Barnett-Howe blends with men

Posted: Aug. 26, 2008 by Dan Manoyan

These days, Carolyn Barnett-Howe slips in and out of the Wisconsin State Open scene as comfortably as a pair of high-mileage Foot-Joys.

When she pulls up to the scorer’s tent in her golf cart, there are no audible gasps of amazement that someone of her gender is actually competing in the tournament. When she hovers over putt, there is no finger-pointing accompanied by comments like “there she is!”

After 13 go-rounds with the state’s best players, it can be said . . . she blends.

“It is an ‘Open’ after all,” she reasons.

Being the only woman in a man’s world hasn’t always been as smooth, say as sipping Arnold Palmers at the 19th hole. Barnett-Howe can’t remember the year, but she’ll never forget the words she heard after posting an 82 at Blackwolf Run, set up at a monstrously long 7,200 yards, at one State Open in this decade.

“One of the fathers of the one of the players — I won’t mention any names — says to me, ‘You shot an 82; who would ever want to take a lesson from you?’

“You know what I told him? I said ‘I don’t see your name up there on the board anywhere. You should try it some time.’ ”

Barnett-Howe, now 46 and still giving lessons through her own Appleton company “Swing Solutions” with her husband Steve Howe and at Irish Waters in Kaukauna, is as feisty as she is talented. While she is generally welcomed by her fellow players at the State Open these days, she remembers the bad old days.

“Let’s put it this way, I think I know how Jackie Robinson must have felt,” said Barnett-Howe, who is actually the second woman to qualify for the tournament. Cindy Swift was the first, playing in the tournament in early 1980s.

“There have been some less-than-kind things said in past years.”

Her fellow competitors can’t complain about Barnett-Howe getting any breaks because she plays from the same tees as the men. The only concession that is made to her is that she is allowed to wear Bermuda shorts, instead of the dress slacks the men are required to wear.

As petty as it may seem, Barnett-Howe’s golf apparel became a burning issue before the 1992 State Open at Oneida Country Club in Green Bay.

“It all got started because the newspaper up there wrote that if I can’t wear pants, I shouldn’t be allowed to play. That is just so dumb. That would be like saying Condoleezza Rice has to wear pants because she is the Secretary of State. She is still a woman even though she is Secretary of State.

“Then, one of the pros announced that he was going to protest my presence if I showed up to play. Thank God, there were some men on the board who knew what they were doing.”

Barnett-Howe is particularly thankful to retired Madison Blackhawk Country Club pro Mike Schnarr, who was, in effect, her Branch Rickey.

“He was the president of the (Wisconsin) Section at the time and told this pro that I had every right to be in the tournament and every right to dress as a female. Mike Schnarr is the type of gentleman you like to remember.”

“I’ve never talked to Mike about this, but what he did really means a lot to me. It’s never been an issue since.

“I guess it’s natural that I had to go through that. I mean when Annika (Sorenstam) played a PGA Tour event, she had her critics like Vijay (Singh). But the gracious gentlemen I’ve played with have far outweighed the other kind. I don’t think I’ve ever played with a partner who wasn’t gracious, to be honest.”

Certainly that was true at the recently completed State Open at Eau Claire Country Club. Barnett-Howe was paired in the first two rounds with Derek Pirkl of Stoughton and prominent Milwaukee amateur, Gary Menzel.

“It’s a blast playing with Carolyn,” Menzel said. “I’ve known her for a while but we never played together before last week and she is great to play with.

“There still may be some guys who don’t want her out there, but she plays from the same tees and conditions as us, so why shouldn’t she play?”

It can never be argued that Barnett-Howe is some sort of token female who doesn’t know how to play the game. She has won four State Women’s Opens and two PGA Women’s National Club Pro Championships.

Although she has never made a cut in 13 State Open tries, she has come close on several occasions, including this year when she shot a two-round score of 154 (77-77, 12-over par) and missed by four strokes.

That placed her near the middle of the pack for the tournament, with 52 of the state’s best players finishing below her on the scoreboard.

“I know I’m not as good as most of these guys, but the reason I keep playing (in the State Open) is because I feel I can always learn something from them. I’m always watching and observing what they do.

“I think probably a lot of the success I’ve had in women’s tournaments is because of my experience playing against the men. The women’s tournaments seem easy after playing against these guys.”

Barnett-Howe’s learning experience hasn’t been limited to just ball striking. She claims she has learned plenty about the different psyche of the male and female golfer.

“The main thing is now I know how to behave like a guy on the golf course,” she said. “I don’t make a spectacle of myself, I don’t get in anybody’s way and I know when to say ‘good shot’ and when to be quiet. I don’t think anybody would ever say of me, ‘she doesn’t know when to shut up.’

