In a slightly unusual twist of fate, Alena Sharp may be headed back to the LPGA Tour by figuring out what she could do with her life if she didn’t make it back.
Sharp lost her full LPGA status this year because of a poor 2021.
“Last year I had the putting yips and that’s why I lost my card,” explains the Hamilton native who now lives in Phoenix, Ariz. suburb.
“Maybe I should have taken a medical (leave) the last five events but I tried to push through mentally and it was just too hard. I was trying too hard to get rid of it.”
Putting yips can be the result of a number of things but more often than not they’re caused by fear and Sharp knows exactly what that fear was.
At the time, she had turned 40 and was wondering what she was going to do with her life if her playing days at the highest level of women’s golf were coming to an end.
That fear manifested itself most of last year.
“Last year, if I missed a short putt on the first hole, the day was going to be really tough,” says Sharp.
To combat the root cause, Sharp took a couple of months off competing earlier this year and tried teaching golf at a course near where she lives.
“Knowing now that teaching is something that I could do and that I’m good at it, means I’m just not afraid like I was last year,” said Sharp.
“I know that everything is going to be OK when I’m done playing golf. It’s not who I am, it’s what I do.”
That confidence and a change in the way she grips the putter has caused a complete 180 in her putting.
“Before I had all these thoughts of missing putts and, now I have the confidence I had in 2017 and 2018 when I played really well,” she says.
“I’ve turned the page and I’m just different. My mental state is so different from last year, it’s crazy. It’s nice to be able to stand up to them and stroke them in the hole.”
Sharp has only played in a handful of LPGA events this year but strong performances at the Dow Great Lakes Invitational, where she finished T-10 and the recent CP Women’s Open in Ottawa where she was low Canadian and tied T-17 have put her in a situation that she wasn’t totally anticipating.
She’s currently 122 on the LPGA points list, the Race to the CME Globe. If she can get down to the top-100, Sharp will get her card back without having to go through the grueling eight-round Q-series.
“After this week there is a reshuffle and I think I’m going to get into the last four events. I’m in Portland for sure and I think I will get in Arkansas, Dallas and Los Angeles. And if I play well in those events, I can get into the Tampa event which is for the top-110 on the points list.
“I think what I would need is one good finish, a top-20 and not to miss the cut in the other ones. And that’s totally doable.”
Sharp is prepared to go back to Q-series if she has to but admits eight rounds over three courses in two weeks is a real grind and the reward can be status that doesn’t really get you into many events.
“The Q-series finals gives out 45 cards,” she explains. The top 20 have decent status, but outside the top 20, not so much.”
Sharp says she had many people come up to her at the CP Women’s Open urging her to get back on the LPGA Tour full time next year.
“I definitely felt the love,” she said.
Whole-in-One
- Burlington Springs, Lowville, Flamborough Hills and Mystic all completed their club championships recently.
- Daryl D’Andrade is the club champion at Burlington Springs, while Dave Langrin won the title at Lowville.
- Jordan Harding won the men’s title at Flamborough Hills while Joy Rutherford claimed the women’s championship and Regan Andrusyk took the junior crown.
- At Mystic Matt Bremer is the club champion, Flite winners include: B-Steve Boldt, C-Terry Mees and Senior-Reg Howe.
- Willow Valley continues to be the place to be to score a singleton.
- Rick Jenkins aced the 105-yard eight hole with a pitching wedge, Jeff Lato made his on the 101-yard 15th hole with a 58-degree wedge and both Joe Vieira and Steve Brindle aced the 17th hole. Vieira made his from 144-yards with a nine iron and Brindle used a 48-degree wedge from 136-yards.
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