Your Golf Performance Podcast · Brent Dale

Ep 165 - Beating Professionals as a Teenager: Lessons from Mia Hammond’s Epson Tour Win

·44 min·4 clips

Mia Hammond describes how a disqualification led to PTSD-like symptoms and a sports psychologist's advice saved her game.

Host Brent Dale interviews 17-year-old junior golf phenom Mia Hammond, who recently won a professional event on the Epson Tour as an amateur. Mia discusses her technical practice regimen, her major tournament experiences, and her balanced approach to life and golf. She relies heavily on TrackMan data, targeting a specific club path between three and four with a zero swing direction to produce her preferred draw. During the off-season in Ohio, she practices indoors in a heated garage and focuses on gym work. Mia qualified for the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals at Augusta National in 2020, describing the unique, cellphone-free experience and meeting stars like Bubba Watson. Her Epson Tour victory came at a familiar course she had played numerous times in high school and LPGA events. She credits her father, who is also her coach, for his constant support and technical expertise, noting he has missed only about five of her competitive rounds ever. After a difficult period following a disqualification for a scorecard error, Mia began working with sports psychologist Dr. Julie through the U.S. national development team. Dr. Julie taught her techniques like snapping a hairband on her wrist to stay present and avoid dwelling on past shots or future outcomes. Mia is currently competing in a virtual tournament on TrackMan called the Next Tour, where winners earn Epson Tour exemptions. She emphasizes the importance of maintaining balance, attending a traditional school, and having a social life alongside golf. Mia has committed to play college golf at Duke University, valuing its academic reputation as a backup plan, and eventually aims to attend law school. She anticipates the transition to college golf will be smooth competitively but challenging without her father's constant physical presence at tournaments. The episode is conversational and educational, blending technical golf talk with personal storytelling and life advice. Junior golfers, aspiring athletes, and sports parents would appreciate the insights on development, psychology, and balancing high-level sport with normal life. Listeners seeking entertainment or non-golf content might find the technical data discussions less engaging.

As heard by us

Mia Hammond's Epson Tour win becomes a simple lesson in staying present under pressure.

Mia Hammond carries the episode. She is 17, already has a professional Epson Tour win this year, and still keeps returning to the same basic idea: stay in the shot, not the score.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

Teenage junior-golf winner, Epson Tour stakes, and the pressure of playing without a caddy.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from Your Golf Performance Podcast