“I’m very quiet when I play with the men. By nature men are more serious and more quiet when they play competitive golf. There are some competitive women who aren’t very chatty, but generally most of the women I play with like to talk on the golf course.”

Although she isn’t the first woman to play in the tournament, Barnett-Howe would like to be the first woman to make the cut. She knows that at age 46, her biological clock is ticking on that count.

“I haven’t made a cut, but I still think I might,” she said. “I’m playing the best golf of my career in my 40s . . . that’s why I don’t quit trying.

“I just keep having fun. I’ve missed the cut 13 times, but I don’t see it as a failure at all.

“The way I look at it, I’ve had the honor of qualifying 13 times.

“That’s a lot for any professional, male or female.”

Send e-mail to dmanoyan@journalsentinel.com

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Concept:
Provide girls with the same high quality instruction that we have been offering for the boys, while keeping in mind that girls socialize differently than boys. Every golf event was accompanied by a social event of some sort, so the girls would feel less threatened. It doesn’t mean the level of instruction was any less quality than my other programs, it was just presented differently.

Program Goals:
Our goal is to show girls that golf is a great game. My personal belief is that girls use most sports simply as a vehicle for gathering with their friends. I don’t think they say, “wow, I am totally addicted to this bumping and spiking a volleyball routine” and/or “my day is just not complete until I run another pacer for soccer…” Boys, I could understand that logic, but not for the majority of girls. As such, I believe that if I provide a fun, wholesome arena for them to gather, they will gravitate towards (and eventually learn to enjoy) golf just like they would any other sport.
My other main reason for sharing golf with girls (and boys) is that it is a great family game. Little girls can spend quality time with their dad, mom, brother, and grandparents – all through golf. It will also serve girls well when they are adults and most parents seem to understand this. That was my experience growing up and I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

No one fears 40 like golfers. The nerves start to fray, the eyes aren’t as sharp, the muscles are not as durable and often the will not as strong.

Then there’s Appleton’s Carolyn Barnett-Howe, 44 years old and getting better by the day.

“Yeah, I don’t know what it is. I must be a fine wine or something,” said Barnett-Howe, who fired a three-over 74 Thursday and captured her second consecutive Wisconsin Women’s State Open golf championship at Bristlecone Pines Golf Course in Hartford.

“All of a sudden, some lightbulb must have went on, because now I think I can do it.”

After winning the Women’s State Open title last year, Barnett-Howe went on to capture the Women’s National Club Pro Championship over the winter. Thursday, she added her third Women’s State Open title overall with a five-shot victory over Rachel Montaba of Quit-Qui-Oc Golf Course.

“I am old, aren’t I?” Barnett-Howe said. “But I can still hit it long and I’m starting to putt really well, and that makes the game a lot easier. I didn’t make as many birdies the last two days, but I just rolled the ball really well.”

The tournament turned on the par-five 16th when Montaba, trailing by two shots, decided to go for the green in two. But her approach fell short and into the water.

“It was a pretty gutsy move, and actually I’m flattered she went for it, because it meant she didn’t think I was coming back to her,” said Barnett-Howe. “She took a chance and it didn’t work out.”

Shortly after the victory, Barnett-Howe said she received congratulatory calls from several of her high school students, whom she teaches along with her husband, Steve Howe, at Swing Solutions.

“It’s a nice sense of accomplishment,” she said. “With each passing year, I’m older, but I feel better mentally. I’m staying patient and waiting for things to happen. I don’t get as frustrated as I did when I was younger.”

The low round of the day was turned in by Little Chute’s Joellyn Crooks, formerly Erdmann, who played on the LPGA Tour last season. A shoulder injury sidelined her this season, but she came from her home in North Carolina and turned in rounds of 81-72.

Hartland – Moments after repeating as champion of the Wisconsin State Women’s Open, Carolyn Barnett-Howe said she was going to look into playing in the Illinois and Michigan State Opens, as well.

“I hear they are open (to outsiders), so I think I’ll look into playing in Illinois and Michigan,” Barnett-Howe said. “Why not try to pull off the tri-state trio?

“I’m 44 and I’m ready to play.”

That could be bad news for the Flatlanders and Yoopers. Barnett-Howe, a teaching pro at Irish Waters Golf Club who also runs a youth golf program in the Appleton area called “Swing Solutions,” added a 3-over-par 74 on Thursday to her 73 on Wednesday to run away with the title at Bristlecone Pines.

It was Barnett-Howe’s third state title and it seems to be getting easier. Her 147 total was five strokes better than Quit-Qui-Oc Golf Club professional Rachel Montaba and Hartland amateur Jessie Hauser, both at 152. Joellyn Crooks, who retired from the LPGA and competitive golf after suffering a shoulder injury last year, rebounded from her disappointing 81 on Wednesday with the low round of the tournament, a 72 on Thursday, to finish fourth at 153.

