Daily Archives: February 22, 2021

Last week Texas experienced a cold snap that resulted in serious statewide damage, death, and destruction. The collapse of the states energy grid left millions of Texans in the dark and freezing for days at a time. Tragically, at least 30 people died.

There are many reasons why Texas became like a Third World country, and we should be careful not to pin all the blame on just one factor. But it seems clear that the disaster was to a large degree caused by political decisions to shift toward green energy generated from solar and wind and by Governor Abbotts authoritarian Covid restrictions.

Abbott, who won a wind leadership award just this month, oversaw the near-collapse of wind energy generation last week. Yet the politicization of energy generation in favor of green alternatives over natural gas and other fossil fuels has led to the unintended consequences of freezing Texans facing multiple millions of dollars in property damage and worse.

Additionally, federal emissions and other restrictions forced Texas to beg Washington for permission to generate power at higher levels in anticipation of unprecedented demand. Governor Abbott finally received permission from the Department of Energy on February 14th, but by then many facilities found themselves off-line due to freezing conditions.

Why should the Federal government be allowed to freeze Texans to death in the name of controlling emissions from energy generation plants? Its a classic example of politics over people. I guess if you want to make a Green New Deal omelet, you have to break a few eggs.

While Governor Abbott was quick to blame energy generators and even the state Electric Reliability Council of Texas, NBC News in Dallas reported that ERCOT did not conduct any on-site inspections of the states power plants to see if they were ready for this winter season. Due to COVID-19 they conducted virtual tabletop exercises instead but only with 16 percent of the states power generating facilities.

Governor Abbotts authoritarian Covid executive orders at least indirectly led to lax inspection, maintenance, and winterization of wind and other energy generation plants.

But Texas did not only freeze because of Abbotts Covid restrictions. For the better part of a year thousands of businesses have been destroyed. Recovering drug addicts and alcoholics have relapsed. Depression and suicides have skyrocketed. Children have been deprived of education.

And for what? Texas with Abbotts restrictions fared no better than Florida with no restrictions when it comes to Covid cases and deaths. The Texas governor knew that months ago when the data from Florida proved that lockdowns, masks, and other restrictions had no effect. But he refused to change course. He refused to follow the brave lead of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and open Texas completely.

Politicians too stubborn or fearful to change course when facts dictate otherwise do not deserve to remain in office. Governors Gavin Newsom in California and Andrew Cuomo in New York are finally facing consequences for their Covid authoritarianism. When the smoke clears and it is rapidly clearing many more of these petty tyrants will fall. That list of deposed Covid tyrants may well include Texas Governor Greg Abbott and the slumbering Texas state legislature as well.

Lets hope Texans and all Americans will learn from this and more forcefully demand their God-given liberty!

This article was published by RonPaul Institute.

See the rest here:
Ron Paul: Unintended Consequences And The Texas 'Big Freeze' Energy Disaster - OpEd - Eurasia Review

By SLE MOLONEY

Freelance filmmaker, business owner, and father, Kevin Pazmino describes himself as someone who has worked hard, evolved, and taken some chances to get to where hes at right now, in life. He acknowledges having availed of government programs which have facilitated his career progression, yet he is opposed to big government. A supporter of former President Donald Trump, he is the latest candidate to join the District 11 City Council race to fill the seat vacated on Dec. 31 by former City Councilman, Andrew Cohen, and his platform is based around community-based solutions, and community integration.

The thing is, my campaign is a very, very small campaign, he said. Its pretty much just me running it, and Im not taking any cash donations because Im just really against money in politics. Im a little different from the other candidates, [who] I believe, are all registered Democrats. I actually am a registered conservative. Ideologically speaking, I lean more right, so I believe in fiscal responsibility.

In this sense, Pazmino advocates for empowering people through lower taxes, and said he doesnt believe putting more people dependent on the system is the answer. Nonetheless, referring to his own career path into the film business, he said, Im the sole provider for our family of six. I have four children. I came up in an industry that isnt very easy to break into, so in the beginnings of my career, we definitely lived paycheck to paycheck.

