Jan Stephenson - Part 4 (The Later Wins and Life After the LPGA)

Outro Music 0:07

Straight down the middle. It went straight down the middle. Then it started.

Mike Gonzalez 0:14

So we got one more win to talk about, Jan of 1983, and that's uh you pairing up with Freddie Couples at the JC Penny Mixed Team Classic at Bardmore Country Club down Florida. You remember a little bit about that one?

SPEAKER_01 0:28

Yeah, that was a fun one. The year before I it was my turn to invite, and because you know they rotated, so I guess it was in '82. Um my father-in-law, Ernie Vossler, wanted me to invite someone that represented Oak Tree. And so uh they didn't know much about uh Freddie at the time, so I asked if I could play with Fred Couples, and um, so they allowed it. I think we finished top five the first year, and so then obviously we played again the next year, and we won by a lot. I think we won by like 10 shots. It was actually funny because I was playing a pinnacle golf ball, and and he didn't want to play the pinnacle, and it was the ultimate alternate shot, and um, and it was I had I actually was the first person to play Metal Woods, Metal Clubs with Tailor Maid. And so I had a spoon that would go a long way, and he he kept saying, Um, I think we can reach one of the par fives in two with this with this metal club. So it it kind of you know put Metal Woods on the mark, on the you know, on the map too. But it was fun because he he's different to play with, you know, he's kind of relaxed and and his wife kept saying, Whatever you do, you can't kiss him when you make a birdie. Because everybody would, you know, would kiss each other or hug when they made birdies. And she was there and she was very jealous. It's like, look, I'm married, you're married, it doesn't mean anything. But and of course, right when we won, he said, you know, I and I had a really bad cold, so it was a good excuse not to kiss on the Sunday. And right as um right as we finished and we won, Freddie felt so bad that we hadn't kissed all all day, and I kept making a bunch of putts. And so on the 18th hole, he went to just kiss me really quickly, and of course, front page news was us kissing on the in the paper, and and apparently Deborah got very upset. And I had promised that not to kiss, we had promised not to kiss, and she got so mad that um and two years later she refused to let us play together anymore.

Bruce Devlin 2:49

Boy. Well, after that after that lovely victory there, the you two superstars, uh Jan Stevenson's uh winning ability stopped for a while. What what was going on?

SPEAKER_01 3:04

It was well, I you know, I got married in 80, end of 82, and then we'd always had a goal that I would win the open, my father and I, and US Open. And after I did that, I kind of was like, wow, I don't have a goal. And it was amazing because I didn't realize that it was something that you know can really motivate you. So I had that. I um and then my husband took over managing me once we got married. So at the end of so the beginning of 83, he decided he would manage me. So he took me away from Sherry Way and he decided that he wanted to make as much money as he could. So he booked me every single Monday I had to go do a corporate event. I was so tired. We had a we've got a new plane, and he was the the head pilot, and and it was a a single, it was a single pilot, so I could fly around, and then he decided we should get a lear where we needed another pilot. So it my expenses were like over$300,000 to have an airplane. So then he kept saying, this is back in '83. It's a hell of a lot of money for. So then he decided that I needed to be booked every single week. And when I took a week off, he would book me three and four outings for that week. So I was I thought I was tired with Ray Volpe, but I just got so exhausted. Um, he wouldn't let me, he didn't want me to go see my coach, and he just booked me all the time. So I really didn't enjoy golf, and for a long time it was really hard because I hated playing in pro ams because I was playing two and three pro ams a week while still trying to play. And he obviously took a toll on my game. And um, and uh and it was it was really hard. I was on the road the whole time. I never really got a week off, and it was hard. And my father wasn't caddying for him anymore, so he couldn't put his foot down, and he was getting too old to caddy. So I was kind of controlled by the nickname. My nickname was with his with it with my husband's friends was Triple M, Money Making Machine. And that's really all I was, and uh I didn't have a very good life. And so in 85 I said, you know, I'm right at the beginning of 85, I'm gonna focus on my game. And I and I pulled out of a lot of the outings that he booked me, and I won at the beginning of the year, and then of course, you know, he said, Well, you can't get out of the outings. And so in 86, I put my foot down and said, I'm done. You know, I um the LPGA doesn't need me. They've got you know, we've got a commissioner that doesn't really care for me and doesn't believe in marketing. I'm tired of doing of doing this. We started the calendars with Taylor Maid and with Dunlop and so with the Maxwell Bull. And so they took, they made it easier for Eddie to go ahead and book me because these calendars were huge and making making money for them. And so I I wasn't enjoying my life. It was a really tough time. I mean, we made lots of money, but it wasn't much fun for me. So in 86 I said, you know, I want to go back to playing golf. And I so I set myself a goal with my family and said, I want to become number one. You know, I've done all I've done is is make everybody else happy, and I really want to just play golf. And this is my opportunity. So um the end of 86, I I started practicing really hard. And in 87, I got off to a really good start. I won in March, I won in Santa Barbara, and went finally went to number one in the money list. Went, we had um, so then the next taunt was St. Pete, and uh I had a five-shot leave with one round to get go, and I was coming home, had I had stopped and got my food, done the press conference, practiced. I had my putter with me, I always took my putter home to my room and practiced. And on the way home, um a girl ran a red light, she was on drugs and ran a red light, had a really bad wreck, um, smashed my head. Luckily, I had a seatbelt on, but my head still hit the rear vision mirror. And then because she pulled, she hit me on my left side and then I swung into the other lane and then got hit on the other way, so it spun back the other way. So they cut me out of the car, and um, and so I broke all the ribs on my left side and had head and neck injuries, but I did get to number one. So at least I reached my goal then. And so that was that was a tough time. And then um I had I was supposed to go to Japan the next week, but I couldn't because I was, you know, I was dealing with some pretty bad shape.

Mike Gonzalez 7:57

Well uh I I know that was the beginning too of uh just a uh a a tough time personally. We'll talk about some of the other things going on that time frame. But before we do, let's just jump back to to sort of coming out of that dry spell because you mentioned in 85 that you were able to win early. So that was the 1985 GNA Classic at Oakmont Country Club in California by one over Amy Alcott, Pat Bradley, and Barbara Moxness.

SPEAKER_01 8:22

Yeah, it was fun to win again. I mean, it you you notice like Bruce. I mean, there's nothing like winning. You know, I remember Carol Mann saying, Oh, it's it's always a letdown once you finally win. I'm like, no, not at all. Um there's there's nothing like it because that's what you're trying to do. And and I felt like you know, I had an opportunity to kick off from there. I I had a caddy I really liked, and and my family were you know were there and it was it was great. But um my mum and dad came over and then they would spend the summer. My father took long service leave from the government. So I thought I was back to playing again and it was fun, and then of course I had to do the calendars and that started that all over again.

Mike Gonzalez 9:03

You you won a tournament uh then in Europe, I'm assuming it was in France because it was the Hennessy Cognac Ladies' Cup at Golf de Saint-Cloud by five over a uh pretty good young lady who was just coming on the LET tour at that point. Laura Davies.

SPEAKER_01 9:24

Yeah. Um actually it was the French Open, so it was another major. Yeah. Um then so that was pretty important to go to that. And uh it was fun because I um it was the first, it was actually Laura's first event as a pro. And she had just joined the tour. And actually, about three weeks earlier, there was a a shaft that they made where it was just kind of with graphite just getting started, and they had um really, really thin steel, but then it was covered in graphite, you know, had a graphite shield because graphite really wasn't, you know, where they could be strong enough to be able to do it on its own yet. And I had broken um my three wood, the steel was so thin that it sometimes it cracked. And and about three weeks earlier, I had had a three wood that was kind of acting really funny and kind of dropping out of the sky. And they went, Oh, probably the steel shaft has is cracked. And when they took the graphite off, there was a little crack in the steel shaft. So they went, you'll have to watch for that. So I was in, I was I was in uh France, and I was in the last group, obviously, and I was paired with Laura Davies, and um we we were quite a I think we were quite a bit ahead of the other the other people. And so on the first hole, uh Laura outdrove me by like 60 yards, and I'm like, and I didn't think anything of it. I thought, oh, I'm nervous, maybe, maybe I didn't hit it great. And then the next hole was this dog leg, and um so she couldn't hit her drivers, so we were about the same. And then on the next hole, the third hole, I thought I hit a really good drive, and she outdrove me by at least 60 yards. And I went, oh, I know what's happened. I bet the shaft is broken, and I had no idea how far she hit it. I said, I bet the shaft is broken like it did with my three wood. So I put my driver back in the bag, and I was playing my three wood, and um, I was like, and and we played like three or four holes, you know, we played a part three and stuff, and then one of the the sponsors, Monsieur Hennessy, came up because he was allowed to walk with us in those days, and the gallery could walk with you, and he said, What do you think of Laura Davies? She's the she's a new superstar, but she outdrove Greg Norman last week in in Europe, in England, they did a test, and she outdrove Greg Norman, and I went, What? You mean it's not my club? And I'm like, Oh my god. So I went back to hitting my driver and I finished up winning. I beat her. And when we got done later, she goes, Why did you stop playing your three wood on those long parfors?

SPEAKER_00 12:16

And I told her the story, and she she always teases me about to this day.

Bruce Devlin 12:21

Something else happened that day, too. Do you recall what that was? As if you became the first woman to win on five different continents.

SPEAKER_01 12:32

I I did. Yeah, I didn't realize it was when I won the French Open, but yeah, because I'd already won in Japan and Morocco and Australia, so and America. So yeah, that's and Canada. That is pretty cool. Um, I know because uh Jane Geddes had said, well, I want to put on there that I was the first person to win in five continents, and they went, no, you Jan beat you to it. So yeah, it and that was fun to win the French Open because you know I had I hadn't been winning much, so it was nice to to come back and win then.

Mike Gonzalez 13:01

Yeah, and I think uh to come full circle then, I think Laura Davies actually won the final edition of that tournament back in 1997 then.

SPEAKER_01 13:10

Oh, that's nice.

Mike Gonzalez 13:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 13:12

I I that's I like that that I have to talk to her about that when I see her.

Mike Gonzalez 13:16

Yeah. Uh you had a win in Japan, uh, and I'm not sure, Bruce, maybe you can try to pronounce that uh Nashiri Ladies Cup.

SPEAKER_01 13:26

Oh yeah, yeah, that was that was good. I'd I'd I won the World Ladies in uh the Kanaka in uh 81, and that was that was actually my first professional event, so it was nice to come back and win it. Um I I was my first professional event in 73, so to win it in 81, it was special. But yeah, that was we played um that tournament was in Tokyo, I think. I can't remember, but anyway, it was it was always nice to win because you know what it's like in Japan. They give you all kinds of presents and prizes, so it's fun.

Mike Gonzalez 14:00

Yeah. Well, let's get back to that leading money winner year then of 1987, opening up at the Santa Barbara Open at Sandpiper Golf Club, and also played at La Parisma golf course, I think, um across two courses.

SPEAKER_01 14:14

That's right. We played two courses there. In fact, um it was Ayako Okamoto and I down the stretch, and uh I made uh I made about a four-foot putt, but it was only um it was a big right-ile putt. And I remember I I was thinking that it had about a I swear it had 12 inches of break. And I was like, man, of all putts to have to make, it's you know, outside the hole on a four-foot putt, you know it's got a lot of break to it. And uh I but I made it and uh it was it was good. She was a really good player.

Mike Gonzalez 14:47

You know, think about that. That was 36 years ago with whatever green speeds you guys were playing then. Imagine today rolling at 12 what that putt must have been like.

SPEAKER_01 14:55

Oh, I know, it'd have been worse because yeah, back then we didn't have the greens that fast.

Mike Gonzalez 15:02

So, as you said, you won the money. Uh now you're injured in an auto accident, and I don't know of the timing of that. Did you come back and win the Safecoat Classic after you got hurt, Jan?

SPEAKER_01 15:12

Yeah, I got hurt in May. Um, and then it I I actually um, you know, there I had to take a month off, and then I couldn't take it. I was because I wanted to stay number one, and I was losing, I was losing as, you know, obviously not playing. So then I decided to try to come back, and so I would tape up my the ribs would be taped up every day, and um the pain was so bad I I uh I would come out of my shots and started hooking it. But I wanted to come back so badly, and uh actually I was playing with Jack Nicholas in a in an exhibition in uh North Carolina, and you know how you have to have the mics on when you're doing your when we were having, so they put them up your shirt, you know, take them up, take the wire and put it, you know, you put the mic here and put the wire down your shirt. And when they were taped, while they were doing it, I was all taped up, so they lifted my shirt and Chet Nicholas was like, What the hell have you got on? And I said, Well, I've got broken ribs and they won't heal. And so I'm still taped up. And he goes, Well, no wonder you can't hit it, you hit you hitting a hook. And so he was the one that said, you know, uh, my piece of advice is that you take off until your ribs heal. You can't play, you can't compete. So I had tried to play all summer and was really frustrated. And so I took off two months, let them let the ribs heal. And then his advice was take the weakest part of your game and make it your strength while you're off. So even though I was a good putter, I was a streaky putter. I would, you know, if I made my first six-footer, or you know, I would win the tournament. I mean, most of my tournaments were from wire to wire. But I was not a consistent putter. I was not, you know, a Judy Julie Angster or a Patty Sheen or a Lopez. I wasn't consistently good. And that's why I always bitched about my putting, and they go, wait a minute, you putted great when you won. I'm like, yeah, but I didn't putt the last week before I putted horribly. That's right. So I spent I spent two months. I I took my caddy and said, let's go to Arizona where I lived, and you know, let's just chip and putt. And so I chipped and putted for and kept checking and seeing when my ribs, and finally my ribs healed. And uh so then I played the last three tournaments of the year. I finished second in Portland to Nancy Lopez, and then had to go do a corporate outing on that between Portland and Seattle. And um, I I went and did that, and I was I remember my parents were with me, and they're like, you know what? You're coming back. It's good that you finished second, but I putted horrible after working on my game. I three putted I three-putted 16, and I missed a short birdie putt on 17, and then Lopez made a putt on 18. She made a long putt, and then Lopez made a putt on 18 to beat me, and I'm like, damn it, I've worked this hard, and I still my putting let me down. And then Seattle was the next one.

