Biography
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Dakoda Dowd, who lives in Palm Harbor, Florida, is a
golf prodigy who has won more than 185 junior
tournaments and is the top-ranked American golfer in her
graduating class.
Dakoda Dowd's mother, Kelly Jo Dowd, was diagnosed with
breast cancer in the fall of 2002. Kelly Jo underwent a
double mastectomy and chemotherapy treatments. Doctors
believed the cancer had gone into remission, but several
years later, Kelly Jo was discovered to have metastatic
cancer in her bones and liver. The Dowd family was
devastated and Dakoda scaled back her golf activities in
order to spend more time with her mother, who doctors
said could have only months to live. The Dowds were
forced to move into a studio apartment due to medical
costs and the loss of Kelly Jo's income, despite
fundraising efforts by Kelly Jo's former employer,
Hooters. At times, Dakoda even considered quitting golf,
but her father, Michael, and Kelly Jo encouraged her to
keep playing.
In March of 2006, Dakoda Dowd received a sponsor's
exemption to play in the inaugural LPGA Ginn Open after
the CEO of Ginn Clubs & Resorts, Bobby Ginn, heard about
Kelly Jo's plight and her dream to see her daughter play
in an LPGA event. Dakoda's story attracted considerable
media attention and she was followed by a large gallery
during the tournament. She birdied the first hole she
played and went on to finish the first round with a
2-over par score of 74. Although Dakoda ended up missing
the cut, the experience was nevertheless described as
"fantabulous" by Kelly Jo and "super surreal" by Dakoda.
Dakoda Dowd plans to attend the University of Georgia
and aspires to become a full-time player on the LPGA
Tour.