He added, We definitely knew how to utilize social services and food stamps to get to the place where I am now, so I completely understand the need for that. I grew up in low-income housing so, I understand the need for a lot of these social programs that we have, but I also have gone through it, coming out the other side of it, and learning a trade.

Pazmino said he understands what it means to be empowered, knowing your worth, and having a skillset that can be transferable. Being a gig worker, after you get through it and establish yourself, its very empowering, he said. I think a lot of people out there do have those skillsets, who already are community leaders, but just dont realize it yet.

Indeed, he reveres those with an entrepreneurial spirit, citing one example of a local woman he knows who seemingly, recently saw an opportunity to start a childcare business out of her home. Pazmino did not elaborate on whether the woman was registered, qualified, or had been vetted to take care of children.

On the other hand, he is skeptical of large corporate entities and large nonprofits, saying he believes there is a lot of mismanagement that takes place within them. When asked if he could share the name of a nonprofit that is being mismanaged, he said, I cant point to one non for profit directly. I wouldnt know. I dont have access to their budgets, and access to see the scale of what theyre doing with the funds that theyre receiving, how much the funds are actually just donations.

He added that some nonprofits do great work. I would want to keep those businesses. I want to basically work with those people as well, in order to see where they need more help in terms of logistics, and help streamline those issues that theyre facing, he said.

The Norwood News mentioned that 501 nonprofits have to file regular reports to the authorities to demonstrate how they use and spend their funding, and asked if this provides some level of comfort regarding the mismanagement concerns. Pazmino concurred but suggested there were also alternative ways and means to report on finances.

I want people to be able to utilize a lot of the same things that the 1 percent utilizes, he said, explaining that while many large corporates donate to philanthropic causes, they do so as a way to write it off against their taxes. Pazmino favors a similar model for smaller businesses, saying communities know their districts needs best.

Taking the example of food insecurity, he said he believes only a small percentage of tax subsidies [received by nonprofits] actually go toward feeding the hungry, and suggested that the larger percentage goes towards the managements salaries.

Referring to such tax subsidies, he favored instead allocating, for example, $100,000 among ten community restaurants and delis so they could lower their prices for the people in the community. Pazmino added that such businesses could then also provide food for the homeless in the area. They know who our homeless community are. Id rather give them those subsidies and then just work out free meals for the homeless and for lower income families, he said.

The Norwood News mentioned that the primary aim of every business is, nonetheless, to make a profit, and to rely on businesses to ensure the homeless are fed may not be a very pro-active approach to the issue and may be more reliant on luck, chance and goodwill.

Thats just kind of a broad perspective, Pazmino said of his proposals. Obviously, once elected, I would have to really scrutinize what monies are in the budget, and then figure out the proper way of distribution, figure out how were currently dealing with these issues, and the ones that are working.

He also advocates for pooling existing resources like educational facilities and other spaces to address the wealth imbalance across District 11, cutting out what he sees as traditional, bottom-down, government intervention and bureaucracy. I dont really believe in this one system for the general population living on a welfare system, and then one system for the 1 percent to live a completely different lifestyle, he said.

Im basically trying to empower people to go towards incorporating themselves, becoming their own business, becoming entrepreneurs, so that opens them up to the subsidies as well. Having started his own business two years ago, Pazmino wants to help others realize their potential. We can understand getting too caught up in the grind of life to be able to have time to put towards community activism, because I havent had that time either, he said.

So, I would love to try to encourage people to do it, and whether its incentivizing, and doing tax mitigation, or a straight-up payment for time volunteered, the key is getting people involved, and me knowing what each constituent in every area needs.

If elected, Pazmino sees his role as a community liaison, expanding on the role of the community boards, and connecting people with resources in a type of self-sufficient neighborhood model. He uses the example of business owners making their premises available during closed hours to community groups to give classes, for example, so that the community, as a whole, benefits. He said he also wants to make sure that all the seats are filled at community board level, and that every block is represented.

On the subject of law enforcement and crime, Pazmino is opposed to defunding the police. I believe that we need to make sure that our police, fire and EMFs are all funded properly, and support those agencies, because in cases of emergency, those are your first responders, he said.

It has been reported that Pazmino has historically retweeted posts by conspiracy theorist and Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who was recently stripped of her congressional committee duties, and that he, himself, has had his Twitter account suspended.

A review of Pazminos Facebook account reveals, among other posts, one from September 2016 which links to a now-deactivated YouTube link with the title, Wikileaks Julian Assange TPP Not Only Trade, 83% is Facists Trying to Controlling Our Daily Lives.

Another from Aug. 30, 2016, links to an article about singer, Beyonc, published on The Vigilant Citizen, a site which peddles conspiracy theories, and how her performance at the 2016 VMAs was an twisted occult ritual. A description of the site itself reads, To understand the world we live in, we must understand the symbols surrounding us. To understand these symbols, we must dig up their origin, which is often deeply hidden in occult mysteries. In short, this site aims to go beyond the face value of symbols found in pop culture to reveal their esoteric meaning.

Pazmino does not add any commentary to the posts as to whether he supports the content or not. We reached out to him to ask if he believes the 2020 presidential election was stolen, if he believes in conspiracy theories, if his Twitter account was suspended and if so, what the reason was. Pazmino replied, saying he follows a wide array of people of all walks of life and opinions. Some of them even identify as extraterrestrials. I have found many great ideas that I have used as plot lines in some of the scripts I have written.

He added, Since social media is about supporting the people you are friends with on Facebook or follow on Twitter. I tend to like and retweet as I scroll. Sometimes, I will retweet without even reading the tweet just to help people gain a following or visibility.

We asked if he does not feel he has a civic and social obligation not to retweet content that is not checked in order to prevent the spread of misinformation. He said, No I believe it is up to each individual to do their own research on what they read, and use their own discernment on what they feel is the truth.

He added, At one point in history people believed that Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated by a lone gun man. Anyone who thought otherwise was considered a conspiracy theorist. Today, we know that his death was not caused by some[one] who acted alone.

He said he does believe that there was evidence of election fraud. All throughout November and December, many of the swing states own legislative bodies held hours of hearings, where they heard the testimonies of many individuals who have signed affidavits to what they witnessed. None of the courts which investigated the issue found any credible evidence of election fraud.

Pazmino went on to say that he believes nonetheless that America is a country of laws, and that he is not a fair weather patriot. I considered Obama my president even though I voted for Cynthia McKinney in 2008 and Ron Paul in 2012, he said.

He said his Twitter account was suspended because of retweets dealing with the Reddit/game stop saga which dealt with retail investors versus hedge funds. As I mentioned, I retweet and like as I scroll. The Twitter app sees the rate of my retweets as spamming and suspends people for this reason. At times, the app will check to see if I am a real person because of the rate that I retweet. I disagree with Twitters policies of censorship.

He added that he no longer uses the app and did not try to fight the judgement when he was suspended. I am a strong proponent of the first amendment, he said.

When asked about the topic of police brutality and the mass demonstrations seen throughout the world last year, he said, Obviously, Im against some of those bad apples, but I dont believe that we should punish the whole institution as a whole because of a few bad apples.

In the context of the most recent CCRB hearing (Civilian Complaints Review Board public hearing) on the NYPDs new disciplinary matrix, and the topic of accountability at the top levels of the NYPD, we asked Pazmino if he could see why there is justifiable criticism of the agencys leadership for not taking the disciplining of such bad apples seriously enough in the past.

Im a manager myself in terms of what my vocation is, and anytime something happens on my watch, I take full responsibility, even if its not something that I directly did, he said. I feel the current mayor, it starts with him and the people that he elected, who he decides to be the commissioner. Im against jumping to conclusions, and every situation is a particular situation, so if an investigation finds wrongdoing, then there needs to be firm and strict punishment.

He added, But, in terms of just automatically demonizing the police department before investigating, thats where I just feel like you need to support the police department. Pazmino brought up talks of future legislation which may curtail the power of the commissioner, and put the City Council in charge of disciplining officers.

I get a little nervous about that, he said, adding that there needs to be control within the police department as a whole, or no one will listen. If the officers as a whole feel that their boss really isnt their boss, its just a figurehead, you lose control, and the ability to actually plan a proper department, he said.

Pazmino said having talked to retired police officers in confidence, he feels a lot of times cops may just stay in their cars, going forward, especially at a certain time of the night, and ignore situations they would previously have addressed, because now, they dont want to put themselves in a scenario where their lives are at risk if something goes wrong, or something unexpected happens.

Its a very difficult job, he said. Theyre more worried about what could happen to them if the situation goes awry. He added, You have to react to the best of your ability but if someone pulls a gun, at that point, you have to defend yourself. Acknowledging that police work is dangerous, we ask if that is not what police officers signed up for.

He said the officers he talked to would be the first to agree. But its when you dont feel supported by the mayor, or forget the mayor, if you dont feel supported by your own superiors, or if you feel like your superiors arent the ones who are going to be doing the disciplinary action, then that even allows them to kind of detach from whatever [the] superior tells [them] to do, he said.

He said he fears if all disciplinary action falls to the City Council, it will lead to a situation where the superiors wont be able to run a proper department, and drive a rift between police management, and the officers in the field. I feel like its going to cause more disorganization, he said.

If elected, Pazmino said hes also looking to take a hands-on approach to the role of council member. Im looking to be in peoples neighborhoods. Im not going to be the type of councilman who is only out there during election season. he said, adding that it seemed to him that the country was heading in a particular direction. There are people, like myself, who dont believe in full blown socialism, and I know that the left will disagree with me in terms of saying, Were not really trying to do that, but its slow and steady.

Read the original:
Update: Elections 2021 - Kevin Pazmino on Community, the Economy & Policing - Norwood News

TribLIVE's Daily and Weekly email newsletters deliver the news you want and information you need, right to your inbox.

Etna

Estate of Kenneth Wayne Moots sold property at 143 Sherman Ave. to Richard Begenwald Jr. and Brittany Begenwald for $110,000.

Brian Berkheiser sold property at 54 Sycamore St. to Rodney and Ron Walzi for $100,000.

Kevin Cody sold property at 129 Vista St. to Garrett Burke Vrbanic and Alexandra Jean Porter for $185,900.

Reserve

Will Shea sold property at 413 Kinkura Drive to Paige Nealer for $165,000.

Michael Mooney sold property at 4105 Mary Drive to Tashan and Racquel Rankin for $268,000.

Shaler

Nellie Getchel sold property at 2812 Autumnwood Drive to Michael Greer and Katie Sarosi for $305,000.

Wayne Koenig sold property at 1417 Balsam Drive to Ryan Firzpatrick and Kristen Plavetzky for $218,000.

Joseph Goodman trustee sold property at 51 Bethany Drive to Tyler Cicirello for $168,500.

Dale Lord sold property at 302 Coachman Road to Michael and Mary Hosler for $314,900.

Eric Speakman sold property at 12 Emma Drive to Paul Wolkiewicz Jr. for $180,000.

Melissa Tokar sold property at 1009 Garden Place to Derek Duane Sittig and Chastity Mustandrea for $98,000.

Joseph Lapczynski sold property at 810 Greenhill Road to Sierra Welsh for $235,100.

Robert Ralcewicz sold property at 101 Heather Drive to Fuget Real Estate LLC for $113,000.

Paul Koch sold property at 2705 Herron Lane to Gina Caputo for $212,000.

Don Sterling Jr. sold property at 842 Highland Ave. to Cynthia Tallo for $179,900.

Joseph Iannelli sold property at 128 Hoffman St. to Aaron Sierra and Jessica Simonic for $195,000.

Joseph Garcia sold property at 103 Joan Drive to Oleksandr Dobzhanskyi for $281,000.

Aaron Levy sold property at 117 Linden St. to Roger and Jennifer Lynne Healy for $154,000.

Sean Eckenrod sold property at 561 McElheny Road to Brian Ewing for $230,400.

Michael Mihuc sold property at 925 Middle Road to Ryan Mincher for $150,000.

Phillips Spring Properties Inc. sold property at 148 Richard Drive to Asael and Christine Cruz for $48,500.

Kathryn Peters sold property at 1030 Saxonburg Blvd. to Alek Szilagyi for $177,500.

Estate of James Bolin sold property at 1615 Shawmut Drive to Catherine Moffitt for $212,000.

Anthony Jarusinski sold property at 14 Tara Drive to Michael Kosko and Taylor Denk for $267,000.

Eric Reese sold property at 715 Victory Road to Jason Lappe for $227,500.

Richard Ryan sold property at 614 Vilsack Road to Edward and Patricia Ann Kocsis for $11,000.

Estate of Joseph Hughes sold property at 110 W Sutter Road to Leon Yurovsky and Jenna Rae Gannon for $205,000.

Stuart Anglum sold property at 89 Westminster Place to Aaron and Michelle Levy for $333,000.

Real estate transactions provided by RealSTATs. Contact RealSTATs at 412-381-3880 or visit RealSTATs.net.

Categories:Local | Shaler Journal

TribLIVE's Daily and Weekly email newsletters deliver the news you want and information you need, right to your inbox.

The rest is here:
Shaler area real estate transactions for the week of Feb. 21, 2021 - TribLIVE

The stipulation by the LPGA was Amys guest had to have a negative COVID-19 test. As an assistant football coach at North Dakota State, Grant had already taken one with Bison athletics earlier in the week and it was negative.

By 7:30 that night, Grant bought his ticket and was on his way to the Twin Cities for a 6 a.m. flight from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport to Houston.

Once there, Grant had to take another COVID-19 test required by the LPGA with the result pending until Sunday morning.

I cant see Amy or talk to her or get a hug or anything until I get the result, Grant said.

While waiting in a hotel lobby, he got a call from his mother, Betty, saying Lee had a heart attack and was on his way to the hospital.

A half hour later she calls me and says he didnt make it, Grant said.

That started a series of events that put into motion the dedicated support team that has taken Amy's game on the LPGA Tour to a higher level. Its a tight circle with her caddie, Taneka Sandiford, her swing coach Ron Stockton and Grant.

Because Grants test wasnt known yet if it was positive and he saw Amy, she would have been disqualified from the Open he couldnt even hug his wife after the tragic news.

Going through that with that stipulation was really hard, Grant said.

Grant flew back to the Twin Cities. Meanwhile, Amy and Taneka arrived at Champions Golf Club in Houston on Sunday morning to prepare for what was scheduled to be the final round. A couple of players that Amy knows well had heard the news and each gave her a hug of support.

Amy had zero rest overnight and was exhausted while trying to warm up on the driving range. Rain was prevalent. A few reporters, who also heard the news, were hanging around wanting to talk to her. Taneka ran interference and told them to leave.

Shes taking care of all of the things that I have zero ability to handle, Amy said.

The weather never cleared and the tournament was postponed to Monday. In retrospect, and when it came to golfing a round, it gave the Olson team another day to figure things out.

Meanwhile, Stockton texted some words of support. He flew from Palm Springs, Calif., to Dallas the week prior to fine-tune her swing. A team from 2015, Stockton changed Amys swing to put her in position to win an LPGA major.

Monday morning started with Taneka texting a short prayer to Amy four hours before tee time. There wasnt much talking between the two because both knew what had to be done. Again, a few reporters were at the course wanting to talk to Amy before the round.

Sandiford put the kibosh on that.

Let her focus on golf, she said. For me, my job was to get her through 18 holes. I dont care if its good or bad, my job was to make sure she completed 18 holes. And we both held it together.

The connection between golfer and caddie is just as much non-verbal as verbal. Amy said Taneka has a sixth sense to where she knows when to talk and when not to. On this Monday of the U.S. Womens Open, both stuck to business.

Olson had three early bogeys but rebounded with birdies on the next two holes. A Lim Kim and a hot putter won the tournament by one shot over Olson and Jin Young Ko. Amy finished the 18th with a birdie.

It was like, all right, we made it through 18 holes, Sandiford said. I gave her a hug and a little prayer and in that hug I had to make her feel Grant, God and her parents. I had to make her feel everyone in that one hug. It was a little emotional on the golf course.

The emotions, and the day, were not done. With Sandiford by her side, Amy agreed to a couple of post-round interviews. She broke down on national TV in one of them talking about Lee.

Taneka, just out of camera view but right in front of Amy, was there helping her through it.

She just ran interference, kind of limited who could talk to me, Amy said. She made sure I had the time and space that I needed. She was the one monitoring where I was at, what frame of mind I was in and what was going to be the most beneficial for me.

The job of caddie after 18 holes was never more important. Sandiford, worried about Amy being alone, offered to fly back to Minneapolis with her. But Amy insisted some alone time was what she needed.

This week, Olson begins her eighth year on the LPGA Tour at the Gainbridge LPGA in Orlando, Fla. Like she has for the last five years, Sandiford will be there to do more than carry a bag, read a green, judge the wind and give advice on yardage.

A lot of people have the hard skills to be a caddie, Amy said. What a lot of people dont have is that emotional intelligence of when do you say something and probably more important when do you not say something. She just knows. She knows if I need to blow off some steam or if I need a word of encouragement and she needs to speak up. She just knows that.

The two met in 2016 at the Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic. Olson was going with local caddies at the time, meaning it was up to the tournament to find somebody to carry her bag. Sandiford, a native of the Bahamas, was back in town and received a call to be paired with Olson.

I had struggles finding a good tour caddie that I connected with, Olson said, so I decided to do locals to take that stress off myself.

Sandiford met Olson on the driving range on Monday before the tournament started. They connected from the get-go.

I loved how she went about her business, Olson said. I loved her big smile, her positivity and she did whatever I asked of her.

Olson played the next six tournaments with other local caddies. It didnt go near as well as the week with Sandiford. Later that year, in May, Olson was playing in the Volunteers of America Texas Shootout in Dallas.

One state away, Sandiford was coaching golf at Redlands Community College in El Reno, Okla. So Olson texted her to see if she would be interested in driving to Dallas and caddying for her. It wasnt long before that local caddie from the Bahamas became a permanent LPGA Tour caddie.

The job is amazing, she said. I love traveling and what kept me in golf was to be able to travel. Now Im getting paid to travel around the world, you cant beat it. This is a dream job that I never dreamed about, but for sure the coolest one.

Its completely a team thing. I cant be there without her and she cant be there without me. When she plays well, I play well. When she wins a tournament, shell go home with the trophy but mentally Ill be like thats our trophy. We both did that.

Taneka doesnt mess with Amys swing on the course unless she asks her to look at something. That usually only happens on the driving range.

She has a great swing coach and she has to mentally understand it, she has to feel it so she knows exactly what shes doing right or what shes doing wrong, Sandiford said. Ron is great. If she needs Ron, shell do a video and hes always there.

The Sandiford-Olson team plans on remaining a pair for the foreseeable future. They both say theyre on about the same career path and at some point, both will move on from the LPGA.

The plan for Taneka, 26 years old, is to return to the Bahamas some day and run a preschool.

I wouldnt be surprised when I retire, she retires, Amy said. I have a feeling our professional careers will track each other.

Sandiford is going about traveling the world and doing her dream job while dealing with multiple sclerosis. She was diagnosed in 2018 after suffering a seizure while out for a jog in Nassau, Bahamas.

Its rare for a Black woman who grew up in a warm-weather climate like the Bahamas to get MS.

Thats unheard of, Amy saids. It was extremely shocking in many regards and shes so healthy thats the last thing on your mind.

When the diagnosis hit, the Amy Olson support system was 180 degrees from the U.S. Womens Open. It was Amy who was there for her friend and caddie.

Shes been rock solid from the day she got her diagnosis to today, Amy said. She will not live in fear. Her trust is 100 percent in God knowing he has a plan. Shes so confident in that and thats inspiring to see. Its easy to talk about when things are good but to talk about that when truly your future is unknown its genuine.

Around the same time of Sandiford coming aboard, Amy was in the midst of a major swing change. She missed 11 cuts in her rookie season of 2014 and seven cuts in 2015. There were a couple of high finishes but generally she ended 72 holes from 40th to 80th place.

It was enough to remain in the top 100 of the money list to retain her tour card. But her game was not in a place to consistently finish high. The problem: her ball flight was too low, which made it tough to hold approach shots on the faster, harder LPGA Tour greens.

She got away with it in college at North Dakota State, where she won an NCAA-record 20 tournaments, because the courses were shorter. On the LPGA Tour, those wedge shots were suddenly 5 and 6 irons.

Olson connected with Stockton through LPGA player Morgan Pressel. Looking to improve her short game, and noticing that Pressels short game was one of the best on tour, Olson asked Pressel who she worked with. It was Stockton, the son of former PGA player Dave Stockton.

Stockton overhauled Pressel's swing beginning in 2009, a process according to the Golf Channel that took several years.

I really loved the simplicity with which he taught, Amy said. Its not super complex and Ive always gravitated toward complex because it seems smarter. The best players and the best teachers make things really simple so I found that refreshing.

Success certainly didnt come overnight.

The low point was at the LOTTE Championship in Hawaii. Olson shot 79-71 and missed the cut for the fifth straight tournament. Moreover, that stretch included an 80, a 77 and a 76.

I was hitting it all over the place, Olson said.

So she called Stockton and asked if she could meet her at Stockton's home course in Palm Springs for a two-day boot camp to overhaul her swing.

He cleared his calendar, we got up there and we worked morning until evening, Amy said. You know if something is going to work or not in a couple of days and I knew we were on the right track but I didnt know how long it would take. Literally, Im ready to rebuild my swing. This is not a minor tweak, Im ready to do the work.

Stockton said hes not a huge fan of making major changes to a tour player, but made an exception with Amy. Mainly, he changed the plane of her backswing, which in turn changed the way her body maneuvered through the swing.

She worked so hard, Stockton said. Honestly, with all the different players Ive worked with, I have rarely seen the amount of effort Amy put into making real change. Its her swing now. Im not sure she could even do what she used to do.

Grant, in his second season as the Bison linebackers coach, can appreciate good teaching. Its his job.

(Stocktons) got a personality to coach anybody in the world, Grant said. Hell give you one thing to work on and maybe that one thing will fix five or six problems you have in your swing. Hes a fun guy to be around. Hes laid back but competitive, tough and handles everything with a lot of grace and poise, which fits in perfect with Amy because thats her to a T.

It wasnt until 2018 before the swing change started to resonate in results. She finished 2016 missing seven of the last 10 cuts.

The criticisms, for the first time in her golfing life, came her way.

So that gave me a bit of a hardened exterior and even interior that you have to have to be successful, she said. I had no doubt I was on the right track but people see you struggle and wonder whats going on. I didnt care what people thought anymore. I did when I was in college, I did when everybody was singing my praises. After you get some criticism and you know youre doing the right thing, you stop caring what people think.

She missed five cuts in her first 10 tournaments in 2017 and finished in a tie for 55nd or higher in eight other tourneys.

A tie for ninth in the LPGA major ANA Inspiration in March of 2018 may have started the road to consistency, at least on the statistical sheet. It came one tournament after an 11th place finish in the Bank of Hope Founders Cup. Later that year, she finished in a tie for second in the Evian Championship.

She had five top-20 finishes in 2019. That consistency that she was craving finally was coming to fruition.

The star witnesses were Sandiford, Stockton and Grant.

The LPGA is unique compared to the PGA, Grant said. In the PGA, a lot of these guys are flying private jets with their wives or girlfriends on tour. The LPGA is not that way. Myself and maybe a few boyfriends or husbands fly in to visit. Taneka is her entourage. Taneka is an incredible rock. Shes very mentally tough and, good or bad, she stays in the moment. Amy has the same skill set as well and they play off each other extremely well.

Read more:
Amy's Army: Heartfelt connection with caddie, swing coach have Olson on consistent LPGA path | INFORUM - INFORUM