Greenwood High School golfer Sydnie Gamble has earned an opportunity to play on one of the world's great golf courses next month when she travels to California to take part in the 2016 Nature Valley First Tee Open at Pebble Beach. She will be joined by Will Gibson of Fort Smith Southside.
Opened in 1919, the exquisite beauty and unique challenges of Pebble Beach Golf Links, billed as the greatest public course in America, has electrified golfers and spectators alike.
Located about 75 miles south of San Jose or 120 miles southeast of San Francisco, the course hugs California’s rugged coastline, providing wide-open vistas, cliff-side fairways, and sloping greens. Pebble Beach has been the home of five U.S. Open championships.
Gamble and Gibson both represent the best of Fort Smith's First Tee program. A junior for the Lady Bulldogs, Gamble sees her trip west as the fulfillment of a long-time goal. "It's been my dream since I started out here," she said. "I've seen everybody go through the program, and I've heard the stories. They say it's just the best experience they've ever had."
Gamble is only the second female player from Fort Smith First Tee to go to Pebble Beach. But she isn't just an excellent youth golfer, Gamble is the current face of the local First Tee program.
"I know she's going to be a great ambassador – a great example for the First Tee," said program director Chris Murphy. "She started out here at age three, and she's worked herself all the way up through the ranks. She's now an ace level participant, [and] a state champion [at Greenwood].
"She's a heck of a player, but she's a better person," added Murphy. "She's a great citizen and role model for kids to look up to. Our kids really enjoy it when she can get out here. She's busy with tournaments and with school, [but] when she can get out here, you can see it in the kids' eyes."
As a GHS freshman, Gamble was crowned the 6A medalist champion in the fall of 2014. Last year she finished as state runner-up. "I would like to win medalist again," she said.
To improve her performance on the links, Gamble employs Bentonville pro Philip Walker as her swing coach, and Walker was blunt in his early assessment of Gamble. "He said my swing was ugly," she admitted. So starting with her grip, Gamble has reinvented what was already a pretty solid game.
"We've rebuilt my swing from the bottom up," said Gamble. "I go see him every other week, and I practice 24/7. I've seen major improvements," she added.
The Nature Valley First Tee Open at Pebble Beach will be played the third week in September. The tournament is a 54-hole event featuring 81 PGA tour players, 81 junior golfers ages 15-18, and 162 amateur players. In addition to Pebble Beach, some of the action will also take place at Poppy Hills Golf Course, a part of Pebble Beach Resorts.
The tournament chairman is famous actor, director, and avid linkster Clint Eastwood. The honorary co-chair is legendary golfer Arnold Palmer. For the professionals, the total purse is two million dollars, with proceeds from the event going to support First Tee activities across the country.
While still awaiting some of the details of the event, Gamble said that the tournament will feature senior pros age 50 and older in groups of four including one pro, one First Tee youth player, and two amateurs. While she has volunteered at the Northwest Arkansas LPGA tournament the past couple of years, Gamble has never actually played with a professional golfer, and looks forward to the experience.
She also explained how she was chosen. "It was an application process," she said. "I had to write five essays over various topics. I had to have a certain [golf] handicap, and I had to volunteer a certain number of hours at First Tee and away from First Tee." Academics was also part of the equation, and Sydnie had a grade point average of 3.83 after her sophomore year.
"They actually announced our names on the morning drive show on the golf channel," she said, explaining how each participant learned of their selection. "I was very happy. I did actually start crying a little. It was kind of surreal. I was shocked."
As for her future and the game of golf, Gamble has two more seasons to play on the high school level before moving on to college. "The only coach I've really talked to is the UAFS coach," she said. But given her talent and drive to succeed, many other college coaches will be calling on her soon.
Expressing a desire to remain close to family and Greenwood, Gamble added, "I would like to stay close to home and I'd like to stay in-state. I'd like to play at the University of Arkansas."
Turning pro after college remains a hope, but the Greenwood teen is also realistic about her chances and has a backup plan already in place. "It's a dream to go pro," she said. "If it happens, I would love it. But I would also like to go into the medical field." She is considering radiology or anesthesiology.
Sydnie is the daughter of Terrie and Bryan Gamble of Greenwood, and they will be accompanying her to California. "Both of my parents are going and both of my grandparents," she said. "[The tournament] rented out an entire hotel, so you can stay in that hotel room with your parents."