Casey Grice has experienced milestones along the way that foretold a career in golf.
There was learning the game from her grandfather, Malcolm Douglass, at age 12 and finding a lifelong coach, Jeanne Sutherland, a few months later in her hometown, College Station, Texas. Capturing the Class 5A title as a sophomore in the ultra-competitive Texas high school tournament gave her more confidence and attracted the attention of college recruiters. Next came winning the Atlantic Coast Conference team title during her freshman season at the University of North Carolina as she went on to become a two-time all-ACC and All-American golfer during a three-year stint in Chapel Hill, N.C. She was so focused on the final step to the LPGA that she graduated in three years with a degree in Exercise and Sports Science with a focus on sports management.
“Playing professional golf has always been my dream, so getting away from home for college and seeing what’s out there was important to me,” Grice said. “When I won the state championship in high school, that goal of playing golf in college became more realistic. Then in college, I was really consistent and figured that I could graduate a year early and jump right into a professional career.”
The progression continues as Grice, 22, becomes more familiar with professional golf. As a rookie on the Epson Tour, the start of the season was a bit rocky. But Grice has rallied with a tie for eighth in early May at the Self Regional Healthcare Foundation Women’s Health Charity Classic at Greenwood, S.C., and a career-best third at the Friends of Mission Charity Classic the following week in Asheville, N.C. She enters this week’s FireKeepers Hotel and Casino Classic in Battle Creek, Mich., with $13,897 in earnings. That ranks 18th on the money list and just more than $6,000 out of 10th place on the money list and a card for the 2015 LPGA.
“It’s been awesome, being on my own traveling,” Grice said. “Katy Mundy and I have been tag-teaming the driving and being as frugal as possible. I have really settled in and figured out a plan for when to play and when to practice. It’s really starting to show. My game is really improving.”
Grice experienced what part of her game needed some improvement last year when, as an amateur, she qualified for the North Texas LPGA Shootout. “Short game, short game – the game is all about 100 yards and in and putting,” she said. Grice has also learned how to connect with her instructor, Sutherland, now the head women’s coach at SMU, via video snippets of her swing and brief phone conversations.
When she’s not focused on golf, Grice relaxes by designing and maintaining her own web site, www.caseygrice.com, and by developing her own artwork, most of which is focused on inspirational words and is passed on for birthdays and other special occasions.
“I’ve always loved drawing and words,” Grice said. “I just use them for presents with quotes and verses. It’s a free-time project, kind of another fun side to when I’m not playing golf.”
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