Golfers amass frequent flier miles to perfect their craft

KIT DOYLE ~ kdoyle@semissourian.com Lauren Salazar of California headed up the fairway Wednesday. [Click to enlarge]

There are 24 flags hoisted outside the entrance to Dalhousie Golf Club this week.

The flags represent the 23 states and Canada that have competitors in the AJGA Dalhousie Junior Championship.

The flags range east and west, from North Carolina to California, and north and south from Canada to Texas.

The flags also represent stories of dedication. Some of those stories result in tangible results, like rooms full of medals and trophies, while others have intangible results, such as the strengthened bonds between parent and child, or the art of self-reliance.

Ahnna Kim, 17, could be found late Wednesday morning carrying her clubs to the parking lot at Dalhousie after the second round of the tournament. After a round of 78, she was nine shots from the lead ... and 1,846 miles from home.

The tournament was part of a three-week journey she made for the second straight summer from Coquitlam, British Columbia, by herself.

She has spent the last two weeks playing in tournaments in Manitoba then flew down from there for this week's tournament.

Olivia Garard of Colorado walked to her ball on the sixth fairway Wednesday. [Click to enlarge]

She has been staying with Lance and Laura Brey, who reside next to the course.

"I just came out here," Kim said. "I actually loved the tournament last year, so this brought me back."

She has played tournament golf for four years, traveling to Alabama, Tennessee, Ohio and North Carolina. Earlier this summer she drove 20 hours to play in Saskatchewan.

But the AJGA tournament in Cape Girardeau has a special place in her heart.

"These are awesome tournaments," Kim said. "The hospitality is No. 1. The people, they are just amazing. I mean, they're different down here. I learned so much from them last year.

"That was my first time in private housing, and they made me feel so welcome. The event, they really take care of you out here."

Kim, who starts her senior year of high school in September, has one more year of junior golf remaining and hopes to play college golf.

"Traveling by myself, it's taught me a lot," she said. "It's helped me mature as a person.

"When I first started [golf], it taught me about patience, etiquette, manners, a lot. When I started traveling by myself, the No. 1 thing is I've learned how to speak to people, how to communicate with different kinds of people ... and I've just learned how to navigate around an airport.

"It's opened a lot of doors for me. I've met a lot of random people who've been a big help to me. I think it's just taught me how to be brave and more sociable."

A diverse group

But Kim is far from alone in her travels. Missouri is home to only six of the 39 girls in this week's field.

Eight are from California, including leader Ani Gulugian, who probably no longer feels like she has a home in Irvine, Calif.

Gulugian is on the road with her dad, John, for the sixth straight week. Her golf journey has taken her to tournaments from Calgary, Alberta (Girls Junior America's Cup), to Hartford, Conn. (U.S. Girls), to Philadelphia (AJGA Betsy Rawls), to Springfield, Mo. (AJGA Bass Pro/Payne Stewart).

Cape Girardeau is the final stop.

"I've been all over the place," Gulugian said. "Hopefully I'll end it with a bang."

She said she's used to travel, but said her trips normally are not this long.

"It's been a long six weeks," she said. "I'm looking forward to sleeping in my own bed."

Traveling with dad

Samantha Marks of Maitland, Fla., traveled to the tournament with her father, Roger.

Despite being just 14 years old and headed for her freshman year of high school, Marks is a veteran of tournament play. She said she plays in tournaments "pretty much year-round," and is playing in her 163rd tournament. She's been playing in tournaments since age 6.

"I try to keep the tournaments during the school year around where I live," Marks said. "I just started AJGA, but I pretty much go everywhere."

She said she recently went to the U.S. Kids Team World Championship in Pinehurst, N.C., and won there.

"The day after that was finished, I went to the Florida State Match Play that was just two hours away," Marks said.

She's also been to Chicago this year for the World Team Youth Challenge.

"She's in a tournament almost every week," Roger said. "During school, its usually one or two a month. Where we live, you can play in a major event within 2 hours every weekend."

Her endeavors have brought her trophies of all sizes and memories for a lifetime.

Roger owns a financial planning company and has made all but one of Samantha's tournaments this year.

"I like traveling to tournaments, especially with my father," Samantha said.

Don't forget mom

And then there is the mother-daughter bond of 14-year-old Lauren Salazar and her mother, Delores, who call Santa Clara, Calif., their home base.

It's been a well-traveled summer of golf for Lauren. While listing Scotland, Texas, North Carolina and South Carolina among her destinations, she paused to ask her mom, "Have I been to Arizona?"

"No," mom replied with a laugh.

Samantha was just two shots off the lead, but her biggest rooter also has her own agenda.

"Mom set a new goal of seeing as many states as possible before she graduates from high school," Delores said of her freshman-to-be daughter. "We have many more to go.

"We hadn't been to Missouri, so I'm going to make sure she sees the river before we go. I made a point to do that, and stay tomorrow night in St. Louis and hopefully get there in time to go up in the Arch."