Out with some friends last night after our Duramed Futures Tour event in Concord, NH I lost my purse.  It didn’t really have anything important in it if you don’t count my camera, my license, a credit card and come cash.  I was leaving this morning and I was freaking out.  I turned my car upside down and still couldn’t find it.  I was in the process of cancelling my card, and calling the DMV to see how to get a new license while I was on the road when I got a phone call from a random woman.  She had found my purse and everything was in it!!!  Linda Elliott I owe you big time.  It’s so great to know that there are still wonderful honest people in this crazy world we live in!!!

Hey again….yesterday was a sad day for one of my best friends and I wanted to share it all with you.  I went to college in Texas at Lamar University and my college roommate and one of my best friends was someone I spent SSSOOO much time with.  Nichole would take me to her house in Houston for all the holidays that I couldn’t fly home for.  Scott (Nichole’s dad) took me under his wing too, he was like another father to me.  I’ll never forget him or how much fun we had.  I had my first fried turkey ever with him over Thanksgiving and it was something that I looked forward to every year.  He was always asking how golf was and was truly interested in hearing.  Scott passed away in his sleep a couple of nights ago.  He still lived in Houston with his wife Lee, and the last time I saw him was at Nichole’s wedding last year.  He was such a PROUD father and he will be dearly missed.  Please send out some prayers to Nichole, Lee and all of the rest of the family as they are dealing with this right now.  I’ll miss you Scott, and I love you Nichole!!!!!!!  xoxo

Hello everyone!!!! This is my first official blog from my new website and I’m so excited.  I’m finally getting everything going and its even more fun than I ever thought it could be.  So here’s a quick update from this year. 

Started up WWWAAAAYYYYY back in March in Florida and have been traveling week in and week out since then.  I am currently in Syracuse, NY for another event.  This year has been full of ups and downs for me on and off the golf course.  The amazing thing is that I have a tremendous support system who love me and pull for me no matter what is going on.  So that is one thing that has been such a blessing to me this year.

Traveling from week to week can get very hard on a person, we have 6 events left this year and it seems like a million years away, don’t get me wrong, I LOVE what I do more than anything, and I would not change it for the world.  I just value the time off that I have had this year and have had more fun than any other year on tour.  You all know that I am on the golf course SSSOOOO much, so here’s just a glimpse of some fun stuff off the course that I have done.

In May, I joined 6 other girlfriends from college, the best friends in the world!!! And we took a vacation down to Destin, FL.  We relaxed on the beach and just had a wonderful time! A few sunburns later we were back to reality.  In June, I went to Greenville, SC for a friends birthday weekend.  Brandi Jackson is another player out here who I am very good friends with and so going to her party was a lot of fun!!! It’s nice to be able to mix my 2 different worlds.  My golf and non-golf friends.  Life is such a wonderful thing and I am so very blessed to have such amazing people in my life.  Be sure to surround yourselves with people who love and support you no matter what you do, they do it because you are happy!!! Until next time….FAITH!!!!

The U.S. Women’s Open Championship is known as the most prestigious event in all of women’s golf.  It is a tournament filled with so much history, especially when it is held at great old venues like Interlachen Country Club in Edina, Minn., where everyone was talking about Bobby Jones and his famous “lily pad” shot from the 1930 U.S. Open. Recently playing in my first U.S. Women’s Open, I hoped to make some memories and history to add to my own golf career — and that’s exactly what happened.

From the first moment there, everything was so memorable. There were smiling volunteers, amazing fans around every corner, brand new courtesy cars, unbelievable practice facilities, and the best golf course I have ever played! But even with all of the new experiences that I had that week, there were still so many elements of comfort.

For example, my parents, who are “regulars” at Duramed FUTURES Tour events, both made the trip to the Open and my dad caddied for me. My housing hosts from the Tour’s former tournament in Morgantown, W.Va., are U.S. Golf Association rules officials, so they were there. A dear old friend, Nancy Elliott from Boise, Idaho, makes the trip to the Women’s Open every year, so that was a nice surprise to see her. Jane and Abigail Wellens, a mother and daughter whom I met the week before at the Duramed FUTURES Tour’s Cincinnati event, drove up just to watch. And Rob Mahoney, my friend and caddie from the Tour’s event in Leawood, Kan., came up to surprise me for the week. John and Laura DeNovi, two members at River Hills Country Club in Valrico, Fla., where I work in the winter, also showed up! I had so many e-mails and text messages from friends and family around the country that I could feel their love and support with each step I took down the fairway. I can’t thank each of them enough for helping make my first U.S. Women’s Open so very special and memorable.

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Left to right: Duncan, McPherson, and me

Golf is such a funny game. It’s a game that all of us love to play, but it’s also a game that at times, we all love to hate. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in the golf that we forget about having a good time. Being on the Duramed FUTURES Tour, we have the opportunity to travel to different cities, meet new people and see new places. I’m going to give you a little glimpse into our lives off the golf course.

During the course of the five years I have been a touring professional, I have met some great people and made some amazing friendships. These relationships have given me the opportunity to go out and do some of these fun things. This year has been a whirlwind.

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WOW, what a week. What a hectic week. We were in Frisco, Texas for our 3rd event of the year. Well, let’s back up a little. After Tampa, I went back to my apartment in Orlando and had to move all of my stuff into storage. I only rent for the winter time, so what a pain that was. We got all our stuff out and then I made the painful drive from Orlando to Frisco. I stopped in Mobile, AL to visit a good friend from college, and then I stopped for Easter in Shreveport with another friends Mom. I arrived on Monday in Friso to find great weather. It was so nice the beginning of the week. I played in the pro-am on Thursday with 4 terrific guys. We had more fun than anyone on the course, I can guarantee that, and we even played great golf too!!!! Then everything changed.

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Hello to everyone!!My name is Janell Howland and I am a member of the Duramed Futures Golf Tour. For those of you who may not know, this is the tour right below the LPGA. I just wanted to give you all a little insight about me before I start writing about life as a touring professional. I am originally from Boise, Idaho. My mom, dad, and sister all live there still. I don’t get home as much as I would like to see them, but we make it work. I graduated from Lamar University in 2000 with a degree in Marketing, and I’m so thankful I have a degree. Education is absolutely priceless!! I worked for a couple of years after school before I decided to play golf.

I have been playing professional golf for 5 years now. In 2005 I had a decent showing at Qualifying school where I earned non-exempt status on the LPGA. Since then, I have lost my status, so I am back on the Duramed Futures Tour. So many great players that you see every week out on the LPGA made their start on the Futures Tour. I am looking forward to an amazing year. This is just a little bit about me. I look forward to keeping you updated throughout the year!! Take care and Happy Golfing!!!