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Cadet Must Make Decision Between Tours -- Military Or PGA TOUR PGATOUR.COM Feature Story
Oct. 25, 2001
By Stuart Hall COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Pressure for Ben Leestma is juggling the complexities of being a student-athlete at the Air Force Academy, which asks him to perform at a high level physically, militarily and academically. "While you strive to be the best in each, you really have to prioritize which are the most important," said Leestma, who is a Cadet First Class -- or senior on most any other college campus. Pressure is also mounting for Leestma to make a momumental life decision, one that comes with being an Academy cadet. By Nov. 1 he must declare his post-graduation intentions -- either become a pilot and commit for 10 years or commit for five years in a non-pilot field. "Or ... " he says, and that's where his story may take an odd twist. The son of former NASA astronaut David Leestma, Ben envisioned for many years becoming a fighter pilot, an F-16 practice flight sealing the deal a couple of summers ago. But in recent years, he has had a growing desire to try his hand on tour -- not a tour of duty, but the PGA TOUR. "I've been keeping up with the scores at the early stage rounds of the qualifying school, some of which are being played on courses I've played and they aren't as good as I expected," he said. "And that provides me a lot of motivation." So just who is this confident 21-year-old left-hander from Houston, Texas? Well, Leestma learned the game by his father's side with nothing but a 5-wood, 9-iron and a putter, and didn't begin playing competitively until high school, where he was "good, but nothing great," he said. Recruiters did not storm a path to his door, so he took his goals and game to the Air Force Academy. As a freshman in his first collegiate event, Leestma opened with a double bogey and then responded with two consecutive birdies. "I knew then I could play at the next level," he said. He won once his freshman year and six times since -- including a current streak of three straight -- and is now ranked 83rd in the recent Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings. His ranking is more a result of the Falcons' comparatively weak schedule than a reflection on Leestma's game. And earlier this year, he won the prestigious Service Academy Classic for an unprecedented fourth straight year. "There's a good bit of trash talking going on beforehand, all in jest -- but you really want to perform well," said Leestma, whose Falcons won the team title for a seventh straight year. "Plus, I had a little extra at stake because I had won it three years running." His game is long off the tee and polished around the green. Though his name has never appeared on an NCAA Championship leaderboard, he has no qualms about holding his own with the college game's premier players. "I'm not worried about going against those guys," he said. "Plenty of players and coaches have told me I can play this game and I believe I can. I think my scores are pretty comparable and I do have the experience of being in contention and winning, and that speaks for something." Espousing such bravado stems as much from having performed and won -- regardless of the field -- as from dealing with the daily pressures associated with attending a service academy. "This place -- and I'm sure it's the same at all of the other academies -- can be a constant stressful environment when you factor in the expectations placed on us," he said. "Hitting the shots in order to win is no different than the pressure situation they create here when you have to take on some enemy in combat. You have to be able to execute in stressful situations." As a student in a country encountering anxious times, Leestma is little different than most other 21-year-olds. He stays abreast of the war on terrorism, worries about anthrax, wishes life were a bit more carefree and ponders what his world will be like in five or 10 years. This is why Leestma is delicately weighing his options, including golf. Playing the PGA TOUR is a growing thought of Leestma's, yet pursuing such a route would entail receiving a waiver from the Air Force and then serving a two-year stint in the Reserves before attempting to qualify. Waivers are routinely granted to athletes drafted in other sports, as was the case with Green Bay Packers linebacker Chris Gizzi, who was originally signed by Denver in 1998, then spent two years fulfilling his Air Force commitment. "(Air Force golf) Coach (Gene) Miranda says he could see me playing on the PGA TOUR, and that would take a large commitment," Leestma said. "I would love to get on TOUR or to just give it a shot, but I also want to be a pilot.
"It's a big decision, a huge decision, and one I have been spending a lot of time thinking about. But if I don't go that route, I'll still be just as happy. I'll just try and keep my game up and maybe give the TOUR a shot when I get out."
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