Angela Stanford left the Solheim Cup at Finca Cortesin not really sure what had happened. It didn’t feel like it was over. Perhaps there should have been a playoff, maybe? Place two names in an envelope at the start of the week and have them face off in sudden death, maybe? That was one idea that Stanford had, serving as an assistant captain for U.S. Captain Stacy Lewis. Maybe that would have provided the closure Stanford was seeking and even a few more thrills.
“If you did something like that it would be so much more entertaining. There is a sense of finalizing the week,” Stanford said on Tuesday while reflecting on the Solheim Cup which was played two weeks ago. “I grew up playing sports that you don't tie, so when I got on an airplane and left I'm like, I still don't quite understand what happened.”
Stanford of course knows what happened, she made those comments while laughing as she thought back on ending the week in a 14-14 tie with the Europeans. But like anything in life, there needs to be some sort of closure, an ending that allows everyone to move forward. It’s something that Stanford has been grappling with this year as the 45-year-old wonders what’s next for her own career.
This week in her home state of Texas, Stanford is making just her ninth start of the season at The Ascendant LPGA benefiting Volunteers of America. The LPGA Tour veteran has played a limited schedule this season in order to explore a possible career in television by providing on-course commentary for Golf Channel. That choice was also made to give herself some grace as she grieves the death of her mother, Nan, who passed away in 2022.
“At the beginning of this year, I felt like I was coming out of the fog a little bit. Not ever dealing with the grief that I dealt with,” Stanford said about losing her mother. “I feel very blessed, fortunate that I've been able to do some TV, still been able to play a little bit. Just trying to figure out, you know, what's going on, what I want to do.”
During her weeks working for Golf Channel, Stanford has gravitated back to what’s familiar as she’s tried to find time to play or practice, and she says she’s been comparing her game to the players she’s been analyzing on the course. What Stanford has learned over the last year while holding a microphone is that she’d rather still be holding a club.
“A number of times I'm like, wait a minute, I hit my clubs that far,” Stanford said about the players she follows while on-course commentating. “I think through the process this year of watching a little bit I feel like I can still maybe compete a little bit.”
The seven-time LPGA Tour winner, who won in Texas in 2020, isn’t ready to call it quits just yet. In fact, Stanford is quite happy with what she’s seen from her game in recent months. She won the Senior LPGA Championship in her tournament debut in July. At The Ascendant LPGA this week, she’ll make her first start since August when she last competed at the Portland Classic.
Players in the latter stages of their career are often asked what keeps them coming back and the same could be asked of Stanford who has won seven times, including a major championship. She says she has a goal in mind – to have played in 100 consecutive majors. To date, Stanford has competed in 97 consecutive majors dating back to the 2002 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
“That also means I have some work to do in the beginning of next year,” Stanford said about her major conquest next season. “The fact that I kind of have that energy and burning desire to try to do that is a good sign for me.”
Stanford would have liked to see a little bit more of a definitive ending to a stellar match between America and Europe at the Solheim Cup in Spain. But when it comes to an ending to her own career, Stanford has learned this year that she’s not quite ready for the final conclusion.
At least not yet anyway.
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