The division will be this different this weekend, but Colette Quam is hoping the results will be much the same during the South Dakota Golf Association Two-Woman State Tournament today and Sunday at Moccasin Creek Country Club.
Quam and her partner, Julie King of Sioux Falls, will be part of the new Masters Division for golfers age 65 and older.
“It sure makes it easier because some really good golfers have come of age; really, really good golfers,” Quam said. “So some of those top golfers we won’t have to compete against. And in the Masters division they’re moving the tees forward a bit.”
Not that Quam and King have had any issues competing in the Senior Division in the past. The two have combined for a pair of state championships, and five runner-up finishes, including two playoffs, in the past seven seasons.
“I think we make a good team,” Quam said. “She has an excellent short game.”
Interestingly enough, both women were in search of a partner at the same time eight years ago.
“Her partner moved away the same year that my partner suddenly had a conflict, and Jackie Witlock was the one who linked us up together,” Quam said of another local golfer. “I had met Julie just one time and so we got together, and we did quite well that first year. We made it to a playoff and ended up in second place.”
What Quam found out was that the two not only have games that mesh, they also share the same mindset.
“We just complement each other,” Quam said. “And she also has the right demeanor. She’s easy going and yet focused.”
Quam, who has been around sports her whole life, is a former standout tennis player who took up golf in the mid 1980s. It was anything but instant success. She recalled playing in her first tournament in 1989.
“I shot a 123,” Quam said laughing. “That’s a one-day total. I was way in the back of the pack, so it’s taken decades to get better. And that’s the other thing I think that attracts people to golf, because you can improve.”
There is no doubt that Quam has improved dramatically since those early days and is a currently a 9-handicap at Moccasin Creek Country Club, meaning she’s expected to shoot rounds of about 81.
Quam said it’s taken her a bit longer than others to refine her game.
“It took me a long time,” Quam said. “I’ve seen other girls pick up the sport and get good in a very short period of time. I think it took me decades.”
These days Quam enjoys both pickleball and golf.
“I think pickleball and golf make a nice combination,” Quam said, “because one is more of a game that requires focus and concentration, whereas pickleball is more just reacting.”
Quam said there is something about the game of golf that keeps bringing her back to the course.
“I think golf is a bit addicting, because you can have some success that makes you want more success. … It’s a challenge,” Quam said. “I think it’s the hardest sport I’ve ever tried to play. I have kind of played them all and golf is the hardest.”
So difficult in fact, that there are times when Quam is forced to laugh and be tempted to walk away when suddenly the game beckons her back.
“We kind of laugh about it,” Quam said. “Even if we’re having a crummy round and it invariably happens that maybe on the 18th hole you sink a long putt. OK, I guess I’ll come back and try again, and then we laugh.”
Quam is grateful for the newly created Masters division.
“I am feeling blessed to be able to compete,” Quam said. “My goal is always to do the best that I can do … but to me the great enjoyment is that I can try.”
Ever the competitor, Quam is always up for a challenge, from cards to pickleball or golf. That will probably never change.
“I like to compete,” Quam said. “Whether it be cards or whatever, I do like to compete.”
However, Quam said she has learned to take things in stride through the years.
“I’m a lot more casual than I used to be,” she said.
Now days, it’s all about being with friends and enjoying her time on the course.
“I’m not worried about losing. That part doesn’t matter to me anymore,” Quam said. “I’m just out there trying to do the best I can every day.”
While golf has been the toughest sport to master, Quam doesn’t plan giving up on it any time soon.
“I hope I can play golf forever,” Quam said. “It will be the thing I think I can hang onto the longest.”
And no matter how challenging life gets out on the course, Quam always finds herself gravitating back to the sport day after day. She said taking lessons help, and so does having the right perspective.
“You also have to be able to laugh at yourself,” Quam said. “There are times when I throw up my hands and laugh at myself, and try again the next day.”
To see Saturday’s tee times, click on the following link:
