Gabriella Then didn’t know much about the Ladies European Tour when she signed up to go to Q-School in Spain at the request of a friend. This was, after all, a second act of sorts. She’d already quit tour life once. Why not try something totally different?
Then, 26, actually won Q-School at the La Manga Club, and then got the shock of her life when she realized that much of the Ladies European Tour isn’t actually staged in Europe.
“I literally thought it was Europe, plus Dubai,” she said.
The questions flew about after she won, most notably: Are you going to stay in Europe? How are you going to pay for all of this?
Before getting into the financial aspect of flying from California to Saudi Arabia and Africa for the first three starts of her season (the LET kicked off earlier this month in Kenya), it’s worth noting how Then got to this point.
She was a dedicated golfer almost from the start, picking up the game at age five, recording her first birdie at age eight, qualifying for the U.S. Women’s Amateur at age 12, competing in her first U.S. Women’s Open at age 14. Then won the 2013 U.S. Girls’ Junior just weeks before starting classes at USC, where she set the school record for rounds played over the course of her four-year career.
USC head coach Justin Silverstein calls Then “a worker,” and that dedication extended beyond the practice tee. Then’s parents funded her junior and amateur career, but she knew that to get to the next level, she’d need to start making money herself.
Throughout her time in college Then worked a host of jobs, stashing away money for Q-School and the Epson Tour (formerly Symetra).
In 2019, after she missed out on advancing to Stage II of LPGA Qualifying School by a single stroke, Then decided it was time to do something else. She’d been out on what’s now known as the Epson Tour for three seasons and found both her bank account and drive running low.
She took a job in marketing and sales at Le Mieux skin care, and became a spectator of the game, following boyfriend Eric Sugimoto, who played at USC at the same time, to the Japan Golf Tour.
After a while outside the ropes, Then started to wonder if she’d quit pro golf too soon.
Her close circle chipped in some cash to get her started again on the Cactus Tour, where she feared she might have forgotten everything she’d known in her 18 months away from the game.
Instead, she won three times in four months on the Cactus and Women’s All Pro Tours, reigniting her passion in the process. Then had emptied her savings account to go all-in on herself for a second time.
“I feel like I’m playing for my own personal goals and my own love of the game,” she said of how this time feels different.
It was Kaley In who first suggested LET Q-School. The two friends practice together at Big Canyon Country Club in Newport Beach, California. Then knew she’d have some Epson Tour status from her finish at Stage II of LPGA Q-School last year, but Europe offered a whole new experience.
“I was very overwhelmed when I saw the schedule,” said Then after she won the qualifier. “Wow, these are places I never thought I’d touch in my entire life.”
Then she started to budget for the year and realized that her expenses would be double and triple what she needed for the Epson Tour.
Then has a handful of sponsors in Dave’s Hot Chicken, Konnect Resource, and goodr sunglasses. But she knew she’d need more help to get started on the LET, a route very few Americans take.
“Since I’ve been a professional golfer for five years, I am kind of used to it,” said Then of asking for money. “I’m kind of used to this constant fundraising, this constant networking, which I love to do.”
Though starting a GoFundMe page, however, was new to her and took some convincing from friends. She went live with her GoFundMe page at 8 p.m. three weeks ago, first sending a note privately to those she thought might support before going public on social media.
“In that alone I had 15 different people donate right away,” she said, “in amounts that I never could’ve even imagined. I was so shocked I was tearing up that night.”
To date, Then has raised just over $16,000 on the GoFundMe platform and is nearing the halfway mark of her $40,000 goal.
Then’s time at USC overlapped with AIG Women’s British Open champion Sophia Popov, and the two friends have been in contact quite a bit of late as Then prepares for a year of golf that will likely be split between the LET and Epson Tours. Popov’s story of nearly quitting the game, winning on the Cactus Tour, and then, months later, winning a major is one that continues to inspire.
Silverstein describes Then as an eternal optimist, the kind of person who has time for everyone and sees the glass half-full. That mentality will continue to serve Then well as she chases the dream of the LPGA a second time.
“My ability is better than it’s ever been in my career,” said Then. “I feel like I could be playing up there with the best.”
She’s willing to go to the ends of the earth to make it happen.