Bruce Devlin 18:17

You solved it then, didn't you?

SPEAKER_01 18:19

And yeah, and so now it was Lopez and I coming down the stretch again, and I was like, Oh, here we go again. I'm gonna, I'm gonna live. And that time my putting came through and I won the tournament, and then I won the next week in San Jose.

Mike Gonzalez 18:33

So good finish to the year, boy. Yeah, kind of the back half of September in 1987. So Safeco Classic was at Meridian Valley Country Club by one over Nancy, and then you come back in San Jose and win uh at Almadin, golf and country club by five over Amy Alcott. So that was a pretty good uh stretch, those last three, those last three events.

SPEAKER_01 18:53

Yeah, I know. I mean, just think what would have happened if I hadn't had a car wreck.

Mike Gonzalez 18:58

So speaking of that then, uh did that just uh continue to impact you as you as time went on?

SPEAKER_01 19:05

Well, no, actually, I was okay. I mean, I s you know, I had I had I still come out of my shots a little bit. Um, not that it hurts, but it's I think that's what caused it. But then it then it was more um I was playing really well. I mean, my my scoring average was there, but um my father got ill and um he got cancer. So I was more concerned with him. I mean, I was going back and forth to Australia um to see him, and uh he he met me in Hawaii in February for a tournament, my parents, and then um they told me you know that how bad he was. And so that year I I went to Australia like five times. So I was when I took a week off, I flew home, so I was really tired. Um I my scoring average was good, but I just didn't have that last little plot. Plus, my parents went with me, and that was really hard. I was always really close to them, and so he died in he died at the end of the year, and and that was tough.

Mike Gonzalez 20:07

Yeah, did you lose a caddy during that time frame too?

SPEAKER_01 20:09

Like, 89 I lost the caddy that I'd had from 82 on.

SPEAKER_03 20:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 20:14

Um, he got uh lung cancer, so I had I was fighting that with my father dying. 88 and 89, I was I was really hurting.

Mike Gonzalez 20:25

Yeah, you know, again, we we come back to this theme of uh things that people don't realize, and that's that life continues outside the ropes. And so, in addition to personal loss, uh you're down in Miami in 1990, and uh and you get another curveball thrown at you.

SPEAKER_01 20:40

I did. I spent the winter really working on my game and said, okay, it's time to come back. I've you know, I've grieved and I they wouldn't like the fact that I'm you know not being able to concentrate on the golf course. So I decided I'd kind of rededicate myself to golf. I was working really hard and played great in uh the first tournament of the year was in Jamaica. I played, I finished in the top five, and we had a week off, and um was working on my game in in Palm Beach, and and I got a phone call from Jerry Calangelo, who owned the Phoenix Suns, and said, I'm coming to Florida. You know, I was pretty close. I had you know floor seats, I loved going to the games. And he said, I'm I'm I'm gonna be in Orlando and in Miami looking at the floors because I'm building a new stadium. Would you like to come? And of course, I said, of course I would. So my husband was with me, so we met we met Jerry in Orlando the night before, saw theirs, went to that stadium, and then in Miami we were I went to put my I had one of those great big Motorola phones, the first ones, the big heavy ones, and I was putting that in the trunk of the car, and I jumped out of the car to put it in, you know, with my purse. And it was a you could see it was not a very good area. And um and I got You know, the I got swung around. He pulled the phone. He pulled my hand with the purse, and I threw the phone down and let him have the purse. And then he saw my ring and decided he wanted that as well. So then I got brutally mugged, and they tried to take my ring off. He tried to take my ring off and he couldn't get it. So then he snapped my finger and spiral fractured it, and it was hanging by the tendon, but he couldn't get it, and I started yelling for help. So then he picked me up and threw me at the people coming, and I dislocated my right shoulder. So it was a pretty tough time.

Mike Gonzalez 22:33

Yeah. Uh I I guess in addition to the physical trauma, uh, just the mental uh side too, in terms of just having your your person violated like that by somebody just randomly.

SPEAKER_01 22:45

Yeah, my husband sat in the car and watched it. He didn't get out, which was pretty bad. So I filed for divorce.

Mike Gonzalez 22:53

So uh take us through the months and years after that then. I mean, uh were you f still physically able to compete at a high level or did that have an impact?

SPEAKER_01 23:01

No, I've I was never be able I could never really recover from that. I can't still can't hold on with the last three fingers of my left hand, it's damaged. They've got screws in there and wires, but it doesn't they don't work. So I had to come back knowing that I'd lost 30 yards in distance.

