Golf has been a constant in my life for as long as I can remember. Since I was a little girl following my dad and brother around the golf course, it has been my dream to play professional golf. I know the path will not be easy, but I have been preparing for this moment my entire life and I will contribute every ounce of effort to succeeding. I hope you will join the Ellie Fan Club and help me make this dream a reality!
Launching a life long dream
I understand how fortunate I am to have this opportunity. I also know it is only possible with the love and support of my friends and family who want to see me succeed. Launching my professional career is very expensive and my earning potential will be limited as I work to gain my initial status this first year. (Learn more about status on the LPGA and Epson tour in my FAQs and my January/February 2023 newsletter.)
How you can support me in this journey
If you are interested in making a financial donation to support my journey, I would really appreciate it! There’s more information below about how to donate as well as what your donation will go towards. You can scan the QR code below with your phone and it will take you directly to my Venmo account, or you can search for me on Venmo (@Ellie-Slama). If you don’t have a Venmo account, it’s safe and easy to set one up and you can transfer funds from your bank account or your credit card.
I currently don’t have a way to accept credit cards any way except through Venmo and I have chosen not to use GoFundMe because of their extremely high surcharges. Setting up a Venmo account is really easy and you can connect it to your bank account or your credit card, whichever you prefer. If you would like to donate and don’t want to use Venmo, please feel free to email me at ellieslama@gmail.com and I can provide you with a mailing address for a check. If you do decide to use Venmo, please also email to let me know so that I can properly thank you!
The cost of playing professional golf
The numbers below are my expenses for my rookie year. As you can see, it adds up pretty quickly.
Expenses for the 2023 Season
| Entry Fees | $8,945 |
| Travel (airfare, rental cars, gas, etc.) | $10,133 |
| Lodging | $1,333 |
| Miscellaneous (meals, yardage books, practice rounds, etc.) | $1,752 |
| Total expenses | $22,163 |
Expense summary
I traveled to 11 states for 17 tournaments over 26 weeks in 2023. Thanks to some very generous people, I was able to stay in host housing at nearly every tournament. When I wasn’t, either my parents came and I stayed with them, I had friends offer a place to stay or I stayed with other golfers on the tour to lower costs. I also shared a rental car at a couple of tournaments. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but was challenging when we ended up with opposite tee times and the course was a half an hour away from where we were staying.
Overall, I am happy with how I handled my expenses during my rookie year. A good portion of the fees was the entry fee to Qualifying School, which is $2,500 for Stage I. (If you’re unfamiliar with Q-School, you can learn more here.) I have a few different courses in San Diego that are allowing me to practice for no charge. I don’t have a coach in southern California, but see Al Cross, my long time swing coach, whenever I get home. I also have a number of part time jobs during the off season to pay the bills.
You can see my schedule for the 2024 season here. As you can see, most of my tournaments are the ANNIKA Women’s All Pro Tour (WAPT). I haven’t played on this tour before, so I am still learning what’s available for host housing. Unfortunately, most of these tournaments are in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Kansas, so driving is probably not an option. I am still trying to figure that our. My goal is to play in all the WAPT tournaments this year. Top 5 get an automatic bid to Stage II of Q-School and the entry fee paid.
I think it goes without saying there is not much money in women’s professional golf, especially when you are playing on the development tours like Epson and WAPT. Good play is important, not so much because the money is great, but because your status is based on where you are on the money list. Your status determines which tour you can play on and which tournaments you can play in.
I have a long road ahead to get there. I am so grateful for the support of my friends and family who want to see me get there! Thank you so much. I cannot begin to say how much this means to me.
What will your donation pay for?
| $2,500 | Cost on one entire tournament, including entry fee, air fare, ground transportation, meals and more. |
| $1,500 | Entry fee for one tournament, plus airfare and lodging. |
| $700 | My membership fee for the ANNIKA Women’s All Pro Tour |
| $600 | One entry fee for an ANNIKA Women’s All Pro Tour event or air fare to one event |
| $400 | Car rental for a four day tournament plus practice rounds |
| $200 | Meals and gas for one tournament |
| $100 | Yardage book and gas |
| Any amount | Every contribution helps and I am so grateful for your generous support! |
