds Aug. 13-15. Competition days Aug. 16-18. (Gates will be closed on Aug. 12.)
Gates Open: 7 a.m. Aug. 13, 14 and 15; 6 a.m. Aug. 16 and 17; 10:30 a.m. Aug. 18.
Opening Ceremony: Aug. 15, 5-6 p.m. Gov. John Hickenlooper will be among those delivering remarks.
Closing Ceremony: Aug. 18, about 7 p.m.
Format: Four foursomes (alternate shot, in the morning) and four four-ball (best ball, in the afternoon) matches each day Aug. 16 and 17. Twelve singles matches on Aug. 18.
Scoring: For each match, one point is awarded for a win, one-half point for a tie, 0 for a loss. The U.S. needs 14 1/2 points or more to win the Solheim Cup, while Europe, as the defending champion, can retain it with 14 or more points.
TV Coverage: Golf Channel. 7:30 a.m.-1 p.m. and 3-7 p.m. Aug. 16; 7:30 a.m.-7 p.m. Aug. 17; 12:30-6:30 p.m. Aug. 18. In all, Golf Channel will televise 27 hours of the Solheim Cup matches, with Terry Gannon, Judy Rankin, Curt Byrum and Whit Watson anchoring the coverage.
Tickets: For ticket information, CLICK HERE. Note: Kids 17 and under will get in free with a ticketed adult. Active-duty and retired military will get in free on Military Day Aug. 15 by pre-ordering HERE.
Solheim Cup History: The U.S. leads the all-time series 8-4 and is 6-0 on American soil.
Rosters and Short Biographies: CLICK HERE.
Captains: U.S.: Meg Mallon, assisted by Dottie Pepper and Laura Diaz. Europe: Liselotte Neumann, assisted by Annika Sorenstam and Carin Koch.
Course: Colorado Golf Club was designed by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw and it opened in 2006. It hosted the Senior PGA Championship in 2010. For the Solheim Cup, it will be played at 7,066 yards and to a par-72.
Special Events: Aug. 15, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Front Row Experience (free 10-minute lessons from LPGA teaching professionals), driving range; Aug. 15, 3-4 p.m., 3-hole Ping Junior Challenge featuring former Solheim Cup players and current Junior Solheim Cup players, holes 16-18; Aug. 15, 3:45-4:15 p.m., past captain autograph session, merchandise tent; Aug. 18, 2-5 p.m., Front Row Experience (free 10-minute lessons from LPGA teaching professionals), driving range; Aug. 18, 3-5 p.m., junior clinic, driving range.
Junior Solheim Cup: The matchup of some of the top girls players from the U.S. and Europe will be held Aug. 13-14 at Inverness Golf Club in Englewood. The U.S. leads the all-time series 3-2-1, with the tie coming in the event’s last playing, in 2011. On Aug. 13, four-ball matches begin at 7:30 a.m., with foursomes starting at 1 p.m. On Aug. 14, singles matches begin at 9 a.m. For more information on the Junior Solheim teams CLICK HERE for the U.S. and CLICK HERE for the Europeans.