Mike Gonzalez 23:20

And it wasn't a broken shaft. No broken shaft.

SPEAKER_01 23:23

No, this was one I couldn't really overcome.

Mike Gonzalez 23:26

Yeah, yeah. Well, uh before we wrap up your LPGA career, I'm sure Bruce would like to ask you about your playoff record.

Bruce Devlin 23:34

Yeah, you know, we've we've uh we've we've we've kept a pretty close account of all of the great players. Uh 71 of them. They have a losing record in playoffs, which is very hard to believe. It's about 43%. And you're one of the guys that really took it down underneath the 50. Zero for four, Jen. Come on.

SPEAKER_01 23:59

No, actually, I'm actually one for five. Well, we're gonna qualify I won the Australian Open against Pat Bradley.

Bruce Devlin 24:08

Oh, in the playoff.

SPEAKER_01 24:10

In the playoffs.

Bruce Devlin 24:11

See, bad on me. I'm sorry about that.

SPEAKER_01 24:14

That's okay, but it was that's the only one. And I, you know what it is? I don't understand it either. Because and there's actually more that I've lost. Like I've lost when I was trying to qualify for the open, you know, over the years. I've lost in playoffs for that too. So I am really terrible in playoffs. And I don't know why I think that when we used to have the Merrill Lynch playoffs as well, we used to have those on a Tuesday. I I I don't know what it I think it's it for some reason it's a lack of confidence. I don't know. It's I maybe it's just the fact that it's just one hole or one shot. Yeah, it's a bit of a crapshoot, really, isn't it?

Bruce Devlin 24:53

When you think about it.

SPEAKER_01 24:54

I mean, yeah, I don't know. I just think that, you know, the the long hitters always have a big advantage, you know, on par fives because it's usually it's on a par five of the last hole.

SPEAKER_03 25:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 25:06

And they they can reach the green in two. So that part of it, I I think my steady play is not good for match play. It's kind of you know, it's that kind of thing. But I don't know. I mean, it i it is a horrible record, and I and I I should I don't know why. I just have I guess it's that just that do or die. You'd think I'd be good at that, but yeah, it's funny, isn't it?

Bruce Devlin 25:30

You know, well, like we said, you know, you look at all the 71 great players we've talked to, and the the cumulative their record is like four out of ten.

SPEAKER_00 25:39

So that's really interesting. I actually feel better once you told me that. That's right. It's I've always had a horrible record of that.

Mike Gonzalez 25:47

Well, the the the fellow that got the biggest needle from Bruce and I was Ben Crenshaw, 0-8. Yeah. And then you've got to think about Kathy Whitworth losing 20 times in a playoff in her career.

SPEAKER_01 25:59

I didn't realize that. Wow. Yeah. Because she won so many anyway.

Mike Gonzalez 26:04

No, 95 times. Yeah. Yeah. So just to qualify our stats, though, we're only counting LPGA tour playoff record, okay? So that's that's what our stats were. Yeah, yeah. Um but anyway, so you had a hand in uh getting the senior version of the LPGA going, didn't you?

SPEAKER_01 26:24

Yeah, we you know, we struggled with uh Ty Votar was the commissioner of the LPGA, and when we went to him and said, you know, we've got all these players that are turned that are actually what 45 and I was 50, but Lopez was probably 45. And and uh and he um we went to him and said, could we have you know, we need to start a senior tour? And he's like, I'm not interested in a senior tour. I'm struggling trying to get LPGA events for the players. I I I can't, you're on your own, basically. And I and Arnold Palmer said, you know, if we did it again, we should have owned it more and then sold it to the PGA. So um we we got together, and because Tai Voter said, I'm not interested in helping you, and so we formed we formed um 25 players, uh, all put in$5,000. And we went to Ray Vulpee because we figured that, you know, he he's the one that really turned the LPGA around. And he tried to help us, but he said, you know, I'm I'm kind of being out of the game for so long. And so we struggled. Um the the four main people were Jane Blaylock, Sally Little, Hollis, and myself, uh Hollis Stacy, and we we tried to get it to go. And we did really well. I mean, Jane Blaylock had kind of a company anyway that did corporate outing, so she we had her run it. And we at first we had like 13 events, and we really started having some good results because you know, we were the names everybody knew, you know, between uh all the big names, you know, you got Lopez and Sheehan and Alcott and all of the big names, you know, rank and they're all there, and so we felt like we'd we'd we'd be able to sell it, and we could. I mean, we started doing really well and it was fun. I won a bunch of the events and it was great. And then as as they got older, you know, it got harder because there it was kind of a lull with the LPGA. When you think about after, you know it was like uh, you know, maybe Meg Mallon was just the very beginning of our, you know, of it. And then there was there wasn't anyone that stood out, there weren't any really big personalities and until Annika and then Kyrie and Lorena. But up until then, there was, you know, nobody. We had like 20 or 30 big names that that everybody knew and had their own following. So we always had big galleries wherever we played.

