By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

PRATTVILLE, AL (September 09, 2024) - Leah John seems to be getting the hang of this professional golf thing.

The 24-year-old Vancouver native, who only graduated from college this past spring, headed out on her pro golf journey this summer not quite knowing what to expect.

The two-time B.C. Women’s Amateur Champion hoped she could prove to herself that her game was ready for the next level.

Mission accomplished.

In nine events on the Epson Tour — the official feeder circuit of the LPGA Tour — John has experienced the ups and downs of pro golf. She’s missed some cuts, but has also registered a pair of top-10s.

The latest — an impressive solo third at this past weekend’s Guardian Championship in Prattville, Alabama — has John excited about the future. “Honestly, I am stoked, I am super pleased,” John said in a telephone interview.

“I think my motto for golf has always been, get better. I don’t care too much about how much better that is, just get better and improve and I think if my Epson Tour year was to end right here, I think that is exactly what has happened. This experience — missed cuts, made cuts, being in contention — it has been a whole stew of experiences that you want to have in your first year. I think I have been very lucky to have been able to have that diversity.”

What made John feel especially good about her third-place finish in Alabama was the fact that she remained so calm. After opening the event with a five-under 67, John played at or near the lead for the entire 54 holes. She didn’t blink. She just kept hitting one good shot after another.

“This week was awesome for so many reasons,” she said. “The coolest part about it was how calm and comfortable I felt. . .I think this week was a really good execution of what I knew I could already do. I felt very comfortable. It was like, 'yeah, this is what I can do' and it’s also fun to get those juices flowing because usually it propels you into future events and you start getting on that treadmill of good results and good play.”

John finished the event at 11-under par, just three shots behind winner Fatima Fernandez Cano of Spain. John was surprised to learn she only made three bogeys all week. “Oh my gosh, what the heck,” she said with a laugh. “I am usually the girl who makes a lot of bogeys and a lot of birdies. So that was nice. It was stress-free. Maybe that’s why I was so calm.

“I felt very decisive. It was the most nonchalant golf I have felt. I just tried to remind myself about no shot being any different. Just hit it. My putting ended up being really good. That was fun because usually putting is a bit of a struggle. It is Bermuda grass out here, so it is grainy and it is sort of an unfamiliar environment and I am just proud of the way I played.”

She credited her new caddie, Troy Neas, with helping her read the greens and with allowing her to focus on her off-course routine. “My first four events I didn’t have a caddy just because there are a lot of adjustments and new variables happening at the beginning and having a caddie was just too much on my plate,” John said.

Click HERE to see a video interview with Leah following her 3rd place finish in the Guardian Championship

Neas caddied for John at the CPKC Women’s Open in Calgary and they worked their first Epson Tour event together at the Guardian Championship. He will remain on her bag for the final three Epson Tour events of the season. “He is very, very good and he has helped me immensely,” John said.

“He understands me completely, how my warm-ups work, what I eat, when I eat. He knows my whole routine and that kind of takes the stress and pressure off. And then during the tournament when you have someone on the bag who believes in you so much, you can pull from that. It’s another battery for you.”

John earned $18,000 US for her third-place finish. Perhaps more importantly, she moved up 66 spots to No. 54 on the tour’s points list. The top 80 at the end of the season remain exempt for 2025 and the top 35 advance directly to the final stage of this fall’s LPGA Tour qualifying school. The top 15 players on the points list earn their LPGA Tour cards for 2025. So there’s still lots to play for.

“There’s still a lot of runway,” John said. “There are three more events.”

This week’s event, the Tuscaloosa Toyota Classic in Alabama is followed by a tournament in Arkansas. The season-ending Epson Tour Championship goes Oct. 3-6 at the Indian Wells Golf Resort in southern California.

John hit the road in her rental car for the short drive to Tuscaloosa after Sunday’s final round in Prattville. She made a pit stop to play more golf. She and Neas, as well as another caddie, met at the Judge Course, a highly regarded layout in the area, to play a quick nine holes. “I just want to check it out,” John said. “It was a cool evening.”

And a wonderful way to finish a great day.