Sam Weatherhead, professional golfer, Grand Rapids, Michigan, participated in last Wednesday’s junior golf scramble at Minot’s Wee Links layout. Kim Fundingsland/MDN

A junior golfer lofts a tee shot high and it settles on the green. He’s followed off the tee by professional golfer Sam Weatherhead who plunks his shot closer to the pin. One of the junior golfers in the group rolls in a putt for a birdie to move the group to four under par.

Weatherhead, putter in hand and a broad smile on his face, congratulates the young golfer for his precision putting during a scramble-format tourney at Minot’s Wee Links last Wednesday. His reaction wasn’t surprising. Weatherhead was a wonderful mentor paired with four young players at the par-3 layout.

“This is fantastic! I’ve never been here before. I was told it was very nice and it certainly didn’t disappoint,” said Weatherhead shortly after hitting a tee shot under the watchful eye of the youngsters in his group. “The layout looks incredible. It is truly a links-style course, fun to play.”

The 26-year-old Weatherhead, from Grand Rapids, Michigan, was in Minot to play in the annual Pro-Am event at the Vardon Club. It marked his third trip to the Magic City and his first opportunity to join juniors for an evening of golf at Wee Links. He proved to be a perfect fit.

“I love par-3 courses in general, so when they asked me about the junior scramble, I said absolutely. Sign me up,” said Weatherhead. “When I was a kid I enjoyed playing golf. It would have been so cool to have something like this then. It’s so nice to come out here and spend the night with these young players.”

Weatherhead played golf for Michigan State, graduating in 2017. He had success at that level and decided to continue with his goal of making it to the Professional Golfers Association tour.

“It’s just kind of a ladder system and right now, as professional golf goes, I’m kind of on the bottom rung and trying to climb from here,” remarked Weatherhead. “The Dakotas Tour kind of provides a perfect avenue to get prepared for competitive golf, get ready for qualifying school and, hopefully, get one more rung up on that ladder.”

The aspiring pro has become one of the players to reckon with on the Dakotas Tour. Coming into the Pro-Am event in Minot he was 14th on the Dakotas Tour money-winning list. This past June he picked up $3,967 in prize money with a second-place finish at the Bakker Crossing course in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Previous finishes at the Minot Pro-Am were 20th in 2019 and 24th in 2020.

“I’ve worked on putting the most since I was a little kid,” said Weatherhead. “Consequently, my driving has suffered a little bit. I hit it decent but it doesn’t always go where I want it to. I think driving is where I’ve got to improve the most. I have to find a few more fairways so I can get closer to the hole so I can make a few more putts.”

Weatherhead made the comments while walking with his junior playing partners from tee to green. As he knew, the young players were listening intently to his assessment of his game and learning from his commitment to getting better.

As for advancing up another step on that ladder toward holding a PGA card, here’s the advice Weatherhead offered.

“Consistency is the key. You look at the guys that are on the PGA tour and they very rarely have bad weeks. They always find a way to limit their mistakes,” explained Weatherhead as four young golfers listened intently. “If they do make a mistake, they don’t turn what should have been a five into a six, or a four into a five.”

Moments later a young golfer hit a tee shot along the ground rather than in the air, but the ball rolled onto the green about 12 feet from the pin. Weatherhead, hitting last, lofted an iron shot directly at the pin. The ball landed 10 feet away.

Upon approaching the green Weatherhead told the young players that even though his ball was closer to the cup, it was his read that the other one presented a more reasonable putt and he picked up his golf ball. The friendly pro tipped his cap in acknowledgment of better shot.

Right on cue, a junior golfer rolled in the 12 footer for a finishing score of 5-under-par, one off the lead. For Weatherhead, the experience of playing nine holes with four young golfers couldn’t have been better.

“Absolutely. Absolutely. This is a great way to spend a night,” said Weatherhead sincerely. “It’s perfect.”

Four junior golfers thought to too.

(Prairie Profile is a weekly feature profiling interesting people in our region. We welcome suggestions from our readers. Call Regional Editor Eloise Ogden at 857-1944 or call 1-800-735-3229. You also can send email suggestions to eogden@minotdailynews.com.)