Mike Gonzalez 28:58

Yeah. Well, you played a lot of hand of cups well, uh, as well, uh, as part of that, right?

SPEAKER_01 29:04

Yeah, we we really got fortunate with Dr. Honda. He nobody would believe him when he wanted to. He was he represented blind and disabled golf, and he called Jane Blalock and said, I would like to sponsor some events. And nobody believed him, and Jane did. She flew to Japan and met with him, and and he said, I want to, I want to be part of golf. I want I want my foundation to be with golf. And the PGA turned him down, the Japanese PGA turned him down, the LPGA turned him down. So we we believed in him, and he we did great with him. We had some fun events, and he loved, and I loved what he did. I wish we could have continued it more. Was every every 10 years you you moved up 10 yards. And so we had all kinds of players that, you know, from all different age groups, and it was fun. And I thought that would have been a great way to have it now because someone like myself or you know, Lopez or Pat Bradley can't compete with Annika or Kari Webb, where you could if you had that T advantage. Um, Innisbrook tried to do it, but the LPGA, now that the senior tour is part of the LPGA, they went, no, we're not going to do it, which I think is actually a wrong decision when you think about the fact that there's only two ways to handicap golf is with a handicap or with tease. And I really thought that could have been something different. And we did it in Japan and Australia, and it was a big success.

Mike Gonzalez 30:39

Yeah. Yeah. Interesting. Well, you look back at the career of Jan Stevenson and all the awards and accolades that have come your way. I'll I'll list a few and then maybe ask you to sort of fill the gap in from senior golf through today and all the different things you've been able to get involved with. But uh back in 85, the Sport Australia uh Hall of Fame inductee, LPG Pioneer Award in 2016, the Order of Australia Medal in 2018, which probably came with a title.

SPEAKER_01 31:13

Yeah, it is actually nice to be recognized, there's no question. You don't notice it, but as you get older and you you can't do it by playing, it is nice to to get recognized, especially as hard as I work to help the LPGA tour. I think that was the hardest thing was that it they didn't continue to teach that. Um, you know, what all of the players did to move the LPGA along. The PGA is a little better. They they do seem to support more of what the champions tour guys are doing. Of course, I don't know, I talked to Ernie Ells and he said they still feel like they're the unwanted children of the PGA tour. But it's worse on the LPGA tour. Way worse. Um, but again, I guess there's some more involved with what's going on with the regular tour. But it's so it is nice to I really didn't realize how nice it is to get the honors, but it is nice.

Bruce Devlin 32:08

Yeah, yeah. You got a big honor too in uh 2019. You you went into the World Golf Hall of Fame with Peggy Kirk Bell, Ratif Goosen, uh Billy Payne, and uh Dennis Walters, the man in the wheelchair.

SPEAKER_01 32:24

Yeah, that that was nice because I you know I didn't think I was gonna get it, but then they change I guess they changed the rules. So I qualified under the rules playing, but they they recognized my international events, and they hadn't recognized those before because nowadays you can you can actually register as an international player, but in those when I first started, they you were just a member of the LPGA. So when they counted all my LPGA international wins and majors, you know, I kind of breezed in. But at the time you still have to be voted in no matter what.

SPEAKER_03 32:58

Right.

SPEAKER_01 32:58

And every year I I wasn't getting vote every time they had it, which is every two years, I think. They I I'd miss out, and Nancy would have to call. Nancy is on the main, the last committee, which is it's like I think there's four or five. And she was always the one designated to call me and tell me I didn't make it. And of course I'd start crying, and she would start crying because Nancy cries a lot. We always tease about that. She cries when she's happy and when she's feels bad.

Bruce Devlin 33:26

When she's sad as well, huh?

SPEAKER_01 33:28

Yeah, but anyway, she was she called me the in n in the beginning of 19 before they announced it. No, the end of 18. And she was crying, and I went, It's okay, Nancy, don't worry about it. Uh I can handle it. And she goes, No, no, no, wait, you made it. And she so it was really, it was really, really special that she was and um Jack Nicholas and Gary Player were on the phone because they were in the committee at the time then too. And they were laughing because I was I was trying to console Nancy, don't worry about it. I'm okay. And then they started laughing in the background, and I was like, Well, what's happening?

Mike Gonzalez 34:04

Is this a prank call or what?

SPEAKER_01 34:05

Here, yeah.

