Dakoda (Koda) Dowd

Happy mother's Day From Dakoda Dowd

2006-04-13T17:42:00.000-07:00

The LPGA DESERVES a standing O for its recent act of kindness.

The governing body of professional women's golf is allowing 13-year-old Dakoda Dowd to play in the Ginn Open near Orlando from April 27-30.

That a 13-year-old is playing is not news - Michelle Wie has seen to that.

No, what makes Dakoda Dowd's entry into the tournament so special is the reason behind it.

Her mother, Kelly Jo Dowd, is suffering from terminal cancer and doesn't have long to live.

Kelly Jo Dowd - whose daughter has won numerous amateur events - has one wish: to see Dakoda Dowd play with the best in the world. And, thanks to the LPGA, she'll get it.

"It will mean everything to me," said Kelly Jo Dowd. "It's obviously a dream come true."

As for Dakoda Dowd... she's got a couple of wishes of her own.

"The only thing I really, really want is for my mom to be better," Dakoda said. "And my own room."

From Dakoda Dowd's Golf, An Ill Mother's Dream Is Realized

2006-04-12T20:38:00.000-07:00

Dakoda Dowd wants to live in a New York apartment when she heads to college in five years. She'll be a bass guitar player by then. Maybe even a champion figure skater, too.

Barring a miracle, Dakoda's cancer-ridden mother won't be around to see her daughter - one of the country's top golfers her age - realize any of those dreams. But mother and daughter will get to share another one real soon.

"This isn't about golf,'' Dakoda Dowd says. "This is about my mom, and her getting to see me play.''

Kelly Jo Dowd's wish - perhaps her dying one - is to see her little girl compete against the world's best. So Dakoda Dowd, a winner of countless junior events, will tee it up in the LPGA's Ginn Open near Orlando on April 27-30, after the Ginn Resorts heard of the family's plight and extended the invitation.

"It will mean everything to me,'' says Kelly Jo Dowd, who is fighting cancer for the second time in four years. "It's obviously a dream come true. There's no other way to put it. I'm going to take that day as one of the most special days in my whole entire life. This is a chance for me to do what I want to do.''

What she wants to do is this: Let women know she has terminal bone and liver cancer -and, realistically, only months to live - because she didn't heed the warning signs. She ignored a lump and waited months to get checked.

And through Dakoda Dowd's golf, the family hopes to get that message out to the masses, in part from the hubbub generated by the girl's appearance in the LPGA event.

But this is no publicity stunt. She can play.

"She's got talent,'' says Annika Sorenstam, one of Dakoda's idols and the women's top-ranked player who met her earlier this month and watched her swing. "She can really hit the ball. She's got a great head on her shoulders. She's really strong and her attitude is really something great.''

The story really begins about five years ago.

Dakoda Dowd was 8 and already earning national acclaim for her golf potential, becoming the subject of magazine articles that are framed and displayed in the living room of the family's tiny condo in a Tampa suburb.

It was December 2001, and Kelly Jo - a former Hooters calendar cover girl who worked her way out of the orange waitress shorts and into the company's management team - noticed a lump in her breast.

She was 36 years old. Ten months later, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

"I'm not supposed to get this disease,'' Kelly Jo says. "I'm not obese. I don't smoke. I drink, but not nearly like I used to. There wasn't breast cancer in my family. I'm not a statistic. But I got it.''

So she fought it. Double mastectomy. Nearly two dozen lymph nodes removed. Intense chemotherapy. Every hair on her body fell out, her skin lost its glow and she felt nothing like the head-turner she once was.

"There's something that keeps me young at heart and willing to fight,'' Kelly Jo says. "And that's Dakoda. She's why I keep fighting. In the beginning, I wasn't going to. And how stupid was that? It's embarrassing for me to admit that. Anyone who doesn't fight and fight with their all is stupid.''

The first fight seemed won - until last May, when doctors found the cancer was back and worse than ever, now in her hip bone, her liver and nearing her spine. This time, Kelly Jo Dowd vows to fight harder; she started another round of chemotherapy April 6.

"When we had the opportunity to give Dakoda an exemption, I really didn't think about it,'' says Bobby Ginn, the CEO of Ginn Clubs and Resorts. "The strength they have individually and collectively is just unbelievable. I don't know if I could stand up to the pressure they're feeling right now.''

Kelly Jo met Mike Dowd in the mid-1980s at the Hooters restaurant where she worked. They'd strike up the occasional conversation, and eventually started dating. Eleven weeks later, they were married, and 5 1/2 years after that, they had a daughter to whom they gave a unique name.

Mike had two older daughters from a previous marriage, both of whom have names that begin with 'K.' He wanted to keep that trend going, but Kelly Jo preferred the name "Dakota.'' Eventually, they agreed on "Dakoda,'' which Mike shortened to "Koda.''

"Got my 'K' in there,'' he says.

She started golfing at 4, and made her first birdie before she turned 7. She's shot 70 from the men's tees and would be in the mid-60s if she played from shorter ones, her father says. She hits her driver long and true, and is confident enough to have photographers stand 30 yards in front of her while she swings.

"I won't hit you,'' she calls out.

Sure enough, the photographer is unharmed, although Dakoda giggles when one ball whizzes a little closer to his head than he'd like.

"This family is almost like the perfect storm in this,'' says Hooters co-founder Ed Droste, whose chain has raised more than $56,000 for the Dowd family and their medical expenses. "Kelly Jo and Mike just want to tell it like it is for women. And Dakoda Dowd is the blend of these two great people. I just dread when it's down to being two of them, because the three of them together are so great.''

Golf, Dakoda says, is a release from the reality of her family's situation - even though the reminders are everywhere when she plays. There's a pink breast cancer ribbon embroidered on her bag, and her mother's initials "KJ'' are embossed in pink letters on her irons and putter cover.

Her father wears the initials, too. On his right wrist is a tattoo with the initials "KJD'' with two ribbons for his wife, and "DFD'' with a cross for his daughter. The 'F' stands for Flowie, Dakoda's middle name and the name of a sister Mike Dowd lost to ovarian cancer in 1991.

"I want it to be at the forefront of my life for the rest of my life,'' says Mike, a counselor in the Pinellas County school system. "This whole process has been one horrible thing and 100 great things. It's tragedy and triumph. Every day, people treat my wife the way God wanted us to all treat each other. How many of us get that opportunity?''

