Practice events lead to paychecks

By his own admission, Cody golfer and aspiring professional Gabe Maier’s main goal at February’s Gateway at Trilogy event in Arizona was to help coax his golf game out of winter hibernation and see how he stacked up against some competition.

The answer to that question, it would seem, is that Maier stacks up just fine.

The two-time NCAA regional qualifier for the University of Wyoming opted to enter the event on Arizona’s Gateway Tour while spending time in Tucson, Ariz., working with his swing coach. He finished the three-day event tied for 11th place, scoring a $2,200 paycheck for his troubles.

The event was not without its share of drama for Maier, however.

Writing about the event on his blog, Maier notes that with three holes to play in the second round, he “had a feeling [he] was a little behind the cut.” Unlike PGA Tour events, which advance everyone within 10 strokes of the lead beyond the cut, Gateway Tour events limit the final day’s field to the top 35 percent of golfers, plus ties.

Maier finished his second round with a nifty up-and-down from beside the green on the par-3 16th. He went on to eagle the par-5 17th and arrived back at the clubhouse to discover he had done just enough to move himself into the “plus ties” category and advance to the tournament’s final day.

Maier added a 4-under round of 67 onto his scorecard during the final 18 holes of play, rocketing the UW grad up the leaderboard into a tie for 11th place.

Fresh off that positive showing at Phoenix’s Trilogy Golf Club, Maier opted to enter a second Gateway Tour event in late February. Playing at Phoenix’s Vista Verde Golf Club, Maier went out with rounds of 70 and 66 to not only make the cut with ease, but to also card one of the two lowest 36-hole totals, earning him a spot in the final pairing on the tournament’s last day.

“I faltered some on the front due to simply being in that situation at this point,” said Maier, who saw his score balloon to a final-day 73. “It was a great learning opportunity and I was fortunate to get that experience this early in the year. No doubt I will be more prepared next time.”

The over-par round on the tournament’s last day sent Maier sliding to a tie for seventh in the tournament’s final standings. That was still good enough for a $2,800 payday.

With two tournaments and two paychecks now on his professional resume, Maier turns his focus to the East Coast. He’s currently in the process of heading to North Carolina, where he will join the Hooters Tour and eGolf Tour, two of the nation’s top developmental tours in professional golf.

His hope is to make his tournament debut on the eGolf Tour the week of March 12 at the Pine Needles Resort’s Seven Lakes Country Club in Southern Pines, S.C. From there, Maier plans to enter weekly events over a six-week stretch with three eGolf Tour stops and three Hooters Tour stops.

Maier’s goal is to earn enough prize money to work his way up golf’s professional ladder to achieve a spot on golf’s Nationwide Tour and, one day, a PGA Tour card and the opportunity to make a name for himself on golf’s biggest stage.