The emotions hit hard when Brittany Lincicome stepped onto the 18th tee at Pelican Golf Club and saw her father, Tom, wearing her caddie bib, having tapped in for her weekend looper Michelle Simpson so he could walk alongside his daughter on the last hole of her full-time professional golf career.

Brittany and Tom tried their best not to look at each other, lest they both start sobbing as they strode up the final fairway together at The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican, but tears were still being wiped away as the pair finished what they started 20 years ago when Brittany was a fresh-faced 19-year-old who had achieved her goal of playing on the LPGA Tour.

“My parents sacrificed everything to get me where I am, and my dad caddied my first year and a half, and we got our first win together,” said a tearful Lincicome after her final round at Pelican Golf Club. “I thought he was just going to caddie half the hole after I hit the approach shot and walking up, but he was like, ‘No, I want to do the whole hole,’ and 18 is one of the hardest holes in the history of holes.

“But it was great. I tried to get the birdie for him. That would've been really cool. To have him inside the ropes walking with me, I know how much it's meant for me. He's literally been at every tournament I've ever played, I think, over my career. To be able to have him walk that last moment with me after all they sacrificed for me was really special.”

Lincicome’s parents didn’t always have the most money or a wealth of resources to further her golf career when she was growing up; however, they always supported their daughter no matter how big she dreamed, doing whatever they could to ensure she would have a shot at one day teeing it up alongside the world’s best athletes. Now, two decades later, their little girl has grown up and achieved things many players can only dream of on the LPGA Tour, not to mention also starting a family and being a great mom to her daughters, Emery and Sophia.

Her father was radiating pride as he stood off to the side of the 18th green while Brittany signed her scorecard and did interviews and hugged anyone who wanted one. It has been a crazy ride for Tom and his family throughout the entirety of Brittany’s career, and even though they are all sad it has come to an end, he cannot wait to watch his kid take on this new chapter, knowing that, just like she did on the golf course for over 20 years, she will handle this transition with grace and class.

“It was sad, but (it was) glad. It's nice that it's over, and she can go on with the next part of it,” Tom said. “I'm just glad that she had a lot of natural talent because if not, I'd have been in serious trouble. It's been great to see the progression of her game and her life and then the kids coming. The kids are great. We have them every other day. They're the joy of our life.”

Emery and Sophia definitely made Brittany’s moment on Sunday at The ANNIKA that much sweeter, while also keeping it a bit light-hearted. The girls presented their mother with a large bouquet of flowers and accompanied her into scoring, and Brittany couldn’t help but giggle at a moment that happened when her kids were trying to handle a flower arrangement that was just as big as they were.

“My first thought was Emery whacked Sophia in the face with the flowers when she went to turn around,” chuckled Lincicome. “That was really special. Just to have them anywhere near the game and to have them with me, that means the world. I just hope they remember even a little bit of what Mama used to do.

“I’m going to have a lot of footage and photos I can show them when they get older, but to have them here and to be able to walk that final hole with me after shutting it down after 20 years, it's really just the icing on the cake.”

It was her girls that made this difficult decision that much easier for Lincicome. Emery recently started kindergarten, and when the idea of volunteering at her eldest daughter’s school became more appealing than going to the golf course to practice, Lincicome knew that it was time to lean into the priority shift.

Life will likely feel a little strange for Brittany as she hangs up the clubs full-time for likely one of the first times in her 39 years, but it’s a choice with which she is more than content.

Emery will have school functions to attend. She’ll have more time to spend with Sophia, her parents and her husband. She will have the freedom to find new passions to lean into, to spend her time as she sees fit instead of having to plan for tournament travel or squeeze in time for golf on her already busy days.

That’s not to say that Brittany is leaving the sport behind completely. She has hinted that she might tee it up next year at The Chevron Championship, an event she won twice in her career, in 2009 and 2015, and who knows what other events might make it onto her schedule on a here-and-there basis.

But Lincicome is mostly hopeful that the game will now become a family affair, something that she, Dewald, Emery and Sophia can enjoy as a foursome, knowing first-hand how incredible golf can be and the value it can add to a person’s life, particularly when played alongside those you love most in this world.

“Golf is such a wonderful game,” said Lincicome. “It takes you to so many cool places. Emery is in the First Tee, so hopefully, Sophia will as well. To play leisurely with their mom and dad, fun little golf, I hope they both pick it up just because it's so wonderful.”

Brittany Lincicome Bids Farewell to LPGA Tour Full-Time at The ANNIKA

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