Success was all that Gabriella Then knew as a junior player. She was a member of the winning Junior Solheim Cup team, she won numerous AJGA events, and she was recruited to USC when she was 14 years of age. After a successful career at the University of Southern California, Gabby (as her friends know her), turned professional, playing for 2 seasons on the Epson Tour (formerly the Symetra Tour). But when she recorded a bogey on her 72nd hole, at the LPGA's Stage-1, of Q-School, she missed advancing to the next stage.
Confronted with the emotional turmoil of having seen her dream evaporate, Gabby walked away from the sport in 2019. She even took another job outside of golf -- such was her disappointment and desire to consider a life outside of professional golf. Then came Covid, and she had no choice but to stay away from the sport as golf courses closed, and contemporary life came to a halt.
By 2021, Gabby was reassessing her life, her choices, and of course, golf. It was then that she rediscovered her passion and love for the sport and with it, the resolve to commit to professional golf. She "went all-in", nearly draining all of her savings to fund a year of tournament golf on the minor tours. She lived life knowing that she had put everything on the line -- her emotional and mental efforts, her ambitions, and her money.
In this Episode, Gabby Then chats with us about her darkest days in professional golf and how she eventually found her way back to the sport and how life's lessons prepared her to better deal with adversity. Her 2021 season culminated with her winning the Ladies European Tour's Q-School and an automatic "card" for the 2022 Season.
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