Former Gamecock Golfer Living Out Her Childhood Dream on LPGA Tour

Sarah Schmelzel calls her rookie year on the LPGA Tour a “learning experience,” but after finishing tied for 14th at the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship last month in Minnesota, the former South Carolina All-American is certainly making the grade.

“It was awesome to play that way in a major,” Schmelzel said. “It’s great to know that I can play that way and compete. It confirms that everything I’ve been working on is starting to pay dividends. I just want to take it in stride and apply it to the next week.”

Schmelzel, who played at South Carolina from 2012-2016, finished in a tie for 14th at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship with a four-round score of 286 to finish two-under par. She carded five birdies in the third round for a 69 and then fired a one-under 71 in the final round to help secure her best finish of the year. It was also the best finish for a Gamecock at a major since 2009.

“It’s been exciting. It’s definitely been a big adjustment,” Schmelzel said. “I’d say that the Symetra Tour definitely prepared me for the week-in, week-out traveling. We’ve been to some amazing places and met awesome people. Every week just feels like a learning experience.”

“You just have to find your way back to trusting that the work you’re putting in is going to pay off.”
– Sarah  Schmelzel

Schmelzel earned honorable mention All-America honors as a senior at South Carolina and was named to the SEC All-Freshmen team in 2013. She played on the Symetra Tour after graduation, and in 2018 she notched seven top-10 finishes, including four top-five results in her last five events to finish 13th on the Symetra Tour Official Money List. She qualified for the LPGA Tour last fall.

“The biggest challenge is keeping everything in perspective knowing that it’s a process,” Schmelzel said. “You work on things and want to see results right away, but that’s not how golf works. In every transition from amateur to college to professional, it’s just trusting that what you’re working on is going to pay dividends eventually. You’re always in the process of building and getting better.

“Being at South Carolina was a great stepping-stone for me to get used to travel and being away from home. It really got me to a level of independence and made me feel comfortable on the Symetra Tour. Then from the Symetra Tour up to the LPGA, it’s just about trusting the work that gets put in.”

Schmelzel went to qualifying school three times before making the LPGA Tour. Some very good golfers never make it that far, and Schmelzel noted there were times when she had to push back doubt.

“Absolutely. I think everyone does,” Schmelzel said. “Maybe I wasn’t so much questioning whether I’d make it, but when you’re not playing well, you ask yourself, ‘can I do this?’ At the end of the day, everyone out there competing knows that they’re capable. It’s so competitive. Doubt creeps in. You just have to find your way back to trusting that the work you’re putting in is going to pay off. It just may not be at the exact time you think it should.”

Schmelzel started playing competitive golf at the age of 10. Even though golf is how she makes her living now, the 25-year-old said she doesn’t think of it as pressure.

“At the end of the day, I’m playing golf for a living,” Schmelzel said. “It’s the best job in the world. It’s what I love to do. It’s what I dreamed about doing when I was a kid. It’s still fun. I love competing, and I love to practice.”

Schmelzel had spent some time last year getting better by practicing at South Carolina’s Huskey/Dietrich Golf Practice Facility.

“I spent about a week there, the week before Q-school,” Schmelzel said. “That facility is incredible. To have such an all-around great facility where you can work on your short game or your long game, and to have it so close on campus, it’ really world-class. It lets you work on everything you need to work on.

“I talked to Coach (Kalen) Anderson back then a little bit about mindset and nerves for Q-school. She and (former Director of Golf) Puggy (Blackmon) gave me some words of wisdom on how to handle that and the mentality I needed to have. I had the chance to play with the team, too. It was really fun.”

As she has traveled and played with the world’s best, Schmelzel said she doesn’t get “starstruck,” and she thoroughly enjoys playing on the best courses. 

“When we played in L.A., we played at Wilshire Country Club, and it was such an awesome venue,” Schmelzel said. “It’s quite a well-known golf course, and it’s different from anything we’re used to playing. There were great people, great food, and a great atmosphere. I think that’s my favorite so far.

“I don’t know that I’ve been a ‘fan girl’ or starstruck. It’s more of a pinch-me moment of thinking, ‘I’m in the same locker room as so-and-so.’ It’s pretty cool. Just living your dream, day-in and day-out is the coolest part. You’re living those dreams of when you’re a little kid on the putting greens saying, ‘this is the putt to win the U.S. Open.’ Having the opportunity to reach those goals has been such an awesome thing.”