Driving from Venice, Fla., to Rome, Ga., in one day is something no one would want to do, especially if you had to do it alone.
But for Caroline Blaylock, the 10-hour trip on Friday was worth it and, in one of those ironic ways, the long road home was part of her long road back to being a professional golfer.
During the final round of the second stage of the LPGA Tour qualifying school on Friday at The Plantation in Venice, Blaylock shot a 3-under 69 to earn the right to play in the final qualifying tournament stage where the former Darlington standout could regain her LPGA Tour card.
“Physically and mechanically, I’m there,” said Blaylock, who after an All-American career at Furman played on the LPGA ranks from 1997 until 2003, when she turned her attention to her new family.
“But mentally, that’s the hard part,” she said. “Today I know I had to shoot under par to make the cut, so I kept myself in that frame of mind.
“It was pretty fun, but what was funny was that on that first day when I went to the range, I knew only about two people.”
Blaylock entered the final round of the four-day tourney 11 strokes above par, but made the charge going to a club that Greater Rome’s golf circuit knows she can hit — the driver.
“In the other three rounds, I guess I used it maybe twice each day,” she said. “(On Friday), I used it on 12 holes.”
Last month, Blaylock’s first attempt to qualify for the final stage came up short at Mission Hills in Palm Springs, Calif., when she missed the cut.
“I really debated whether or not I would come down here,” she said about doubts she had about resuming her professional career. “I thought about the kids, my husband, work, money — things that are important.
“But my mom set me straight. She told me that she knew I could do it and told me that she knew I knew I could do it.”
Blaylock’s final trip down the road comes Nov. 29-Dec. 3 in the final qualifier at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla.
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