From Daniel Island to Magnolia Lane

Hello, friends. It’s almost Masters Week.

 

And if you are still looking for a rooting interest, a golfer to cheer on at Augusta National, then scribble this name down: Eloise Fetzer.

 

She’s 11 years old. And a fifth grader at Daniel Island School.

 

“I don’t have any nerves; I’m just excited,” she said.

 

Fetzer is not eligible to win a green jacket – yet.

 

But she will compete for a prized trophy, swinging and putting on the same hallowed grounds and greens of Augusta National at the 2025 Drive, Chip, and Putt National Finals the Sunday morning before Masters Week begins. 

 

The free nationwide contest encourages kids ages 7 to 15 to learn more about the game of golf, while testing their mettle in a friendly competition to see who can drive the farthest, chip the closest, and putt the purest.

 

“I think my strongest is my chipping and my putting,” Fetzer said, “but I feel confident in all of them.”

 

Sponsored by the PGA, the USGA, and the Masters Tournament, thousands and thousands of children since 2013 have arrived at their local course with a driver, putter, and wedge in hand to have fun in the sun with the hope of hitting a few good shots in their age division to advance to the subregional, regionals, and then, maybe, the Masters.

 

The truth is, it’s a statistical anomaly just to get a badge to enter the gates as a regular Joe at Augusta, much less an enveloped invitation to bring your golf bag and play.

 

Unless you are Eloise Fetzer.

 

This will be her second trip down Magnolia Lane. At the ridiculous age of 7, she was a first-time finalist.

 

“It was awesome,” Fetzer said. “They give you Monday practice round tickets; there’s a gala for you; you meet the chairman of the club, and then we just try to have fun – I mean, you are at Augusta National.”

 

Last year, Fetzer’s family moved from Chicago to Daniel Island. She was kind enough to bring along her caddy.

 

“Golf is her passion,” said her father, Kevin Fetzer. “It’s what she loves to do the most. She plays in tournaments all year long, but the Drive, Chip, and Putt tests your nerves just as much as anything. You are only hitting six golf shots at Augusta National. You hit two drives, two chips, two putts, and it’s over. You play a real round of golf, these kids are so talented, they can recover from a bad shot. There, you can’t.”

 

With her parents at her side, Fetzer practices two to three hours daily on the range and putting greens at The Daniel Island Club. The trio will often play a few holes for fun to strengthen the family dynamic – until competitiveness creeps in.

 

“(Dad) usually wins, and I get second,” Fetzer said. “But the other day, Mom won!”

 

So what’s it like to participate at a Masters-sponsored event?

 

“Kudos to Augusta, the Masters; they thought of everything,” Kevin Fetzer said. “They put all these families all over the country, give them their room and board for the weekend, pay for their flights, or whatever way they are going to get there that Saturday. They have a practice session if the kids want. They have all the gear. They have all the balls stamped with the Masters logo, which says ‘Tour Ball.’ There’s not a detail that’s left.”

 

In fact, when Fetzer attended in 2022, all 80 kids who advanced to the finals signed a billboard that was placed inside the room of the annual Champions Dinner for all the legendary Masters winners to see.

 

“I’m excited because I have done it before, and I know what to experience,” she said. “We are just practicing the shots that we are going to have in Augusta.”

 

Indeed, Fetzer is ready.

 

The mental confidence is there. 

 

So is her tournament-issued golf bag and Masters green-colored golf shirt.

 

In a few days, she will walk up to the fabled 18th green and, like Arnold, Jack, Tiger, Phil, and Scottie before her, will plant her feet on the same creeping bentgrass, grip her putter, tap her ball, and aim for the traditional Sunday pin location on arguably the world’s greatest golf course.

 

“When she had that experience at 7, to see what’s that like, that hooked her,” her father said. “It’s all she wants to do, and to her credit, she has worked her butt off to do it. We told her, whatever happens that day, you have already won. You have already won.”

 

The Golf Channel will broadcast the Drive, Chip, and Putt National Finals on Sunday, April 6, at 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.