Competitive golf on the amateur and professional levels can take players worldwide.
For Bryce Molder (Conway) and David Lingmerth, playing collegiate golf took them around the globe before they embarked on their respective professional careers. Molder, a Georgia Tech graduate, played on three Arnold Palmer Cup teams, while Lingmerth of Sweden finished his eligibility at the University of Arkansas in 2010 before playing for the International squad.
Both are among more than 50 players who have participated in the Palmer Cup and won professionally. There will be 48 men and women representing U.S. and International teams with future professional aspirations teeing off in this year's Palmer Cup beginning Friday at The Alotian Club in Roland.
"I remember when I got selected to the first one, it was late in my freshman year and it was at St. Andrews, so that was so exciting," said Molder, a four-time first-team All-American at Georgia Tech whose U.S. team tied Great Britain and Ireland in 1998 and later was victorious in 1999 and 2001. "I'd never been overseas to play golf at the time, and to be selected to a small team and to go play there was unreal. It was the first opportunity I had to represent my country, so that was an amazing opportunity I certainly remember."
Lingmerth, 31, was a two-time NCAA All-American for the Razorbacks who heard he made the Palmer Cup at the conclusion of his senior season in 2010. He said he had a satisfying career with the Razorbacks and was looking forward to trying his hand professionally when he learned he had one more collegiate event left to play.
"One of the few things I had done growing up was I played for the national team in Sweden a fair bit, but I had not gotten an opportunity to represent Europe," said Lingmerth, whose lone PGA Tour victory came at the Memorial Tournament in 2015. "I thought that would be awesome to get to experience that with a team from Europe and try to battle it out with the United States team."
Molder, 40, currently works in commercial real estate in Scottsdale, Ariz., after retiring professionally in the fall of 2017 with one PGA Tour victory, the 2011 Frys.com Open. He remembers playing alongside strong U.S. players such as Charles Howell III and Matt Kuchar, his Georgia Tech teammate from 1997-2000. As a freshman, Molder played against Northwestern freshman Luke Donald, who was representing Great Britain. Donald won the 1999 NCAA championship before winning 17 times professionally.
"In golf, you don't get a lot of opportunities to play as a team, and then you start wearing the U.S. colors and it just all together changes," Molder said. "At that time, you never thought about golf in the Olympics. It wasn't a thing, wasn't a reality. There weren't many opportunities to represent your country as a team, so it was definitely an honor to play in that tournament."
Royal Portrush Golf Club hosted the Palmer Cup for Lingmerth's 2010 appearance. It was a loss for the Internationals, one Lingmerth said "stung," but an experience that got him ready for life in the professional ranks.
"Up until that point, Royal Portrush was probably my favorite course I'd ever played, a great venue historically," Lingmerth said. "I think I lost one match, won a couple. So I was happy the way I handled the whole tournament. Both teams had players that went on to do good things.
"It's always a great field every year in the Palmer Cup. A great steppingstone to play against as good a quality amateur golf field anywhere."
Both Molder and Lingmerth said casual fans outside of Arkansas should be impressed that The Alotian Club is hosting one of the world's premier intercollegiate golf tournaments.
"One of the Palmer Cup teams I played for was at The Honors Course in Chattanooga, Tenn.," Molder said. "It's not always in big cities or at golf courses that have 100 years of history or so. It's bounced around and ended up at some nice venues. A lot of times the best venues are just like Alotian, the highest of quality but also somewhat of an intimate setting that is perfect for this type of event."
Lingmerth, who has been battling an injury this season, said The Alotian Club hosting the Palmer Cup and the 2013 Western Amateur, and Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville securing the recent NCAA championships can only enhance the state's reputation for amateur golf events.
"Golf has been a passion of mine since my early years," Lingmerth said. "Having some success has taken me a lot of places I never thought I'd get to visit and being able to play in some of these amazing events, so I'm excited Arkansas is getting to host some big-time amateur events. It's pretty cool. Little Arkansas. It's going be an awesome time for the state."
Sports on 06/02/2019