Barnett-Howe started the day a stroke ahead of Montaba and after 12 holes of head-to-head competition, they were still in that position. Montaba made up two strokes when she birdied 11 and Barnett-Howe made bogey at 12.

When Barnett-Howe flared her drive toward the out of bounds at 13, it appeared there would be even more momentum in Montaba’s favor. But a waste bunker saved Barnett-Howe from rolling out of bounds and she and Montaba both made bogeys on the hole.

“That was probably my poorest drive of the tournament,” Barnett-Howe said. “The adrenaline started to rush to my head when it looked like I was going out of bounds. To make a bogey there was like a gift.

“There could have been a huge swing there. Rachel is a great player and I have a lot of respect for her. I really didn’t feel comfortable with my lead all day.”

Well, at least not until the 16th hole. Trailing by two strokes heading into the 466-yard par-5 16th, Montaba took a gamble that cost her dearly.

Facing a 200-yard carry and 220 yards to the center of the green, Montaba gambled that she could carry the creek that protects the front of the green in two.

Instead, she dribbled her approach into the creek and made double-bogey 7 on the hole to fall four back with two holes to play.

“With three holes left and down two shots, I knew Carolyn wasn’t going to do anything stupid and she was in position to make a birdie there,” Montaba explained. “So, realistically, for me to have a chance, I had to go for it.”

“I had enough club to get over the water, but unfortunately it leaked on me. That’s my old nemesis. If I miss I usually miss to the right.”

Montaba made a bogey on the short but tricky 17th and when Barnett-Howe made par to go five up, she knew the title was hers.

Barnett-Howe played the 389-yard finishing hole conservatively, teeing off with her 3-wood, but still ended up in the steep, left green-side bunker

She hit a flier out of the trap but it caught the flag and dropped 5 feet from the cup, from where she made par. If the ball hadn’t caught the flag, she would have been well off the green.

“I got a lucky break there, but you need one of those every once in a while,” Barnett-Howe said.

“There are a lot of bad breaks in golf, so you have to get a good one once in a while,” Montaba said. “Even if she hadn’t hit the flag, Carolyn would have made a 5 anyhow.

“That’s the kind of player she is.”
State Open scores
Bristlecone Pines
Par 71; 6,015 yards
147 — Carolyn Barnett-Howe (73-74).152 — Rachel Montaha (74-78); Jessie Hauser (79-73).153 — Joellyn Crooks (81-72).154 — Sydney Moore (77-77); Andrea Nelson (75-79).157 — Katie Elliott (79-78).159 — Andrea Wieland (82-77).160 — Joyce Malison (81-79).161 — Melissa Martin (80-81).162 — Katie Falk (83-79).163 — Maggie Loney (81-82); Samara Kluever (86-77).164 — Nacheynah Green (78-86).165 — Ann Marie Sztukowski (79-86).166 — Rachel Roberg (82-84).167 — Lindsay Danielson (88-79).168 — Ellie Arkin (85-83).169 — Barb Casper (82-87).172 — Nicole Morse (86-86).174 — Amy Ranzen (88-86).175 — Lauren Brooks (92-83); Samantha Forster (89-86).176 — Analise Johnson (87-89); Morgan Heyman (89-87); Maureen Liddy (83-93).178 — Sarah Swanson (86-92).185 — Heather Herrick (97-88).186 — Elizabeth Warren (92-94).192 — Meagan Hayes (95-97).198 — Kallie Micklos (99-99).

Ryan Prickette, Xavier

Age: 16

Year: Sophomore

Accomplishments

• Averaged 35.43 per nine holes.
• Was Xavier’s top golfer and helped the Hawks to their second consecutive Valley 8 conference title.
• Was named Valley 8’s player of the year for second consecutive season.

Ouch!

On suffering his back injury before WIAA regionals: “It was really frustrating. It came at the absolute worst time. I kind of ignored it all year. I felt it kind of grew on me all year. I got some (medication), but it didn’t make me feel 100 percent. I wasn’t confident because I couldn’t practice before regionals. And it was a struggle all day (at regionals).

No time for summer vacation

What part of your game do you want to work on this summer? Ball striking. That may be my weakest point. My putting is the best part of my game, but as of late it hasn’t been that great. But I’m constantly working on everything.

Family guy

If I could golf against any player, I would pick: My family. I’ve played with them all my life.

What the expert says:

Steve Howe, Xavier coach: “He’s become stronger physically. He’s hitting the ball 30 yards farther this year. That brought all the par-fives reachable in two shots. We try in the wintertime to breed success by patting them on the back. Telling them ‘You’re the guy to beat out there’. He’s got that confidence that if you want to win, you have to beat me.