Par excellence: Wheatcroft calls it a career
Associated Press
Washington native Steve Wheatcroft had an 18-year career on various PGA tours and won $4.4 million in prize money. He had three professional victories and played on some of the greatest courses with some of the most talented PGA golfers. Wheatcroft held the lead in the second round of the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, and led both the Canadian Open and U.S. Open in the same year. He recently announced his retirement from professional golf.
Associated Press
Steve Wheatcroft watches his drive on the first hole during the second round of the 2010 Canadian Open golf tournament at St. Georges Golf and Country Club in Toronto.
Chris Carlson
Steve Wheatcroft reacts after leaving his eagle chip short on the 18th hole during the final round of the 2015 Humana Challenge golf tournament on the Palmer Private course at PGA West.
Associated Press
Trinity High School graduate Steve Wheatcroft is retiring from professional golf.
He began his journey nearly unnoticed, carrying a bag that contained his golf clubs and a whole lot of self-determination.
No one offered a scholarship, no one saw the potential that hard work and persistence would eventually create a successful career, and no one believed in him more than he did.
Steve Wheatcroft can take pride in that.
Out of that dedication came a scholarship to Indiana University at Bloomington, a blossoming golf career that spanned 18 years and produced $4.4 million in earnings and even more memories.
Meeting and playing with some of his heroes on the golf course, and never losing the anchor that kept the home ties in Western Pennsylvania, Wheatcroft carved out a career.
Now, it’s time for Wheatcroft to chase another.
The 41-year-old Trinity High School graduate has decided to end his professional career and retire.
He took a position with a finance company and will work the area near his home in Jacksonville, Fla.
“I know how hard I had to work on the PGA tour just to be mediocre,” said Wheatcroft. “I’m excited about my hard work and how that will pay off starting a new business at age 41. I am excited about having guaranteed money coming in instead of going out and hoping I can play well to pay the mortgage.”
His career had many ups and downs, good days and bad, frustrating moments and glorious results. And it all came on a stage where millions of hackers can only dream of being.
Wheatcroft has three professional victories from his time on tour. He played on some of the greatest courses with some of the most talented PGA golfers and even held the lead in the second round of the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach.
Not bad for someone who had to constantly prove himself just to earn a scholarship.
Whether it was playing a round with Dustin Johnson or saying hello to Tiger Woods before a tee time, Wheatcroft as always a grounded competitor, never missing a chance to get back home.
He played in the Mylan Classic at Southpointe Golf Club, the place he knew intimately after working there as a teenager. Large crowds came out to cheer him on to a tie for third place in 2010.
“The moment I remember most, and this may sound a little weird, is when I got my PGA tour card in 2006,” he said. “I never thought I would be playing on the PGA tour or playing with some of the best players. But when I did that, I shot 67 the final round and knew that I could do this. Holy smokes, I get to play with Tiger, Ernie and Phil every week.”
Playing on tour, no matter what level, requires great talent. Stringing together four rounds of sub-par golf is no easy task. There are more than enough people doing their best to win the same prize and that turns up the pressure on even the most experienced golfer.
The costs to stay on tour are dramatic, and can be crippling, if a golfer doesn’t enjoy consistent success. When there are other responsibilities, such as two young children and a wife at home, it becomes harder to stay on track.
“After the previous season, when I lost my tour card, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do,” said Wheatcroft. “The grind, the travel and being away from the kids began to wear on me. I had a couple job opportunities but they fell through. I had conditional status on the Web.com tour and began to play reasonably well. So I started playing golf again.”
Midway through the year, Wheatcroft was in Florida playing the TPC Sawgrass course when the tide turned again.
“I was leaving on a three-week stretch where I loved the golf courses and the U.S. Open qualifier was included and I thought I was going to do something really special,” Wheatcroft said. “I ended up missing all three cuts and not qualifying for the U.S. Open. That’s when I really soured on it. I played the second half of the season with one foot out the door. “
Wheatcroft had maybe his best tournament at the Prince George’s County Open in 2011, where he won by a Nationwide tour-record 12 strokes. His winning margin broke the mark of 11 strokes set by Chris Smith at the 1997 Omaha Classic and matched by Mark Leishman at the 2008 WNE Classic.
In the 2014 season, Wheatcroft won a playoff against Steven Alker at the Boise Open. It took five playoff holes to determine the winner.
Wheatcroft loves being around his children and realizes that because of their ages, 3 and 5, the memories of his golf career might not be long lasting.
“They are going to remember me mostly as insurance dad, not golfing dad,” said Wheatcroft. “My son had pictures taken with Arnold Palmer and George Bush within a three-week period. So one day, he’ll look back and it will be really cool for him to see.”