Now that they're down to one income, the family sold its home and moved into a 600-foot condo at the Westin Innisbrook resort, site of the PGA Tour's Chrysler Classic and where Hooters arranged for Dakoda - who sleeps in the living room - to play golf whenever she wants.

"The only thing I really, really want is for my mom to be better,'' Dakoda says. "And my own room.''

They are, by all accounts, a regular family. They eat at Whataburger, McDonald's and Olive Garden. They just have a girl who hits a golf ball better than most people, and a mother who's sicker than most.

With her dream about to come true, one of Kelly Jo's outlets these days is trying to raise money for groups such as MakingMemories.org, which grants wishes to people diagnosed with terminal breast cancer. She and Dakoda Dowd also schedule mother-daughter days, so both can get their shopping fix.

Most importantly, though, the family just wants to be together, for whatever time they have left.

"Anything special that Dakoda does that I'm able to be here to see is the next special thing for us,'' Kelly Jo says. "It could be a tournament she wins. A day of shopping. Going to a concert together. Whatever comes next is what's special. The bottom line is it'll be her and me together, at least a little while longer.''

This One's For Mom says Dakoda Dowd

2006-04-11T07:36:00.000-07:00

Something very special was missing on a very special day for Dakoda Dowd.

The junior golfer was at Reunion Resort & Club, just west of Orlando, on Thursday to meet with the media and one of her heroes, LPGA Tour star Annika Sorenstam.

Dakoda Dowd was there alone.

The 13-year-old's mom, Kelly Jo Dowd, stayed at their Palm Harbor home because she had undergone surgery Wednesday to aid in the treatment of her terminal cancer.

There's no denying the bond between Dakoda Dowd and her mother. The youngster's golf bag does the talking for her.

Just under the embroidered pink ribbon patch symbolizing breast cancer research on the bag are the stitched words "Best Friends." And Dakoda's clubs are inscribed with the letters "KJ."

Dakoda "Koda" Dowd was at Reunion to meet the media and Sorenstam and to drum up publicity for the upcoming LPGA Tour Ginn Open the first LPGA Tour event played in Florida in five years -- on April 27-30. Dowd, an accomplished player who has won more than 185 junior tournaments, will play in the tournament on a sponsor's exemption.

It will give her mother a chance to fulfill one of her final wishes by seeing her daughter play in an LPGA event.

The breast cancer Kelly Jo Dowd thought she had beaten several years ago was discovered last May to have spread to her bones and liver. Kelly Jo receives treatments of radiation and chemotherapy, but the diagnosis is terminal.

As Dakoda Dowd waited on the driving range to meet Sorenstam, the extraordinary junior golfer exhibited characteristics of a typical teenager.

She embraced a guitar autographed by '80s rocker Huey Lewis that was given to her by event organizer Ryan Julison, who knew of Koda's musical hobby. Dowd would later have Sorenstam add her autograph to the guitar.

Getting a chance to spend time with Sorenstam was a little overwhelming for Dakoda Dowd.

"I've always admired her," Dowd said. "She's always so poised and has the best attitude. I want to be just like her. She's like a major celebrity to me. I'm anxious and excited. All of this has come really fast."

Sorenstam spent time giving Dowd tips on the driving range, but most of the tips related to life and not golf.

Dowd's nerves were obvious. She hit a few chili dips while she worked with her wedge shots. While changing clubs, she admitted to Julison, "I feel like I have a hole in my stomach."

Dowd said the biggest question she had for Sorenstam was how the LPGA's top player remained so calm after hitting a bad shot.

"I think the key is when you hit a bad shot, you have to forget about it as fast as possible," Sorenstam told the youngster. "Find the ball, and hit a new shot that will hopefully make up for it.

"You don't want a bad shot to drag you down the rest of the day. At the end of the day, a bad golf shot is not really going to change your life very much."

Dakoda Dowd said she's more excited than nervous to compete in the Ginn Open. She said she has a plan for dealing with nerves if she starts to feel intimidated while playing against women she has always admired.

"If I get nervous, I'm going to look over and see mom smiling," Dowd said. "That will take all the jitters away."

Sorenstam said Dowd should concern herself more with enjoying the experience than about the results.

"I think she's going to do great," Sorenstam said. "She just needs to play her game. I like her attitude. She's a neat little player with a lot of talent.

"To me, it's not just about results. It's about the learning experience and the journey she's just getting ready to begin."

Sorenstam said she thinks it's great the Ginn Open gave Dowd the exemption to fulfill her mom's dying wishes.

"(Koda) has such a strong mind," Sorenstam said. "This young lady is just not talented, she has such a good head on her shoulders. There are a lot of thoughts she'll be thinking about. I'm just glad we can make something great out of this. This is her dream. Hopefully she can show off to her mom."

Sorenstam is no stranger to dealing with off-course distractions. She has continued to play well despite going through a divorce over the last two years.

"It's tough," Sorenstam said. "I've had some personal issues the last two years. Luckily, when you do something you enjoy, it keeps your mind away from it.

"I think that's very important. Life goes on, and you have to make the most of it on the course and off the course."

Dakoda Dowd will undoubtedly heed that advice down the road. For now, the teenager will enjoy the opportunity to fulfill a dream that she and her best friend have shared before it's too late.

NHL: LIGHTNING: GOLF PRODIGY DAKODA DOWD TO DO ‘LET’S PLAY HOCKEY’

2006-04-11T07:29:00.000-07:00

13-YEAR-OLD PALM HARBOR RESIDENT PREPARING TO PLAY IN LPGA’S GINN CLUBS & RESORTS OPEN APRIL 24-30

Dakoda (Koda) Dowd, a 13-year-old Palm Harbor resident who will soon become one of the youngest females to compete at an LPGA Tour event, will offer up the traditional “Let’s Play Hockey” prior to the Lightning’s game vs. the Atlanta Thrashers at the St. Pete Times Forum Tuesday night (7:30 p.m.; Sun Sports, AM 620 WDAE).

