PINEHURST, N.C. – Mel Reid sees the hope twinkling in the eyes of so many of the youngest players coming to LPGA Q-Series this week.
They’re like little rockets lining up on a launching pad.
Q-Series is all so new and exciting to them, a beginning with so many possibilities.
They don’t know what it’s like when this is the last place you really wanted to be, a reminder of the failure you’ve endured.
This isn’t where Reid was supposed to land back when the Englishwoman was one of those little rockets launching her own LPGA career two years ago, as a proven Ladies European Tour player with five victories and a nice Solheim Cup resume. She has six LET titles now.
Reid, 31, knew her return to LPGA qualifying this week was going to have to be about more than getting her swing in order. It was going to be about getting her head and heart in the right place. It was going to be all about attitude.
And wow, did she find it.
Reid is riding some high-octane rocket fuel in her relaunch.
“The other day I said that sometimes you have to hit rock bottom to pick yourself up,” Reid said. “I feel like I’ve hit rock bottom a lot more times than most players, on and off the course. I’ve got some scars.”
But also more than a small twinkle returning to her eye.
With a 1-under-par 71 at Pinehurst No. 7 on Thursday, Reid positioned herself for a return to full LPGA status next year. Through six rounds, she’s tied for sixth. She’s got two rounds left to secure a spot among the top 45 and ties who will earn LPGA tour cards.
Reid rebuilt more than her game after her mother, Joy, was killed in a car accident in 2012 while in Munich to watch Mel play an LET event. Reid rebuilt her life.
She’s aiming to rebuild again.
“When things go to a certain point, and you feel like there’s nowhere further down you can go, that’s when you rise up,” Reid said. “I’ve been there many times before. You’ve just got to be brave enough to pick yourself back up again, and you’ve got to believe in yourself.
“It’s never nice coming back to Q-School, but this could be the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
Reid pointed to how Japanese star Nasa Hataoka struggled as an LPGA rookie, went back and won Q-School last year, and then won on the LPGA this year.
She pointed to how Jaye Marie Green swooned and then went back and won Q-School two years ago, and how her game rebounded.
“I get stronger every time I pick myself up,” Reid said. “I feel like it builds my character. You’ve just got to be brave, be courageous enough to keep moving forward.”
Reid finished 109th on the LPGA money list this season. She’s amid some sweeping changes.
Midway through the year, she took on Jorge Parada as her new coach. Near summer’s end, she endured a breakup, the end of a four-year relationship. And now she’s packing up and leaving England, making the move to the United States.
It isn’t an easy move.
Reid’s father, Brian, survived that crash that killed her mother. Mel was close to her father before, but she grew even closer after the tragedy. He’s back at their Darby, England, home.
“I feel guilty leaving, but my father’s really, really supporting me,” Reid said. “He’s an incredible bloke. He’s 81, but he acts like he’s 25. He rides a motorcycle still, and he goes skiing with me. I miss him like hell when I’m away.”
Reid believes the move will make her a better player. She’s moving to the West Palm Beach, Fla., area. She has six brothers and sisters back home to help her father if he needs it.
“It’s just time to make this move,” Reid said. “I’m 31, and I feel like I haven’t come anywhere near my potential.”
Reid is motivated to use this week to change that. She missed out making England’s UL International Crown team this fall, but there will be more than good medicine making the European Solheim Cup team next year. It’s a goal that promises to keep her motivated.
“I feel like good things are ahead,” Reid said.