Quick start for Stacy P

Stacy P. gets off to hot start in ‘07

By KEN MACLEOD

From the time she was 11 and began winning state junior championships but did not compete on the American Junior Golf Association tour due to family finances, Stacy Prammanasudh has flown a bit under the nation’s golf radar.

That has continued, even through a career in which she was a four-time All-American at the University of Tulsa (1999-2002) and onto the LPGA Tour, where she’s quickly established herself as one of the top 25 female golfers in the world, become a two-time tour winner and this year is the second leading money winner with a victory and three other top 10s in her first five events.

Golf aficionados know of her talents. The general public, however, hears much more about Paula Creamer, Natalie Gulbis, Morgan

Pressel and a few other young guns the

LPGA has promoted heavily. “I am not talked about as much as other players, but if I continue to play well that may change,” Prammanasudh wrote in a recent e-mail interview. “It’s too bad the media focuses so much on just a few select players when there are numerous girls on tour that have a lot to offer.”

Stacy P., as she is known to friends and fans in the Tulsa area (she lives in Broken Arrow with husband and caddie Pete Upton) and in her hometown of Enid, may make herself a household name, or at least a household abbreviation, the way she is playing this year. Not that she had a bad year in 2006, finishing 18th on the money list with over $653,000 in earnings, but she struggled with her putter and her ballstriking was not as consistent as she would like. And so in the offseason, Prammanasudh did something she had never done before, take a formal golf lesson from a professional instructor. She had learned the game from her father Lou, who was self-taught.

She met noted instructor Bill Harmon, the director of golf at Toscana CC in Indian Wells, Calif., at the 2006 U.S. Open. He gave Stacy a tip on her grip and she went on to finish tied for third.

“That really changed my season,” Prammanasudh said. “I saw him for two days in December and two more days in January and February. We are working on shortening and tightening my swing. It is quite different, but I think it will be best for the long run.”

It certainly has been great in the short run. She won the Fields Open in Hawaii while celebrating her anniversary with Pete. She did it with rounds of 6668-68, then followed with a tie for third in the MasterCard Classic. She was two shots behind the winner in the season’s first major, the Kraft Nabisco.

The changes this year also include having Upton on the bag, as Lou decided to retire after lugging the clubs across the country for three years.

“Pete wanted to give caddying a try and Dad wasn’t exactly running around all these courses, so we thought we would give it a try,” Prammanasudh said. “It seems to be working out and I don’t dread leaving home as much anymore. But yes, you definitely have to leave the golf at the course, or it would make for a really long week.”

One other thing Prammanasudh would like to change this year is her record in events in Tulsa since she turned professional. She has not played poorly, but has not often been in contention in the final round.

“Playing at home is definitely one of the toughest weeks,” she said. “I do put more pressure on myself, just because you know everyone is expecting you to do great and it’s tough.”

will be really nice to be playing at home.”

Also committed to the field is Morgan Pressel, who is coming off a victory at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, making her the youngest player (18) to win a major. LPGA veteran Laura Davies and rookie Angela Park are also in the field.

After ending the 2006 seaon by winning $1 million at the ADTChampionship, 20-year-old Julieta Granada is coming back to Cedar Ridge.

Another notable entry is Georgia sophomore Taylor Leon – sister of OSU golfers Trent and Tyler Leon – who has earned a sponsorship exemption. Leon was a 2006 All-American and SEC Player of the Year.

While 24 of the top 30 players have already committed, it's not official Sorenstam will return to Broken Arrow after announcing she is cutting back on the amount of LPGA events in which she participates. Eibling said tournament officials are confident the world's No. 1 female golfer will be looking to regain her tournament title.

“We have not heard anything official yet, but we're pretty optimistic she will be back,” Eibling said. “She loves it here. She's had success here, so we think she will be back.

“The field will start taking shape the last four weeks and there will be updates along the way.”

Also committed are former University of Tulsa star Kelly Robbins, who is still trying to recover her form after injuries; and Kellie Kuehne, whose swing coach is Cedar Ridge Director of Instruction Tracy Phillips.

Kerr said there is no doubt why Sorenstam and the rest of the LPGA's top players continue to compete in the SemGroup Championship.

“Well Tulsa and this golf course at Cedar Ridge is one of the best we play,” Kerr said. “It's a U.S. Open golf course and the conditions always make it play like a major championship. I think that's why it draws the great players.

“The great players want to test themselves against the best field and the best conditions and that is why we come to Tulsa.”

For updates on the SemGroup Championship field as the tournament nears, visit www.southcentralgolf.com.