Dakoda Dowd, who has won more than 285 junior tournaments, will be part of the 144-player field participating in the Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open at Reunion Resort & Club,near Orlando, April 24-30, playing alongside the best professional ladies golfers in the world. Dakoda Dowd is the nation’s top-ranked female player in the 2011 graduating class. In 2005, as a sixth-grader, Dakoda was the No. 2 player on the golf team at Northside Christian High and helped the team win its first state title.
Go Dakoda, Go Bolts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Lightning, 42-31-5, have four games remaining in the 2005-06 season, including additional home dates with the Carolina Hurricanes (Saturday, April 15, 7:30 p.m.) and the Washington Capitals (Tuesday, April 18, 7:30 p.m.).

Dakoda Dowd, Ginn Clubs Open Make Their Professional Debuts

2006-04-10T05:43:00.000-07:00

Here's your chance to witness not just the birth of a new golf tournament but also the professional emergence of what just might be the next great female golfer. And pay tribute to someone living with breast cancer at the same time.

The inaugural Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open is set to tee off at the Reunion Resort & Club near Orlando. Although top female golfers such as Annika Sorenstam and Paula Creamer will vie for the trophy, many eyes will be on 12-year-old Dakoda Dowd viewed by many as the next female golfing phenom. Playing in her first professional tournament, Dowd has already won more than 185 junior tournaments.

However, the one victory she'd like to pull off -- rescuing her mother from cancer -- appears unattainable. The cancer has spread to her mother's liver and bones. Seeing her daughter compete in an LPGA event is one of her mother's last wishes -- therefore the LPGA granted an exemption allowing the underage but exceptionally talented younger Dowd to compete. The first Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open is Apr. 27-30 in Reunion, Florida.

Tips On Golf -- And Life -- From A Pro For Dakoda Dowd

2006-04-07T09:38:00.000-07:00

Reunion, Florida -- What a week for Dakoda Dowd! Not only did she turn 13 April 3rd, she received a fancy guitar as a gift, and she's also getting one-on-one time with her role model, Annika Sorenstam.

Dakoda Dowd, 13-year-old golfer:
“I like her poise, so graceful. She has the best attitude, even when it's not a good shot. ”
Annika watched Dakoda hit a few balls, gave her some golf tips, and some advice about life.

Annika Sorenstam, 8-time Player of the Year:“This is a game, really, I take it seriously. My life is surrounded by the game, but at the end of the day, have fun. One golf shot is not going to change your life.”
Dakoda's mother is battling cancer. She's been through several rounds of chemotherapy, and the cancer has spread to her bone and liver. One of her final wishes is to see her daughter play in the LPGA tour.

And with a special exemption, Dakoda will have a chance to play in the Ginn Clubs and Resorts Open April 24th - 30th. Although all of the media attention can be a little overwhelming, Dakoda says having her mom there will make a difference.

Dakoda Dowd, 13-year-old golfer
“I'm going to look at her (on the sidelines) see her smile, and that will take the jitters away.” See Dakoda Dowd In April.

Great Drive, Heartbreaking Motivation For Dakoda Dowd

2006-04-03T04:45:00.000-07:00

If all you knew about Dakoda Dowd was that she's a 12-year-old golf phenomenon with a killer 240-yard drive, that she stalks the green with ice in her veins, or that she's already picked up a slew of trophies in amateur tournaments, you'd think this kid is pretty impressive.

But CBS News correspondent Joie Chen reports that's only half her story.

In less than three weeks, Dakoda will tee off in the Ginn Open, against Annika Sorenstam, Christina Kim and the tour's other top women, thanks to an exemption from the tournament's sponsor.

"It's a very big deal," Dakoda Dowd says. "But the most important thing about it is my mom gets to watch me fulfill my dreams."

Dakoda knows her first shot at the pros may be the last tournament her mother ever sees.

"I'm not going to battle this disease and get rid of it," says Kelly Jo Dowd, Dakoda's mother. "This disease will eventually get me."

Kelly Jo Dowd is dying. She's started her third round of chemo, but the breast cancer has spread — it's now in her liver and bones. The outlook is not good.

"What I'm doing right now is I'm fighting, it's all I can do," Kelly Jo Dowd says. "I'm going to fight as long as I can stay alive, and it's because Dakoda."

One would think the family would want to retreat from the spotlight, but instead, they've chosen to use the attention Dakoda's athletic talent has brought them to get out an important message about early breast cancer detection.

They are also supporting the Making Memories Foundation, a group that helps make wishes of women with cancer that has spread to other parts of the body, come true.

It's not hard to see where Dakoda Dowd gets her willpower and resolve, nor is it hard to see why, though her own body is so fragile, Kelly Jo Dowd wants to be a part of her daughter's wild ride.

They are a team. Kelly Jo Dowd is on board for all of her daughter's practice rounds. Dakoda Dowd has been there for every step of her mother's grueling treatment.

"She's such a strong woman," Dakota says. "I want to follow in her footsteps."

Her mother probably won't live to see Dakoda reach the golfer's dream — earning her tour card and becoming a player on the professional circuit. But, Kelly Jo is certain her daughter has what it takes.

"Dakoda knows that whether I am there or not, I'm always here," Kelly Jo says. "I told her I'd be her angel sitting on her shoulder, and that's what I intend to do."

The final round of their memorable season may play out amid these daunting roughs and treacherous bunkers. But Dakoda Dowd has already taken on a tougher course than most of us will ever see, and she's already proven herself a winner.

Cancer-Stricken Mom To Watch Pre-Teen Prodigy Dakoda Dowd in LPGA Event

2006-03-31T04:21:00.000-08:00

Pre-teen golf prodigy Dakoda Dowd will make her cancer-sticken mother's dream come true April 27 by playing in an LPGA tournament thanks to a sponsor's exemption.
Dakoda Dowd turns 13 on Monday, three days before her mother resumes chemotherapy after beating breast cancer only to have doctors discover the cancer had spread to her hip bone, liver and spine.

Dakoda Dowd helped a Florida high school team claim a state title while six grades below the seniors, but her mother, Kelly Jo Dowd, saw little hope she would live long enough to see her daughter play in an elite tournament.

"I was not going to get to see my daughter play on the LPGA Tour. It was breaking my heart because I knew she had the ability," Kelly Jo Dowd said. "It was one of the hardest things because I knew I wasn't going to see it."

The Dowds story prompted Bobby Ginn, sponsor of next month's Ginn Clubs and Resorts Open, to invite Dakoda Dowd to his new event.

"What he has done for me is irreplacable. He made my dream come true," the elder Dowd said.

