Arizona Represented on LPGA*USGA Girls

Golf National Stage

Local 15-year-old selected for eLeader Junior Board of Directors

WORDS BY CORI MATHESON e Five E’s of Girls Golf are used to Empower, Enrich, Engage, Exercise, and Energize girls through the game of golf.

The LPGA*USGA Girls Golf of Phoenix is a 501c3 program of the Junior Golf Association of Arizona, and is a supported partner of the LPGA Foundation (based in Florida). With over 500 locations in the world, Girls Golf is making a huge impact with focus on programming that includes the “Five E’s” stages of learning. e “Five E’s” support the Girls Golf mission and give programs the opportunity to focus on teachings that are speci c to the development of girls.

Recently, the LPGA Foundation elected a special committee of teen members to gather and serve on the Girls Golf eLeader Junior Board of Directors. is board is made up of 13 applicants from all over the country that are a part of the Girls Golf eLeader program (girls aged 13-18 who volunteer to help site directors implement the Five E’s programming). ese leaders were chosen from online applications and one local superstar was recently honored! Grace Downing, a sophomore at Williams Field High School in Gilbert, is the newest member.

Downing joined Girls Golf of Phoenix in 2019 when her family moved to Arizona from Iowa. She started playing golf when she was ve and knew that it was going to play an important role in her life. Downing said, “Golf has helped build my con dence because I am pretty shy. Golf has given me a place to get involved and believe in myself. Golf has made me feel empowered by meeting new people, engaging with adults, and building connections with other players. Golf releases stress for me and I know it is important for me to keep positive on and o the course.”

When Downing was younger, she had a setback with her speech development that presented some challenges. She spent extra time in speech therapy and still strives to ensure her words are delivered correctly. She is grateful that golf has given her a place to shine, build lifelong friendships, feel empowered and especially love Girls Golf for giving her a safe place to build her athletic ability while also being around other girls.

Downing is currently an active leader with her high school golf team, volunteers for many of Girls Golf’s junior golf partners, and is a strong student. She recently won a gold medal award in competition for her criminal justice club and will be headed to the state nals in April! Downing credits golf and its bene ts with helping her shine academically. “Golf has always challenged me, and I have had to learn to balance my emotions and focus on positive decision making,” she said. Downing thinks that practicing these skills while playing golf help with her con dence and emotions during competitions and school challenges. She hopes to continue with competitive golf while studying criminal justice in college.

Girls Golf of Phoenix is grateful to have Downing represent our AZ golf family on a national level. Downing is excited to help younger girls with their own goals and hopes that they can love golf as much as she does. We all can watch closely as Grace Downing enriches our golf community and shines brightly both on and o the golf course.

Congratulations, Grace!

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Dissecting the “Rickie Fowler Rule”

Words By Logan Rasmussen

One of the biggest reasons for a refresh of the Rules of Golf every four years is to simplify some of the game’s most complex issues. One of the highlights was a change that many are commonly referring to as the “Rickie Fowler Rule’’ due to an incident at the 2019 WM Phoenix Open.

With a five-stroke lead during the final round, Fowler headed to the Par-4 11th hole –which has a lake wrapping around the edge; his chip attempt overtook the green and pulled his shot into the water. He proceeded to take his penalty area relief by dropping a ball within his identified relief area; the ball rolled down the steep slope back into the water. His second drop also rolled back into the water; he then placed a ball where his second dropped ball hit the ground (See Rule 14.3c(2)).

Fowler approached the green to get a read on his upcoming greenside shot when the ball, which was previously at rest, rolled into the water a third time due to the slope and inclement weather conditions. Under the old iteration of the Rules, Fowler was penalized again. Fowler ultimately took a triple bogey, but many believe that he should not be at fault because he was not the cause of the ball moving back into the Penalty Area.

The USGA revised the rule, which now states “if a ball at rest is moved by natural forces after being dropped, placed or replaced and comes to rest in a different area of the course or out of bounds, the ball must be replaced and played from its original spot – with no penalty.”

There are two factors to consider when applying this rule; the first is what caused the ball at rest to move. “... Moved by natural forces” means the ball moved without any person’s influence, i.e. wind, gravity, rain, slope, etc.

The second factor is that the movement needs to occur after the player has taken action to drop, place or replace the ball. In other words, unintentional movement (such as the ball moving from one Area of the course due to wind) could not be counted as a drop, place or replace; the player would still have to take that action on their own.

Finally, Fowler’s drop moved the ball from one area of the course to another. Each area of the course has a different drop procedure. In this case, the focus is on moving the ball from the Penalty Area to the General Area.

Under the 2023 Rules, Fowler’s ball was dropped back into play and came to a complete rest in the General Area after his first drop attempt. Because gravity and natural forces moved his ball at rest from the General Area into the Penalty Area, Fowler would simply replace his ball on the spot it was at rest and play on, rather than taking additional penalty strokes like he did in 2019.

But don’t feel too badly for Fowler. He still went on to win by two strokes.

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