Aug. 31, 2005
The warmer months indicate the coming of summer, a time when kids get out of school and their parents hope to use some of those vacation days they've been saving up. However, for former Illini golf standout Steve Stricker, summertime is not all about relaxation and vacation. If he does travel, it will probably be to his next tournament destination. But as tiresome as a season can be, Stricker has adjusted to the demands placed on a PGA Tour member.
"You get used to it," Stricker said. "It's hard when you are home for a couple of weeks, and then you have to go back on the road. You wish you could stay home longer, but you get used to it over time. Come October, you really want to just stay home, but by January and February you are ready to get going again."
Which is good for Stricker, who makes a successful livelihood by being ready for the golf season. Unfortunately, loving the game does not always mean enjoying it. While other people are taking pleasure in their summer out on the links, Stricker is practicing. For him, every round of golf is seen as a means of improvement, and the days when playing was relaxing and recreational are long gone for him.
"Those days are over. Even my wife tells me she doesn't want to play with me, because I don't have fun with her. But it's my job. It's like going to work everyday and trying to have fun--it just doesn't happen."
Stricker has been a member of the PGA Tour since 1994. He has 39 career Top-10 finishes, highlighted by three championship titles: the 1996 Motorola Western Open, the 1996 Kemper Open and the 2001 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. He placed fourth this year at the Chrysler Classic of Tucson, with a 72-hole score of 270, missing the playoff round by just one stroke. Despite his accomplishments on the tour, Stricker feels less than satisfied with his career success.
"I still feel like I have a lot more to accomplish. I haven't been playing really to the level I feel I am capable of playing. I still work at the game really hard, and I still have a lot of passion and desire to play really well. I just feel I have a lot more left to do."
While he is very busy trying to reach that level, Stricker still makes time for the people and the program that helped develop him into a professional athlete. For the past four years, Stricker has returned to Stone Creek Golf Club in Urbana to host the Steve Stricker Illini Golf Classic, an event coordinated by I FUND that raises money exclusively for the U of I men's golf program. It's his way of showing appreciation for the program that has supported him throughout his career.
"The Illinois community has been very supportive. When I am traveling and competing, very rarely does a tournament go by when I don't hear someone yell out an I-L-L. It's always fun, and when I won the tourney in Chicago (1996 Motorola Western Open), it was a very special place for me to win. It was near my home state of Wisconsin and it was here in Illinois, which also feels like home to me."
Coming back for the fundraiser also gives Stricker a chance to catch up with fellow golf professional and former Illini teammate, head coach Mike Small. Stricker and Small were both members of Illinois' last Big Ten Championship team in 1988, and both turned pro in 1990.
"We're close. If we lived in the same town, I'm sure we would be hanging out all the time. We do talk on the phone quite a bit. I see how he's doing and I see how his team is doing. He's been playing really well lately, so I've been following his golf career, too. We were really close playing together on the team in the late `80s, so it's really nice we can continue this relationship throughout the years."
Of course, even a close friendship does not take the competitive edge off of Stricker's game. The PGA Tour member would take a round of golf with Small as seriously as any other.
"We haven't been able to play at all for a long time. We keep meaning to get together, but we haven't been able to. I'm sure if we did get together, though, there would be a big match going on."
That sounds like a challenge.