"It has been amazing. Fantastic. Sensational. It has been so uplifting. Right now I'm in a very good frame of mind. I'm fighting very hard for this."

While watching her mother's fight for life, Dakoda finds golf's troublesome moments minor by comparison.

"Nothing compares to that," she said. "Part of me is happy because it has made me stronger. When I look into her eyes and think about what she is going through, it gives me a lot of strength."

The chance to play alongside such idols as world number one Annika Sorenstam is less daunting for Dakoda Dowd because of what it will mean for her mother.

"It's going to be rough but it's going to be great," Dakoda Dowd said. "I'm really excited and happy. I'm just going to go out there and have fun and be happy my mom will be watching. That's the most important thing.

"She helps me through a lot of stuff. She keep me positive. She's my rock."

Kelly Jo Dowd, who turned 41 on March 10, was a "Hooters" girl, serving as a calendar and poster model during 14 years where she worked her way from waitress to restaurant general manager.

Then came cancer and chemotherapy, losing hair and many of the trappings of beauty she learned were only secondary.

"It played havoc on my self-esteem. I felt very confident before. I lost all that," she said. "It was a tough time but because of that I became a better person and became more confident."

Kelly Jo Dowd's battle made her want to help other women who face similar challenges in their lives.

"I want to help as many women as possible. I can help people. There are a lot of people out there just like me," she said.

"I felt the lump and didn't check it out immediately. I didn't think it was serious at all. The number one thing I can say to other women is take it seriously. Don't wait. Don't do what I did. Get a mamogram."

Dakoda Dowd has drawn strength from and given strength to her daughter at various times during her combat with cancer.

"Her inner strength is there from everything I've gone through, all the stuff she has had to go through," Kelly Jo Dowd said. "Everybody in the family has been deflated at times, crying at stages.

"We have gotten each other through it. I've looked to her for strength at times. She's an incredible golfer. She had a lot going on and this slaps her in the face.

"There have been times she hasn't felt like playing, like her heart is not into it. She still puts in the time. She has got a will power and a lot of courage to go out there and get it done.

"Dakoda Dowd believes we're go back on the chemo and beat this in another three months."

And if cancer can be conquered, what chance do mere golf rivals stand?

"Just playing on the tour will be a dream come true," Dakoda Dowd said. "I can't say I wouldn't like to win some day."

Dakoda Dowd A Jr. Golf Pro, 12, Fulfils Dying Mom’s Dream

2006-03-31T04:13:00.000-08:00

Dakoda Dowd a 12 year old girl from Florida is to become the world’s second youngest female professional golfer in order to fulfil the dream of her dying mother.

Dakoda Flowie Dowd will make her debut in a tournament near Orlando next month. The Ladies’ Professional Golf Association insists players be at least 18 but an exception is being made because of the “extraordinary emotional circumstances”.

Dakoda’s mother, Kelly Jo Dowd, 40, has cancer and doctors do not expect her to survive for more than a few months. Watching her daughter take part in the tournament is her dearest wish.

Kelly Jo will be allowed to follow her in a customised golf cart. But as she approaches her 13th birthday this week, Dakoda Dowd's fear is that her mother may not be well enough to attend. “My birthday wish is that my mom is here for the tournament and for a long time after that,” she said.

“But there are good days and bad days, for both of us, and we just try to hold it together and concentrate on making her dreams come true.”

Dowd recalled that when she first suffered discomfort, she blamed breast implants and skipped a mammogram.

“That was the worst decision of my life,” she said.

Last month she picked her funeral plot.

“It is a very tough time, but all I can ask is that God steers us through it and, afterwards, my little girl has a strong and happy life.”

Dakoda Dowd Interview With People Magazine

2006-03-29T12:55:00.000-08:00

Dakoda Dowd does interview with People Magazine for March 2006 issue.

"Dakoda Dowd's LPGA Quest"

2006-03-24T04:51:00.000-08:00

Dakoda Dowd sits for a portrait with golf clubs she has engraved with the pink initials of her mother, Kelly Jo, who had to combat breast cancer once before it returning in a more serious form recently, at the Innisbrook Troon Golf Institute in Palm Harbor, Fla., on Saturday, February 4, 2006. At the age of 13, Dowd will be playing on the LPGA Tour at the inaugural Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open from April 27-30 at Reunion Resort & Club in Orlando. VIEW IMAGE

Dakoda Dowd's Dream / The Courageous Story Of Dakoda (Koda) Dowd

2006-03-23T03:54:00.000-08:00

WHEN the Academy Awards engage in their annual celebration of filmmaking, they also remind us of how casually we have come to regard the truth. A second thought is rarely given to the work that embellishes reality in the pursuit of art. That's just the way it is done. Two special stories are walking among us right now that will surely end up on the big screen, and as they are translated from reality to film some truth will be lost, and some fiction will be added. That need not be the case. They are stories that stand on their own and simply need to be told.

Last month, a young man with autism named Jason McElwain reduced a nation of cynical sports fans to tears when he played his only high school basketball game and scored 20 points in a magical four-minute sequence. It is hoped that when Jason's life is transferred to film, it is a documentary in which he and those touched by him are allowed to tell their own stories. Nothing more need be said. No footage need be created other than what really happened.

And then there is the case of Dakoda Dowd who next month will make her LPGA debut in the Ginn Clubs & Resort Open on a sponsor's exemption just weeks past her 13th birthday. Too often in sports we hear words like "courage" and "heroic" tossed around carelessly, as if a golf shot could have an impact beyond the game.

Truly, our greatest opportunities to be courageous occur in our own lives, exactly where it matters most. Koda will be playing for her mother, Kelly Jo, whose body is ravaged by the pain of breast cancer that has spread from her breasts to her liver and bones. Kelly Jo's dream is to see Dakoda play in an LPGA event, and that dream now is set against a clock seemingly beyond human control.

"It is the right thing to do," Bobby Ginn, president and CEO of Ginn Clubs & Resorts, told Golf World about the exemption he granted to Dakoda. "Our company is about family, and we got involved in golf because it is a family sport. To give Dakoda a chance to present this gift to her mother makes our sponsorship of the event already a success." While it is unlikely anyone would oppose the exemption given to Dakoda, Ginn has added an extra spot to the field of the April 27-30 event so no LPGA player is bumped by her presence.