Mike Gonzalez 34:07

Well, uh well-deserved uh induction in the World Golf Hall of Fame. Um, you've also been involved in a lot of other things, philanthropy and golf course design and exercise and how-to videos for golf, uh, business ventures, music ventures. Uh just kind of bring us up to speed with some of the things that uh you have been and are involved in today.

SPEAKER_01 34:30

Yeah, I I like to keep really busy. Um, and it seems like some things I get kind of stuck doing, and some um some I always wanted to be part of. It it's it's fun to to do other things that you know, the golfers that allowed me to be able to open doors. Um I'm trying to think which one was the first one we talked about. You know, I was always being involved with some pretty important charities, which is nice.

Bruce Devlin 34:56

Um, National MS Society, was that one of the early ones?

SPEAKER_01 35:00

Yeah, the exercise one?

Bruce Devlin 35:01

No, the um MS, uh multiple sclerosis.

SPEAKER_01 35:04

Oh yeah, the multiple sclerosis. Yeah, I I started doing a lot with them, and um then they asked me to be an honorary member and help them. I see I could raise a lot of money back then when I was part of that, and then the same thing um now I have my own, which is um the Crossroads Foundation, which which is really for people. I mean, I try to do it with the crossroads of life. I started the the junior golf with that now Kari Webb takes over. I started that with Australians, bringing them over here, but then as I wasn't playing on tour, it was too hard for me to continue bringing two girls over and take them on the tour when Kari was still playing, and she's taken that. Um, the girls that I had all have made it onto the tour, and then now uh Kari's taken that. So that was pretty special. But junior golf felt like it there was plenty helping them, and there wasn't much helping uh disabled golf and military, and so with Dr. Honda, he's with the blind, so I learned how to teach blind people. So that part was really important, and then um, you know, I have my own line of wine and my own um line of spirits. I'm uh so that part of it, I'm an owner, part owner of a distillery in Utah. And the wine I actually just sold my winery um during COVID. Yeah, because it was too hard for me to keep it going and do tastings, and it was expensive having a winery out in California, so I sold it to my next door neighbor. And uh, but I have my own now coming out of Italy, which is actually quite fun.

Mike Gonzalez 36:39

Well, any discussion on a wine, and you've got Bruce's attention.

Bruce Devlin 36:43

Yeah, I was just wondering who's you who your next door neighbor is now. Find out. Give him a call, find out what his wines look like.

SPEAKER_01 36:51

Yeah, actually, his he's he um and my winemaker was from Australia, actually. He was winemaker the year four out of five years about 15, about 11 years ago. I brought him over. And um, his name was Chris Cameron, and he was really good, but he actually has just gone back to Australia. His kids, he wanted his kids to go to school here. They went to school, and him and Ursula just left and went back last year, and so they're they're working in in uh South Australia right now.

Bruce Devlin 37:20

So, Jen, uh, we talked about you. Yeah, I know you were in golf course design and exercise videos and jewelry and clothing. One that one that caught my attention was the music production company called the Legendary Voices of Rock. Fill me in on what that is.

SPEAKER_01 37:40

Well, you know, that's really because my manager, who I've known for a very long time, him and he actually his wife and I own a liquor distributorship here in Florida. But uh he um he was always he actually was the road manager for Charlie Daniels. So when he was started managing me, um just kind of helping me went by business and moving me over to Tampa Bay from Orlando because they didn't want to drive over and check on my house all the time when I was gone. And he knows a lot of bands, and so wherever I do my charity events, he would always arrange for we have two local bands that we use, and then he'd bring in the lead singers from all of these bands. And so when Dr. Honda wanted me to do something with the legendary players that without legends, we came up with the legendary voices of rock, and so we'd bring the lead singers, like um actually I just saw uh Mickey Thomas from Starship was in town last week, so I went by and said hi. And so we kind of got it going and it really got popular, and we took them to Japan twice, and and um we and so whenever I have my events, we have a really fun concert, and they all come in for it, and then they're all golfers, so it's it's fun to be part of that because the one time I went to Japan with well, I've been to Japan several times with them, but we were playing in a big concert, it was like 14,000 people, and we were I was there for for um sound check, and they were like, God, we just wish we had you know a female voice. And Dr. Hunter goes, Well, Jan can sing that because she knows all the songs. So we got up and did rehearsal, and they gave me my own, you know, my own mic, and I was singing, and they realized my voice was really terrible, but they didn't want to break my heart. So they I was getting all excited. I was belting them, I was belting out the songs, and and I could see everybody kind of looking while they were singing, and I was like, I didn't, you know, it didn't even, I didn't realize they could hear me that, you know, like that bad. So when the night came and there was all these people, they didn't want to tell me, so they gave me um the tambourine and they said, We want you just to do the tambourine, and went, no, no, no, I've been practicing. I really want to sing. And so they turned off my mic and I didn't know, and then it was a big joke because I was so bad. But um, so I know I can't sing.

