Meshing with the amateurs
Symetra Tour's Marchand entertains in annual pro-am
By Dennis Grall
For the Daily Press
HARRIS — Part of a Symetra Tour player’s responsibility at every tournament is joining area men and women in a pro-am round of golf, and the Island Resort Championship at Sweetgrass stages a pair of events each year.
A pro joins four amateurs in a scramble event each Wednesday and Thursday, and the pros treat it as a practice round with light competition. The pros are placed depending on their money list ranking, or if a sponsor requests a certain pro.
“I use it to practice a little bit, but mostly to entertain the people you are playing with,” two-year Symetra veteran Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont. said after Wednesday’s round. Her group finished at 4-under-par 68, most of those strokes supplied by her unerring shots.
“You want to give a group a good experience. You are an entertainer. It is not about me having the best day of my life. You don’t want too much focus on how you play because that takes away the expectations of the amateur,” she said.
Several times Wednesday Marchand would take extra shots to erase bad vibes of a previous stroke, from approach shots to extra putts without trying to delay the following team.
Wednesday a pair of 57s took the top two spots, with individual prizes also available for such things as longest drive, closest to the pin or longest putt.
“I want to have a good time with my group. I don’t want to neglect my group,” she said.
Marchand will offer advice, but only if the amateur teammate asks for help. “I’m glad to give what advice I can, but it is really hard to interpret because there are enough different swings and you could make it harder for the amateur,” she said of perhaps giving conflicting advice from what they may have received from their local pro.
She concentrates on her swing and routine on every shot, but is always aware of her group. “I do treat it like it is my job,” she said, noting the sponsors who pay to participate in each pro-am expect to get their money’s worth. “You want to make it worth their while. You need tournaments to happen for our job to be possible.”
Marchand chats with her amateur partners throughout the round, while concentrating on her shot when it is her turn. “I try to stay quiet and I try to make it light,” she said, indicating each amateur is different, which can create numerous challenges at various outings, such as an amateur who may hammer drives 300 yards, putting her in different fairway spots from her normal drive.
She admitted “some men don’t want to be beat by a girl. I know that sounds old, but some men don’t want to take an opinion from a girl. It is irritating inside but you don’t show it. It is what it is.”
She pointed out the scramble format means you are part of a team, and everyone is trying their best, even though there are times amateurs have little golf experience.
Marchand, who began playing golf at age 7 after spending her earlier years as a figure skater, played at North Carolina State University, where she posted three victories. She played in the 2011 U.S. Women’s Open at Broadmoor, Colorado Springs, and won the Ontario Women’s Amateur championship in 2012.
She played in the LPGA Tour’s Manulife Classic two weeks ago in Cambridge, Ont. and finished 45th, after being in the top 10 entering the final round. She shot a 67 while paired with the tour’s No. 1 player and tourney champion, Ariya Jutanugarn.
“It was really cool playing in that situation, and up to her standard,” she said. “It was a good learning experience. Now I know what it feels like. It showed me I belong out there.”
She made 19 of 21 cuts in her rookie season and this year is only 50th on the money list in nine events with $7,510.
“It’s been an up-and-down year,” she conceded. “I’ve had moments of really great golf and moments not as good. I’m like a bottle that is shaken up and ready to explode. I’ve felt good enough to play out here.”