The plot line of this story is simple. At the age of 4, Dakoda was introduced to golf by her father, Mike. Shortly after Dakoda's ninth birthday, Kelly Jo had a double mastectomy. There was every reason to think the cancer was cured. Then last May something didn't feel right. After many tests it was determined the cancer had returned -- and spread. Left untreated, Kelly Jo would have less than a year to live. But Kelly Jo fights on, through radiation and chemotherapy, taking medication to ease one of the most painful of all cancers, and keeping an eye trained on the calendar and the day when she will see Dakoda tee it up against the pros.

If this is a race against time, it is also a reminder that time is constantly slipping through our fingers and that life should be lived with a passion and purpose that celebrates the gift it is. Courageous acts are rarely decisions, but rather reactions to events beyond our control, the hand dealt to us by life. Next month, Kelly Jo and Dakoda will share a private act of love on a public stage. We are fortunate we get to watch. And no shred of truth need be embellished to make this an award-winning story.

Winslow Earns Sponsor's Exemption Along With Dakoda (Koda) Dowd To Inaugural Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open

2006-03-15T04:56:00.000-08:00

Andia Winslow, the first African-American to compete in the Ivy League and for Yale University, and the first African-American to compete on the LPGA in four years, has accepted a sponsor's exemption along with Dakoda Dowd to the inaugural Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open at the Reunion Resort & Club, April 24-30.

Winslow will compete against the prominent 144-player field including Dakoda Dowd, which is also expected to include No.1-ranked LPGA player Annika Sorenstam. The field will be squaring off for one of the richest purses in the history of the LPGA at $2.5 million.

Winslow is the first African-American since LaRee Pearl Sugg in 2001 to compete on the LPGA. The Orlando-area resident is honored to have the chance to play in this prestigious event. Winslow was also the first scholarship recipient for a partial scholarship at Yale University from the Jackie Robinson Foundation.

"I'm delighted and pleased about the chance to play against Dakoda Dowd in the Ginn Open," Winslow said. "The city of Orlando is embracing the event, I am working hard on my game and I'm excited about the whole experience."

"Andia is a wonderful addition to the premier field we have at the Ginn Clubs and Resorts Open," said Bobby Ginn, president and CEO of Ginn Clubs & Resorts. "She is a trailblazer being the first African-American to play at Yale, and shows great determination as she perseveres to be on the LPGA some day. We look forward to watching the Orlando-based players please the hometown crowd along with dakoda Dowd."

Winslow of Winter Garden, Fla., is the first African-American to play varsity golf for Yale University (2000-03). A native of Seattle, Wash., she is a freelance writer and a documentary filmmaker. Her uncle is Pro Football Hall of Famer Kellen Winslow. She was the 1999 National Minority Junior Golfer of the Year, and she is the first ever African-American, man or woman, to compete in the Ivy League.

Winslow, who is currently playing amateur tournaments like Dakoda Dowd with hopes of eventually qualifying for the LPGA, won the Golfweek Orlando City Championship in 2005. She currently works at the Walt Disney World Golf Resort and previously was the part of the golf operations staff at the Yale University Golf Course in 2004.

Dakoda Dowd Ties For 2nd In Future Collegians World Tour Event.

2006-03-13T04:28:00.000-08:00

JUNIORS: Many of the top Pinellas girls traveled to Tallahassee last weekend to play in the Florida Junior Tour's match at FSU's home course, Southwood Golf Club.

The results were favorable where Whitney Wenglasz, 15, Oldsmar, and Andrea Messer, 15, Belleair, found themselves in a tie after 36 holes with 153. They were playing in the 16-18 age division among 18 girls.

Wenglasz, a member of the 2004 state championship Class A team for Northside Christian, won on the third playoff hole with a par.

Evan Jensen, 16, of Belleair, who plays for Largo High, finished third, followed by Brienna Heinzler of Palm Harbor, tied for seventh.

Matt Cooney of Tampa overcame a five-stroke deficit after round one to shoot a final-round 6-under 66 to win the boys 16-18 title with 139.

At Plantation Inn in Crystal Springs, Dakoda Dowd of Palm Harbor shot 75-78-153 to tie for second behind So-Hyun Park (151) in the girls 13-18 division of the Future Collegians World Tour event.

KODA DOWD PRE-TEEN LANDS A SPOT

2006-03-09T04:47:00.000-08:00

Dakoda Koda Dowd, a 12-year-old amateur, has received a sponsor's exemption into the inaugural Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open, tournament officials have announced. The new event is set for Apr. 27-30 at the Reunion Resort & Club near Orlando.

Dakoda Koda Dowd, from Palm Harbor, Fla., will be playing her first professional tournament. In her amateur career, she has won more than 185 junior tournaments and is the nation's top-ranked female player in the 2011 graduating class. In 2005, as a sixth-grader, she was the No. 2 player on the golf team at Northside Christian High and helped the team win its first state title.

Koda's mother, Kelly Jo Dowd, learned earlier this year that the breast cancer she beat three years ago has returned, invading more of her body and leaving her terminally ill. The disease has spread to bone and liver cancer. The chance for Dakoda to play in an LPGA event is one of her mother's final wishes.

Dakoda (Koda) Dowd Takes Third In Future Collegians World Tour Event

2006-03-07T04:43:00.000-08:00

JUNIORS: Dunedin's Preston Knox tied for seventh at a recent Future Collegians World Tour event at Innisbrook's Highlands North course. He shot a final-round par 71 to go with opening rounds of 78 and 80.

P.J. Kolosvary of Safety Harbor was three back.

In the girls 13-18 division, Palm Harbor's Dakoda Dowd finished strong (86-79-76-241) to take third behind Kristina Wong (218) and Meghna Dal (240).

Justine Knox of Dunedin finished fifth at 247.

Dakoda (Koda) Dowd Florida girl, 12, Given Spot To Play In LPGA Tourney

2006-03-06T04:18:00.000-08:00

A 12-year-old Florida girl received a sponsors exemption to play in an LPGA Tour event in Orlando and fulfill the wish of her mother, who is being treated for cancer.

Dakoda Koda Dowd will play the final four days of April in the inaugural Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open in Orlando, organizers of the golf tournament said.

Her mother, Kelly Jo Dowd, is undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer that has spread to her bones and liver. One of her final wishes is to watch Dakoda play in an LPGA event, organizers said.

“With this opportunity, she may finally have a chance to see this dream come true,” Dakoda Dowd said in a news release.

