Cody High school Sophomore savors special opportunity

It was a heart-wrenching decision, the amputation of your infant’s foot, but it was the one that had to be made.

And it was made by Steve and Rikki Pomajzl for their then infant daughter Sydney, who was born with a condition known as fibular hemimelia, a birth defect in which some or all of the fibular bone is missing.

Without that, there is no skeletal connection between the foot and leg, and when the doctors said that amputation was the only choice, Steve Pomajzl grudgingly agreed.

There were struggles, of course, as Sydney grew up with different prostheses that attached just below her knee, holding her lower leg down to the ankle.

“I think I had the procedure at 13 months, so I have never really known anything different,” Sydney Pomajzl said. “People might have looked at it as a challenge for me, but it was just how I grew up.”

Pomajzl grew up without it much holding her back from anything as she competed in volleyball, basketball and softball, in addition to playing golf with her father.

Though, while she may have been able and willing to meet the challenges, the physical nature of most sports proved too much for her prostheses.

“The more aggressive sports weren’t working too well for me as far as that,” Sydney Pomajzl said. “Fortunately I have had that passion for golf from playing and was able to continue with that.”

That passion served her well in joining the Cody girls golf team, which is now riding back-to-back state championships, and it was while playing at State that a great opportunity came about.

“The Casper Star Tribune did a story on me and word kind of spread,” she said. “I guess a marketing group associated with the ANA Inspiration Tournament got wind of it and called in early February to invite me to this year’s event.”

An invitation that did not go over well, initially.

“I really wasn’t into it at all at first,” Sydney Pomajzl said. “I don’t want to say it like this, but it kind of felt like a pity or sympathy sort of thing for me, which I didn’t want.”

After getting more of an explanation that this was more an honor for her, and to showcase her as an inspiration for others, her mood assuredly came around.

And so it was set that for her spring break, Sydney Pomajzl would be headed to the ANA Inspiration LPGA Tournament at Mission Hills in Rancho Mirage, California, which got off to a rough start.

“We flew out Monday morning but had a frost delay in Salt Lake,” she said. “Then when we got to Palm Springs, we were driving to the resort and got a flat tire.”

Which almost made Sydney and her entourage late for the Champions Dinner that evening, where she had the good fortune to make it on time and meet the likes of Annika Sorenstam, Michelle Wie, Lexi Thompson, Nancy Lopez, Karrie Webb and Brittany Lincicome, big names of the LPGA’s present and past.

Pomajzl was able to sleep in the next morning, got some time on the range and continued on to the Women’s Conference, where she met with US Women’s Soccer legend Abby Wambach, paralympic standout athlete Jessica Long and got to hear speeches from the likes of Olympic swimmer Missy Franklin, Olympic figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi and the co-founder of the Huffington Post, Ariana Huffington.

The big day was still to come, however, as Wednesday would see Sydney Pomajzl taking part in the pre-tournament Pro-Am, where she would be paired with two of the LPGA elite.

“I played with Juli Inkster on the front nine and we we e on the range together before,” Sydney said. “I was really nervous and wasn’t hitting well. But she helped me out a lot and her coach video’d my swing and showed it to me, which helped.”

After the front nine, she then joined pro golfer Morgan Pressel the rest of the way.

“She was really nice and so approachable to just talk with, Juli was the same way,” Sydney Pomajzl said. “Watching them play was so amazing too. Seeing how far they hit it, how consistent they are and how the crowds and pressure doesn’t phase them.”

For some, an experience such as this could be difficult to come back down to earth from and return to the normal life of high school classes and wind-swept, prep-level tournaments that make up the Fillies schedule.

But just as the experience was to honor her inspiration and showcase her to so many others, this spring break trip for Sydney was an inspiration unto her.

“I think things are going to be different now,” Sydney said. “I can relax more now and can better handle tough situations better.

“It makes me want to improve for the rest of my high school career and just see what happens,” she added. “I don’t know if competitive golf is in my future after high school, though I will try. But if not, it’s a sport I can enjoy with my family as we get older and I’ll have this great experience I can always look back on.”

The reluctant inspiration seeing it come full circle.