TOLEDO, Ohio — For LPGA legend Audra Burks, the Greater Toledo Classic is both a blast from the past and a moment that requires her to be in the present.
Competing as part of the Legends of the LPGA field at the Greater Toledo Classic, the Illinois native is proving that she still has what it takes to play professional golf at a competitive level. But as she makes her way around Highland Meadows Golf Club’s practice facilities, she’s reminded of the life she used to live as a member of the LPGA's official qualifying tour.
When Burks teed it up in 1999, the Tour was called the Futures Golf Tour, and it was in its inaugural year of being recognized as the Road to the LPGA. There were three LPGA Tour cards awarded based on the Official Money List, and Burks, who debuted on the Futures Tour in 1990, claimed one of them, alongside Grace Park and Marilyn Lovander.
She was pleasantly surprised to learn that 15 cards are now awarded at the end of the season, a monumental step up from when she left what is now known as the Epson Tour.
"If you look at the growth of the Epson Tour, whether you call it the Futures Tour, Symetra, or Duramed, throughout the years, it's progressed every year to a higher level," said Burks, who also played the Tour in 2007. "You can see where women's golf has grown to. The dedication and the amount of players and the depth of the Epson Tour. Every woman out here has the opportunity to win every week, where back in the day, that was not the case. You had maybe 25 to 30 that were capable, and the rest were not."
While the Greater Toledo Classic, being hosted by Stacy Lewis, may seem like just another event on the 20-tournament Epson Tour schedule, the purpose of this unique format is much greater. Combining the past, the Legends of the LPGA, and the future, the Epson Tour, gives the young talent competing on the Road to the LPGA an opportunity to be mentored, learning on and off the course how to make their game and brands better from some of female golf’s greats.
Burks, the president of the Legends of the LPGA, spent the early part of the week meeting Epson Tour athletes, having conversations and sharing words of wisdom. She’s also encouraging other legends to do the same.
"I think that's the week's goal," Burks said. "To really get to know some of these players and maybe exchange some phone numbers and check on them as they progress through their careers as professional golfers.
"We treated golf as a business, but it's grown so much more business-like, and I think sometimes they forget why they started playing golf. They started playing golf because they love the sport and to have fun. I think for us to mentor them, to show them that there is more to life than standing out there hitting balls or what they shoot on the golf course, that they still have to have a little fun, it's such a great opportunity to get to meet some of these young players and to really help them."
While Burks' perspective has shifted into mentorship mode as she works to steward some of the game's young talents, she’s also appreciative of the ability to continue her career on the Legends of the LPGA Tour, always keeping gratitude in the back of her mind every time she tees it up.
"We're very fortunate in life that we got to live our dreams to play professional golf," Burks said. "Whether I can still do it at this level or even when I first started, it's something that you should never take for granted and be very happy that you've been able to do it for as long as you can do it."