Dowd, who lives in Palm Harbor, Fla., has won 185 junior tournaments. As a sixth-grader last year, she helped the golf team at Northside Christian High win its first state title.

12-year-old girl Dakoda (Koda) Dowd to play on LPGA

2006-03-04T05:02:00.000-08:00

Dakoda (Koda) Dowd, a 12-year-old Florida girl, received an exemption to play in an LPGA Tour event next month and will fulfill the wish of her mother, who has cancer.

Dakoda Dowd will play in the inaugural Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open in Orlando on April 24-30, organizers of the tournament said in a news release.

Her mother, Kelly Jo Dowd, is having chemotherapy for breast cancer that has spread to her bones and liver. One of the mother's wishes is to watch Dakoda play in an LPGA event, organizers said.

"My mom has always dreamed of seeing me play with the really great golfers like Annika Sorenstam and Cristie Kerr," Dowd said in the release. "With this opportunity, she may finally have a chance to see this dream come true."

Dowd lives in the Tampa suburb of Palm Harbor and has won 185 junior events.

For Now, a Young Golfer Dakoda (Koda) Dowd Keeps Driving

2006-03-01T14:14:00.000-08:00

The driving-range stalls were nearly empty as 12-year-old Dakoda Dowd honed her golf swing in the morning half-light of this beach town outside Tampa.

"Somewhere, someone is practicing," one of her coaches, Lew Smither III, told her.

"And when you meet them, they will beat you," Dakoda said, finishing a sentence she has heard before.

It was Smither's reminder that ambition has a price, that the endless flop shots and 3-wood darts Dakoda (Koda) has hit were a down payment on the nearly 200 trophies she has won.

But time spent on the driving range is complicated these days.

Dakoda's mother, Kelly Jo Dowd, has bone cancer. She sleeps in most mornings, wears out in the afternoon and takes Vicodin for her aching joints. "I want to live as long as I can," Kelly Jo said in a recent interview, "but I also know that I have Stage 4 bone cancer."

This is Dakoda Dowd's reality. She possesses a golf swing that looks like a tour professional's. She has more than 100 contacts on her cellphone, many of them friends, mall hoppers and moviegoers like her. She has a mother who believed she had beaten cancer, only to have it return.

"It was kind of weird that it came back," Dakoda said softly during a break from practice.

Dakoda said she would drop golf immediately if it meant good health for her mother, who is 40, but that was not the doctors' diagnosis. A scan last May revealed that Kelly Jo had cancer in her bones and liver. They gave her six months to a year to live unless she immediately started treatment.

Kelly Jo embarked on radiation and chemotherapy, and when tournament organizers from the Ginn Clubs and Resorts Open — an event on the L.P.G.A. Tour — heard about the family's situation, they gave Dakoda a sponsor's exemption to play in their event April 27-30 in Orlando, Fla.

Dakoda (Koda) learned to play golf from her father, Mike Dowd, when she was 4 and, according to Smither, she is in the top 1 percent to 5 percent of all 12-year-olds. But one month after Dakoda's 9th birthday, with golf trophies piling up on the shelves, Kelly Jo received a diagnosis of breast cancer and had a double mastectomy.

Dakoda, a daddy's girl for most of her young life, began a home-school curriculum so she could be closer to her mother, and to the driving range several hundred yards from their apartment here.

Kelly Jo, believing she was cancer-free, began working out with Dakoda in a gymnasium. When Kelly Jo developed pain in her left hip, she thought it was from exercise.

"I went to my plastic surgeon, and they gave me some anti-inflammatories and said maybe the implants were causing pain in that area," Kelly Jo said. "It didn't get any better. I had gone to my general practitioner to do some X-rays, and they didn't find anything. It was like a guessing game. Nobody, including myself, had the intelligence to say, 'You just had breast cancer and this could be something more serious.' No one caught it."

It wasn't until May 26 of last year that her oncologist found that cancer had returned and spread.

"I had fought so hard the first time, not realizing that I should have saved some of that energy for the second time, that I had no more to give," said Kelly Jo, who has left her job as the general manager of a local Hooters, the company where she started as a waitress. "In my mind, I fought it, I battled it, it was gone. I had no idea that it might not exactly be true."

Mike Dowd, 45, said of his wife of 18 years: "She has been a working woman her whole life. She could have married way above me in looks and status, but she married a poor social worker. We're devastated by this, but we're strong people."

Dakoda (Koda) has spent nearly a quarter of her life seeing her mother go in and out of the hospital, watching her ache and moan, observing the growth and loss of Kelly Jo's blond hair. At the family's apartment, Dakoda is often at her mother's side, propping up her pillow or bringing her a glass of water.

Dakoda, like her mother, believed they were past cancer. And then, out of nowhere, they weren't. "I just couldn't believe it," Dakoda said. "She did everything she could and beyond."

On the golf course, Dakoda keeps Kelly Jo close the best way she can. Her clubs are adorned with the initials "KJ" in pink. Her golf bag is stocked with pink and purple lipstick.

Dakoda (Koda) Dowd Receives Sponsor's Exemption to Inaugural Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open

2006-03-01T14:10:00.000-08:00

Twelve-year-old Dakoda (Koda) Dowd has received a sponsor's exemption to the inaugural Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open at Reunion Resort & Club, April 24-30. The youngster from Palm Harbor, Fla., will be playing her first professional tournament against the esteemed 144-player field, which is expected to include No.1-ranked LPGA player Annika Sorenstam.

Already at such a young age, Koda Dowd is an accomplished player, winning over 185 junior tournaments and is the nation's top-ranked female player in the 2011 graduating class. In 2005, as a sixth-grader, she was the No. 2 player on the golf team at Northside Christian High and helped the team win its first state title.

However, her upcoming success has come at a time when she is facing a heartbreaking and difficult family situation. Dowd's mother, Kelly Jo, learned earlier this year that the breast cancer she beat three years ago has returned, invading more of her body and leaving her terminally ill. The disease has spread to bone and liver cancer. The chance for Dakoda (Koda) to play in an LPGA event is one of her mother's final wishes.

"This is so exciting for me and my family. My dad and I hope that my mom will be here to see me play in April at this event on the LPGA tour," said Dowd. "Since I was a kid, my mom has always dreamed of seeing me play with the really great golfers like Annika Sorenstam and Cristie Kerr. With this opportunity, she may finally have a chance to see this dream come true."