Mike Gonzalez 40:18

Yeah. Well, long live rock and roll, huh?

SPEAKER_01 40:21

Yeah, yeah, that's it's fun.

Mike Gonzalez 40:23

Yeah. Well, Bruce, you know, as as we wrap up with our guests, there's three questions we always like to ask, and I I like to let you go first. All right.

Bruce Devlin 40:33

So, Jane, here's the situation. If you knew when you were 20 years old what you know now, what would you have done differently?

SPEAKER_01 40:46

Wow, so many things. Number one, I wouldn't have got married.

SPEAKER_03 40:49

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_01 40:51

That was a very expensive mistake. Um you know, I I I think about I I was as far as the golf part of it is concerned, I wouldn't have done the promotions. Um, I would have just focused on my game because in the end, that's really all they count you on. Uh, they don't realize what I did to help the tour, so you don't get credit for that. You don't get to have it again. So the two things I would really do is number one, focus on my game more. I was really into working out and and fitness, so I I can't say that I would change that. I just really would kind of be more selfish.

Mike Gonzalez 41:35

Yeah. And that makes sense because throughout our visit with you here, you've talked about uh the sacrifices you had to make that most people didn't realize. The time that you put in, a lot of it voluntary time, promoting the image that the LPGA was wanting to promote to really uh take the tour to the next level. Everybody benefited, so you raised the level of the water, all the boats uh were rising, and yet uh you know, notwithstanding the fact that you posted a world golf hall of fame record, uh only you know how much more you could have done had you been able to singularly focus on the game.

SPEAKER_01 42:13

Yeah, that definitely was was the thing that I really regret.

Mike Gonzalez 42:18

Well, let's go to question number two. I want to give you one career mulligan. I think I know where you're gonna take it.

SPEAKER_01 42:25

One career mulligan? Oh, the dinosaur. Um I had a chance to win my first dinosaur in 1976, which would have been the first major. And coming down the stretch, I gave Judy Rankin too much credit, and I I I missed a short part on 17, about three feet, and then on 18 I tried to make the birdie putt. I had about a 12-foot birdie putt, and I ran it by. And it and we had a coal front coming, one of those freaky coal fronts in Palm Springs, and one of those, you know, the wind, the Santa Ana winds. And I was so upset that I then missed the putt coming back. And so if I'd have just made the three-foot urns, not trying to be yeah, trying to make a birdie on 17 and not trying to make a birdie on 18, I would have, well, I don't know, I'd have gone to a playoff. I don't know if that's good or bad. At least I actually probably would have won it because you know, Judy coming down the stretch would have had to do something.

Bruce Devlin 43:32

Yeah. So the last question is how would you like people to remember Jane Stevenson?

SPEAKER_01 43:42

Well, everybody says it's the players now say it's because I worked harder than anybody else. They've never seen anyone practice as much as I did, and I still practice a lot now. And this this thing that you're doing is helping a lot because the younger people have no idea how hard I work to help the tour. To turn the tour around. Ray Volpey talks about it all the time. I mean, Amy Alcott didn't even know, and she was of my era. She said, I did an interview with Ray for my book, and he said, You have no idea what Jan did to save the Torah. When you were all criticizing her for what she did, they could not, there may not have been a tour without her. I'd like the younger players to know how hard I'd worked to get to keep the Torah.

Mike Gonzalez 44:29

Well, we hope people will enjoy for years and years this little history lesson learning about the life and times of Jan Stevenson. Not only a great player, but a great lady as well. And uh you've been so generous with your time. We've looked forward to this, as we said at the top, uh, for a long, long time. And uh, Bruce, it's been uh wonderful, hasn't it?

Bruce Devlin 44:49

It sure has. I go back to when this young lady was 18 years old and now she's 71. But uh it's it has been a pleasure having you with us, Jan. It's uh you've done a great job, and uh, we thank you for your time. Honestly, it was great.

SPEAKER_01 45:05

Well, you know what's fun for me is to bring back the memories and and uh thank you for all you did. If it hadn't been for you, I told Mike the other day, who knows? I may not have even come to America. Um, you guys helped me write twice when I really needed the help. Um thank you for that. And Mike, it's nice to meet you. I'm I'm I'm so glad I got to see you again, Bruce.

Mike Gonzalez 45:25

Thank you for listening to another episode of For the Good of the Game. And please, wherever you listen to your podcast on Apple and Spotify, if you like what you hear, please subscribe, spread the word, and tell your friends until we tee it up again for the good of the game. So long, everybody.

Outro Music 45:46

Whack down the fairway. It went smack down the fairway. Then it started to slice just smidge off line. It headed for two, but it bounced off nine. My caddy says long as you're still in the state, you're okay.