Inside a day in the life of an LPGA mom

Happy Mother’s Day! This week, we’re highlighting the experiences of some of the most high-profile women in the game, each of whom share a meaningful title: Mom. Next up: two-time major winner and six-time U.S. Solheim Cup team member, Brittany Lincicome.

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As a 20-year LPGA Tour veteran, the tour grind is familiar to Brittany Lincicome, who played her first full LPGA season in 2005 when she was only 18 years old. Since then, Lincicome has become one of the most recognizable faces in women’s golf, with eight career victories — including two majors — and six U.S. Solheim Cup team appearances.

But these days, Lincicome’s life on tour looks decidedly different. In 2015, Lincicome married her husband, Dewald Gouws, and the couple welcomed daughters Emery and Sophia in 2019 and 2022, respectively. Both girls now travel with Lincicome as she competes.

The 2024 LPGA Tour schedule is comprised of 35 tournaments around the world. Even if a player tees it up in only 20 events, that equates to more than 100 days away from home each year. Like millions of other working moms, Lincicome has a lot on her plate, raising her daughters on the road while she squeezes in practice, competition, media and sponsor obligations on tour. It’s an unorthodox and fascinating lifestyle, and in honor of Mother’s Day, we wanted to get a glimpse of what daily life is like for LPGA moms who bring their kids with them to tournament stops. Lincicome graciously let us tag along with her and her adorable girls to experience a day in their life alongside them. We watched them have breakfast, go to daycare, and then hit the golf course for a pro-am and some practice before heading home. Here’s what a day in the life of a working LPGA Tour mom is really like — and make sure to check out the video above for a behind-the-scenes perspective.

IT’S 6:30 A.M. ON A WEDNESDAY morning, and Lincicome has already been up for over an hour. She’s ready for a full day in Gilbert, Ariz., where the LPGA Tour is stationed for that week’s Ford Championship.

Also already dressed and ready for action: Emery, who’s nearly five, and Sophia, who’s almost two. I’m already impressed by Lincicome’s efficiency! This week, Lincicome’s parents are also on hand. They often accompany Lincicome to help with childcare and support, especially when Lincicome’s husband, Dewald, isn’t able to join the family because of his own work obligations.

“I always joke and say somebody in the family has to work,” Lincicome said with a laugh. “He doesn’t get to come out too often.”

Once each girl’s teeth and hair are brushed and shoes are on, it’s time to head out. Breakfast is available at the course for both Lincicome and the kids, which is convenient for the whole family.

Emery and Sophia know what they like, so Lincicome fills their plates with breakfast favorites. At the table, Emery reveals her favorite dinosaur (the fictional Scorpios rex, of “Jurassic Park” fame) while Lincicome spoon-feeds oatmeal to Sophia. Does Lincicome feel like her life has become more or less organized since kids entered the picture?

“I think golf just makes you very, like, ‘I know exactly where I’m going to be every minute of the day,’ especially at a tournament,” Lincicome said. “Growing up being a golfer, transitioning to the mom role, it’s actually been pretty easy.”

After breakfast, Mom was ready to get to work. That means it’s time for the girls to check in to daycare, one of the LPGA’s most significant perks. The hours are flexible to accommodate each mom’s competitive schedule, and while the location varies by venue from week to week, the staff and setting remains as consistent as possible to create continuity for the kids. Bardine May, the LPGA’s daycare director, has been a constant presence for 21 years.

“I want to make their lives easier,” May said. “And I will do whatever it takes. My motto is just to help as much as I can. It’s hard being a traveling mom, and a lot of them are by themselves. So I want to make life easier.”

While the number of moms who avail themselves of the daycare varies year to year and even week to week, there’s a solid contingent of Lincicome’s peers who have children who attend, including Stacy Lewis and Paula Creamer. For Lincicome, having daycare at her disposal made having kids and continuing her playing career an easy decision.

“I’ve seen Bardine my whole career, and I know what happens and how it all works,” Lincicome said. “It was an easy transition. I was always going to have kids, whether I played golf or not, and it was easy to stick them in there when I go play. I trust them so much because I’ve been around them my whole life.”

At the Ford Championship, the daycare was set up in a room that is already set aside for childcare at Seville Golf & Country Club, and the bright, homey ambiance was much appreciated. Emery and Sophia settled in quickly, and Lincicome took an opportunity to slip away.

“Yesterday, [Sophia] cried,” Lincicome said as she walked outside. “Today, she doesn’t care.”

And with that, Lincicome’s official on-course workday began. But first: she made a quick stop at player dining to finish her breakfast. That’s mom life in a nutshell!

Wednesday was a pro-am day, so Brittany hit the range to warm-up before heading out to meet her group on the 1st tee. She impressed them right away, draining a difficult birdie putt on the 1st green after the rest of the group missed.

After the pro-am, Brittany managed to squeeze in a bit more practice on the putting green before returning to the daycare to pick up Emery and Sophia, who were eager to show her how they spent their time.

“You know they had a good day and a fun day, and they come running to you after you get in there, and it’s just the coolest feeling,” Lincicome said. “It takes away everything from the golf course, whether it was good or bad.”

Despite the challenges of Lincicome’s life on Tour with kids — in addition to being occupied by the state of her game, she’s also thinking about her daughters’ well-being at all times — ultimately, Lincicome says having a family has given her an additional sense of peace and perspective.

“It’s golf, it still makes you super frustrated,” she said. “I want to win every week, and when you don’t play well, it’s super frustrating still. But I keep pictures of my girls in my yardage book. You just try to think, you have a bad hole or a bad shot, I still have these beautiful girls, healthy. Things could be so much worse. I get paid to play golf. That’s like the craziest thing ever.”

As the family loaded into the car to head back to the house for some rest, relaxation and family time, I marveled at Lincicome’s ability to do it all: compete with the best golfers in the world week-in and week-out, while also being a present and attentive mother to two young girls.

“When you’re outside the ropes, it’s this job. When you’re inside the ropes, it’s my other job,” Lincicome said. “It’s cool to show the girls different parts of the world and travel a little bit. Hopefully they remember what mommy does for a living.”

With kindergarten looming for Emery this fall, Lincicome knows that her schedule may soon become even more challenging.

“Every step so far, when you think it’s kind of the end, then you’re like, oh, I can figure it out. I’ll figure out a plan. And then I’m still playing,” Lincicome said with a laugh. “We just kind of take it week to week, year by year.”

As Lincicome continues her 20th year of competition on the LPGA Tour this season, one thing is clear: Her greatest triumph has nothing to do with a tournament victory. These days, the only title that truly matters, is Mom.

Golf.com Editor

As a four-year member of Columbia’s inaugural class of female varsity golfers, Jessica can out-birdie everyone on the masthead. She can out-hustle them in the office, too, where she’s primarily responsible for producing both print and online features, and overseeing major special projects, such as GOLF’s inaugural Style Is­sue, which debuted in February 2018. Her origi­nal interview series, “A Round With,” debuted in November of 2015, and appeared in both in the magazine and in video form on GOLF.com.