Tickets will be priced at $10 for each of the practice rounds and pro-am days and $30 for general admission for each of the four rounds. Parking is complimentary and included with each ticket. Weekly badges are available for $80 which allows guests access to all of the tournament events as well as the two evenings of music on Friday and Saturday night with concerts by the Pointer Sisters and Brooks & Dunn, to name a few. Practice rounds will be held on Monday, April 24 and Tuesday, April 25. The Pro-Am will be held on Wednesday, April 26 and the 72-hole competition will begin Thursday, April 27 and run through April 30.

The inaugural Ginn Clubs & Resorts Open will be played at Reunion Resort & Club on a composite layout of two of the resort's courses, the Legacy Course designed by Arnold Palmer and the Independence Course by Tom Watson. CBS Sports and The Golf Channel will televise the event nationally.

Dakoda (Koda) Dowd Launches New Website

2006-02-27T08:03:00.000-08:00

Dakoda (Koda) Dowd has launched her official website at www.kodadowd.com Stay tuned for updates and information on Dakoda's accomplishments and career. There is a page with contact information for Dakoda (Koda) Dowd, and a Q&A section set up.

If you have not heard the story of Dakoda Dowd, you will when she makes her way to the first tee box at The Ginn Clubs and Resorts Open in Orlando. Dakoda Dowd was given a sponsors exemption due to her being one of the best Jr. Amateur golfers in Florida.

Don't forget to cheer her on in April, and make sure to stop by and visit her website. Dakoda Dowd is on her way to becoming one of the best that the game has ever seen.

Things Looking Bleak For Wie To Play With Dakoda (Koda) Dowd

2006-02-05T05:44:00.000-08:00

The SBS Open wants Hawaii's prodigal daughter to return. But Michelle Wie's schedule and LPGA policy are at odds as the tour's season-opening event in her hometown of Honolulu approaches.
Tournament officials, Wie's agent and father B.J. Wie have lobbied the LPGA and Commissioner Carolyn Bivens about allowing Wie a special tour exemption.

She thus could play both season-opening Hawaii events without having one count toward her six exemptions. Nor would she be forced to scratch a marquee tournament from her summer schedule when she's on break from high school.

"There's a lot of people involved in trying to assist her. She's a big part of Hawaii's sports fabric, and she'd have a large impact for us," said SBS Open tournament director Ray Stosik.

"It would be a win-win situation," said Wie's father, "for SBS, local charities, the LPGA, The Golf Channel, Michelle, everybody."

Wie has accepted a spot in the inaugural Fields Open, Feb. 23-25, passing on the Feb. 16-18 SBS Open, where she tied for second last year. LPGA policy allows for a maximum six exemptions a year for non-members. According to spokesman Paul Rovnak, the LPGA has spoken with the Wies and others and clarified its exemption policy to them.

The LPGA recently extended a special exemption for Dakoda Dowd to play the Ginn Clubs and Resorts Open, April 27-30 in Orlando. The field was increased by one to 145 players to include Dowd, a 12-year-old from Palm Harbor, Fla., whose mother is battling breast cancer and hopes to live long enough to see her daughter play an LPGA event.

"If we didn't at least ask, we wouldn't be doing our job," said Wie's agent, Ross Berlin.

Wie can use her six exemptions any way she chooses. She decided to miss the SBS Open in favor of the Fields Open at Ko Olina Golf Club, where she mostly plays and practices.

"Not supporting the new tournament would have been awkward for us," B.J. Wie said.

Tuesday is the deadline for entry into the SBS Open, said Stosik, who didn't sound hopeful.

"We're holding out for something good to happen," he said. "People in the state don't know how many more times they'll get to see her in person. As her career grows, she's likely to leave Hawaii."

Indeed, the Wies have bought a house at Big Horn Golf Club in Palm Desert, Calif., site of the Samsung World Championship, where Wie made her pro debut last year.

Dakoda (Koda) Dowd Scores Win In Girls Division CJGA Event

2006-01-25T04:22:00.000-08:00

Dakoda Dowd wins girl division of the January 6th event. She once again tore up the competition. Check out the pictures here.

St. Petersburg's Root Records His Biggest Victory / Clearwater's Dakoda (Koda) Dowd Had The Day's Best Score (77)

2006-01-17T13:52:00.000-08:00

Doug Root , a member at host St.Petersburg Country Club, demonstrated that in the 79th annual New Year's Invitational.

His opening rounds of 73, 73 and 73 - 1-over par each day - gave him an insecure three-stroke lead entering the final round of the Senior Division (players 55-and-over).

His closest competitors were among the best in the state - Mike Walters and Don Lucas , both of Tampa. In the third round, they had reduced Root's lead by shooting 71 and 72, respectively.

Then Root departed from consistent rounds and crafted a 3-under 69 to capture the championship trophy by six strokes over Lucas, whose final round was 72.

"I drove well all week, especially the final day when I hit 12 of 14 fairways off the tee," Root said. "Also, I had only 29 putts in that final round, which is better than average for me there on my home course.

"But in a larger sense, I've been preparing for the past year and a half for my entry into the Senior Division and going to the gym regularly to get in shape," he said. "Fitness is a big part of this game that's often overlooked."

In recent years, Root has lowered his handicap to 1.

After an eagle chip-in from 30 feet on the 465-par 5 16th hole, his sixth, Root might have thought he had a safe cushion.

But Walters proceeded to sink a 20-foot putt for an eagle to stay in contention, and Lucas birdied to keep the match interesting. Kent Whittemore was the fourth player in the final foursome, and he was in contention.

Root didn't make a bogey in the final round until No.1, his group's 10th hole, where he missed a five-foot putt.

The turning point was their 14th hole, the 328-yard par-4 fifth. Root sliced his tee shot under a tree with two trees in front of his approach shot to the green.

"I hit a low 5-iron between the trees that went 100 yards to the green, enabling me to two-putt and save par," Root said.

"That was huge. ... That and not making many big mistakes all week. That helped me win my biggest tournament ever, with its strong field and history."

NOTES: Root won the St.Petersburg City Championship in 1994, '96 and '97.

In October, he returned to Mangrove Bay and captured the Senior Division two weeks after turning 55.

