Izzi Stricker is carving out her own identity in golf, and she is doing it one swing at a time.
Stricker competed in the Wisconsin State Women's Amateur Championship at The Wisconsin Country Club, just her third career event. She entered the final round tied for second before finishing 5th with a round of 78, four strokes behind winner Jessica Guiser of Hartland.
"You know to be honest, not my best stuff, but that is, and I know that, and I'm just kind of pick my chin up and move on. I have one more event this summer, so I felt like I learned a lot today being under pressure and playing against one of the best players in the state or the best player in the state," Stricker said.
Her father, Steve Stricker, made a name for himself on the pro tour. He was on the course watching his daughter compete.
Izzi first picked up a club at age 4, though she admits she did not always take her father's advice to heart.
Watch: Izzi Stricker looks to forge her own path in golf, following in her father Steve's footsteps
"Yeah he has been the biggest part of my golf game. I would say my grandpa, I've kind of raised me around the game, and he's worn two hats, the dad hat, and the teacher hat," Stricker said.
She said it was not until around age 12 — when she played in her first tournament — that she began to truly listen.
"I think that was the age I played in my first tournament right away I mean, as a 12-year-old, I probably didn't listen to my dad as well as I should've, so there was maybe some hesitancy there, but now looking back and just realizing now how good of a player he is and was, I listen to him now," Stricker said.
Now heading into her junior year at the University of Wisconsin, where she is a member of the Badgers golf team, Stricker said she has grown into the weight of her family name rather than letting it hold her back.
"I would say growing up I took that more to heart. I felt like there was kind of a weight on my shoulders a little bit when I show up, and I felt like I had to be on the game every time. And now I've kind of grown up and appreciated that more instead of having it weigh me down and kind of embrace it, and I know it's there, but I'm trying to pay my own path and create my own name with that," Stricker said.
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