TOLEDO, OHIO – As Mina Harigae signed autographs at the Meijer LPGA Classic in Grand Rapids, Michigan, one fan pointed to the Rolex ad in her program and said, “You can just sign it there. I’m sure you have five Rolexes at home.”
“I was like what?” said Harigae. “What makes you think that?”
It was just last year that Harigae, a 31-year-old rookie on the U.S. Solheim Cup team, was fighting for birdies on the Cactus Tour just to pay rent.
Rock bottom, she said, came when she missed seven cuts in a row to end her season in 2019 and went back to LPGA Q-School. Then the pandemic hit after she’d played in one event and missed the cut. The generosity of friends and family helped in the dark days, but Harigae hadn’t had a sponsor in years, and the bills kept coming.
“I felt very helpless,” she told Golfweek by phone the weekend before the Solheim Cup. “It felt like I was racing against time … the walls were closing in on me.”
As glamorous as the Solheim Cup stage appears – and it is the crown jewel of the LPGA – getting there doesn’t necessarily translate to five Rolex watches and private jets. There’s often a thin line between financial security on the LPGA and sheer panic.
This isn’t the kind of story that will play out at the Ryder Cup next month.
POD!!!! @SolheimCupUSA @TheSolheimCup pic.twitter.com/OuTwnMyoAi
— Mina Harigae (@minaharigae) September 1, 2021
There isn’t one moment that Harigae, one of three captain’s picks made by Pat Hurst, can point to that turned things around. Her fiancé and caddie, Travis Kreiter, suggested late in 2019 that she use the claw grip while putting, a change that immediately felt more natural. She’s currently ninth in putts per greens in regulation on tour.
Last winter, Harigae spent hours grinding on swing changes at Superstition Mountain Golf and Country Club in Gold Canyon, Arizona, texting videos to Kreiter, who was working in the shop.
She won four times on the Cactus Tour during the tour’s 166-day pandemic break, earning checks of around $2,500 with exceptionally low scores. Harigae won one event by 16 strokes with a closing 61.
It was actually after the LPGA Drive On event here at Inverness, where Harigae tied for sixth, that she received word that PXG planned to sign her to a contract. The financial security of a sponsor immediately freed her up.
“I was able to just go play golf,” said Harigae, who posted three additional top 10s last season.
It was at the Drive On event in October of last year at Reynolds Lake Oconee that Harigae first noticed U.S. captain Pat Hurst following her group.
For many LPGA fans, Harigae first came on the radar last month at the AIG Women’s British Open, where she shared the 36-hole lead with Georgia Hall at Carnoustie.
After a disappointing 76 on Saturday, Kreiter talked her into going to the range after the round. They were alone there, and Harigae took the time to vent.
On the way back to the hotel, Kreiter talked about how cool it was to walk out of the tunnel on Saturday at a place like Carnoustie with the grandstands full. Said he had goosebumps.
Harigae began to wonder why she hadn’t felt any goosebumps.
“That made me realize that I was so wrapped up in myself that it really didn’t affect me,” she said, “and it should have.”
After Saturday’s round, Kreiter suggested to Harigae that she should share what she’s feeling on social media. Maybe it will make her feel lighter.
“I was like, why would that do that? How would that make me feel better?” she said.
“And you know, the weirdest thing is, it totally made me feel better. I immediately felt better, as soon as I hit post.”
She was also incredibly surprised by how well her honest thread was received, learning from someone back in the U.S. that it had been read on Golf Channel.
Golf can be hard sometimes, and today was one of those days. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in situations and not being able to see the big picture. I’ve come a long way and I appreciate so much where I am now compared to 14 months ago. @AIGWomensOpen 1/4 pic.twitter.com/QEFcduRpzW
— Mina Harigae (@minaharigae) August 21, 2021
Harigae, who is the fourth-oldest American rookie in Solheim Cup history, aims to relish the moment she arrives at the first tee Saturday at Inverness. She’s eager to soak in a milestone that she’s been working toward her entire life. A more appreciative approach, she figures, will keep her from being so tight.
Assistant captain Michelle Wie West, who heads up Harigae’s pod, told her she needed to be 100 percent honest about everything right away. Don’t just go with the flow about, say, hitting the first tee shot, because it’s not going to help you or the team.
Lexi Thompson chimed in to say there have been times when she didn’t want to hit first. If Thompson can say that, Harigae thought, then she can, too.
Harigae was a prodigious California teen, winning the California Women’s Amateur for four consecutive years starting at age 12. She’s a USGA champion, the kind of player whose amateur record pointed toward a sparkling professional career.
Even now, Harigae has yet to win on the LPGA. Her best major finish – T-13 – came two weeks ago at Carnoustie. At this time last year, Harigae was ranked 241st in the world. She’s now 62nd.
“I really do hope it does inspire some players,” said Harigae of her recent surge.
“I also hope this story shows the non-golfers that LPGA golfers are way different than the PGA Tour. We don’t have the big endorsements.”
And while there are a select few who do have lucrative watch contracts, the vast majority are like Harigae: grinding and hustling in the hope that soon, it will be their time to shine.