Whittemore, another City Championship winner, tied for third in the New Year's Invitational with a 72-hole 300, as did Jim Holbrook .

In the Open Division of the South's oldest men's amateur, the University of Indiana's Jeff Overton came from behind with a final-round 67 to overtake third-round leader Adam Scrimenti of Sarasota by a stroke.

The Florida Gators' Dalton Melnyk finished third (278) and was followed by a tie for fourth between Jeremy Hobson (282) and 2003 winner John Holmes of the University of Kentucky.

PRO NEWS: Seminole's Brittany Lincicome , 19, has been invited to play in the Jan.29 Tim Wakefield Charity Classic in Melbourne.

Wakefield, a Boston Red Sox pitcher, and teammate Johnny Damon will tee it up in the fund-raiser. Lincicome makes her 2005 LPGA Tour debut in Hawaii next month.

WEST COAST WOMEN: Pinellas golfers won three of five flights in the association's first match of the year.

At Belleair Country Club, Cathy Moss of the Vinoy took the title in Flight A with an 81, Sue Rooney of Innisbrook won Flight B (83), and Ann Stafford of Crescent Oaks and Cindy Kahle tied in C (86).

Walden Lake's Jackie Currier had the day's best round (78), winning Flight AA.

CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP: Jim Ahern successfully defended his title at Tarpon Woods last week in the 36-hole final, 5 & 4 over Ken Fawcett .

Head pro Greg McClimans will play assistant Greg Hiland for the pro title.

LARGO GOLF COURSE: In the biweekly scramble, 13-under 49 won for the team of Grey Farrey of Seminole, Mike Kuykandahl of Clearwater and Largo's Homer Holmes and Rich Creech .

JUNIORS: Clearwater's Courtney Harter , 15, won the girls 13-18 division of the Future Collegians World Tour event at the University of Florida course in Gainesville.

A sophomore at Palm Harbor University High, Harter posted 73-74-73 for a 10-over 220 to win by three strokes.

She followed that with a tie for eighth in a FCWT event at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra. In the boys 13-15 class there, Dunedin's Preston Knox tied for sixth with 72-75-147.

Clearwater's Dakoda Dowd had the day's best score (77) in the final round of a recent Canadian World Tour event on Innisbrook's Copperhead course.

The Northside Christian player finished one stroke out of first.

Dowd's Mustang teammates, Danielle and Mo Jackson , key members of last fall's state Class A titleists, are focusing on basketball this winter.

Dunedin's Dana Turker won the girls 15-19 division of the Plantations Junior Tour at Innisbrook earlier this month. Her scores were 87-83-170.

FLORIDA STATE GOLF ASSOCIATION: The state Two-Man Shootout Championship is scheduled for May 14-15 at Westin Innisbrook Resort. Entries close April 20.

Innisbrook will host on May 11 a U.S. Open qualifier, which will enable the top finishers to move on to a sectional at Old Memorial in Tampa on June 7.

Dunedin Country Club will have a U.S. Mid-Amateur (25-plus) qualifier Aug.15. Entries close July 13.

Largo High Star Rolls To Junior Tourney Win

2006-01-01T07:50:00.000-08:00

A young golfer from Belleair, Andrea Messer , overwhelmed the field at last week's Innisbrook Christmas Junior Classic.

Messer, 14, captured the girls 14-18 division of the 54-hole tournament by 10 strokes. Playing the famous Copperhead course, she put together rounds of 1-over 72, 80 and 73 for a 225.

The field included a couple of nationally ranked juniors from the state, including runnerup Jessica Yadloczky (36th) of Casselberry and defending champion Dolores White (43rd) of Lakeland, who finished fourth with rounds of 80-78-80-238. Messer's high school teammate and practice partner, Evan Jensen , took third with rounds of 76-82-78-236.

Messer said the key to her win was driving accurately and hitting irons onto the undulating greens.

"That first round of 72 did a lot for my confidence," said Messer, a homeschooled ninth-grader who played on the boys team with Jensen at Largo High. "I didn't get nervous knowing I was in the lead. I didn't feel any pressure." Messer, a Times all-county second-teamer this past season, and the other players ran into cold and windy weather on the second day. But even with the 80, which included a quadruple bogey, Messer increased her lead from four strokes to six. "I really wanted to shoot well that last day to prove I was better than an 80," Messer said. "I went for the pin on Monday (the final day) and was able to make three birdies. But I'm going to have to work more on my long putts. I missed a couple of them badly, which led to three-putts."

Messer has elevated her game during the past four years while working with Jim Slattery , the head pro at Belleair Country Club. The emphasis of his instruction has been on her swing.

Largo High coach Bill Schroeder , who attended two of the three rounds, said Messer takes the game seriously and is intent on doing well.

"Both Andrea and Evan are very businesslike in their approach to the game," said Schroeder, who has been coaching for 36 years. "They don't like to make mistakes. Another thing that helped Andrea is her fondness for the Copperhead course.

"That positive attitude helped her throughout. That and the fact that playing on the high school boys team, where she was the No.2 scorer, was also beneficial." Messer said she plans to continue practicing almost every day at her club, Belleview Biltmore, with her new Cleveland clubs with a goal of having a better year in 2005.

"I hope to qualify for the state tournament next year and make the Times all-county first team," Messer said.

"I'm having a lot of fun with the game. I'm glad my dad (Dennis) got me into it."

Clearwater's Dakoda Dowd , a member of Northside Christian's state championship team and a Times all-county first-teamer this past fall, tied for second (79-77-156) in the girls 13-18 division, ahead of Seminole's Rachel Edwards , a second-teamer for the Warhawks, (78-74-162) and Dunedin's Justine Knox (87-79-166).

David Palm of Jacksonville won the boys 14-18 division by six strokes over Cameron Knight of Dade City. Palm sandwiched a 2-under 69 between rounds of 73 and 74.

Linzy Clark III of Tarpon Springs also won at the Junior Classic. He shot a first-round 76 to take a three-stroke lead then held on despite shooting 81 in Sunday's bad conditions.

MORE JUNIORS: Dunedin's Preston Knox tied for second at the Florida State Golf Association's Christmas Classic at the Plantation Inn in Crystal River, posting rounds of 76-75-151.
He finished two ahead of Clearwater's P.J. Kolosvary , the Times 2004 county player of the year. Knox earned 120 points for the season to win the 12-14 age division.