BALLSTON SPA, N.Y. — Dottie Pepper, the 17-time Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) tour champion, CBS golf broadcaster, and Saratoga Springs native, has written a book about the formative years of her career.
“Letters to a Future Champion: My Time with Mr. Pulver” contains the written correspondence between Pepper and her mentor George Pulver, Sr., and traces the influence Pulver had on her game, her character, and her life.
“He taught many people in the area, and it was a luxury and a blessing to learn from him,” Pepper said of Pulver.
Pepper played the LPGA Tour from 1988 until her retirement in 2004, when she began a career in television that has covered every major in men’s golf and nearly every major in women’s professional golf. She was the first woman to announce live golf at The Masters beginning in 2016, and in 2020 became the first walking reporter to cover that same event. She is currently the lead walking reporter for CBS Sports coverage of the PGA Tour, PGA Championship and Masters, and the lead analyst for CBS’ LPGA coverage.
Pulver mentored Pepper, largely through written correspondence, from 1980 until his death in 1986. When he started coaching Pepper, he was already 81 years old.
“He never saw me play, but he always left me armed for tournaments through books, letters, and magazine articles for me to learn from,” Pepper recalled.
At a book signing at the Ballston Spa Public Library on Saturday, Pepper talked about the monumental impact Pulver had on her, reading excerpts from her book and sharing anecdotes from her time on the green, both as a professional golfer and as a golf broadcaster. She kept all of the letters, magazine clippings, and other correspondence Pulver sent her, and discovered after his death that he had done the same.
Pepper’s relationship with Pulver began when she was 15, and in need of a coach. Her father, a professional athlete in his own right, had taught her all he could and was unable to advance her further. Pepper, too shy to ask for Pulver’s help outright, wrote a letter to his daughter, who was a friend of hers. The message got through to Pulver, and he took her under his wing. It came at a good time for both of them.
Pulver’s wife had just passed away and there was concern over how he would move through it. Pepper described their mentor-student relationship as therapeutic, “a perfect medicine” for them both.
In “Letters to a Future Champion,” Pepper recalls the lessons Pulver taught her early on that repeated throughout her career. The earliest lesson Pulver taught her was to “go slow and never give up.” According to Pepper, Pulver was a fan of the phrase “hang in there.” His lessons to Pepper were always optimistic, while simultaneously being realistic about the challenges of being a professional golfer.
“It requires a commitment,” Pepper said. “You’re not always in control of your own schedule.”
Eventually, Pepper found herself with a binder full of notes, letters, and articles Pulver had sent her – enough for a book, as her husband pointed out. When the pandemic hit and Pepper suddenly had nothing but time on her hands, she decided to write. When her book was finished, she chose to self-publish.
“Self-publishing gave me better control of the message in the book, and better timing for release,” Pepper explained. “We weren’t rushing to get it out for Christmas last year, instead we planned to release it in the spring, which is perfect for the golf world. Golf was really a grace during the pandemic – we could be outdoors, we could be moving around, and we could be trying to pull more people into the game.”
At her book signing, Pepper described how Pulver always believed in a balanced lifestyle, in all ways. He frequently encouraged her to temporarily put golfing aside and “go play and be a kid, until you feel the tug in your heart to come back to golf.” He understood the importance of being familiar with the techniques of other golf pros, but told Pepper that the most important thing was to “find your own mechanic and your own swing style,” instructing Pepper not to study other golfer’s moves but to “choose what works for you and own it.”
Pulver also highly valued education, because in the world of professional sports where very little was guaranteed, it was a good idea to have a safety net in place.
Pepper hopes that her book will have a multilayered impact. It’s already making waves in the world of golf – she recently found out that her book is a finalist for the Hebert Warren Wind Award, an annual award given by the United States Golf Association that “acknowledges and encourages outstanding research, writing and publishing about golf.” It’s the highest literary award given by the USGA.
She also wants her book to send a positive message to young ladies and women who want to be professional athletes.
“I hope I’ve shown them a can-do mentality,” Pepper said. “It’s not always an easy road, and not everything has be preplanned for you to be successful.”
The book is also going to make a difference in her local community. Pepper is donating a portion of all book sale proceeds to the Saratoga WarHorse mission to help veterans suffering from PTSD.
“Letters to a Future Champion: My Time with Mr. Pulver” is available for sale through Pepper’s website, at https://ift.tt/3BRylY5. It is available in hardcover, softcover, or leather-bound collector’s edition.
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