ST. ANDREWS, Scotland — You may have heard about Alexa Pano before. She starred on Netflix long before pro golfers were starring on Netflix. She played professional events before entering high school. She capped a decorated amateur career at the Augusta National Women’s Am and then won her first pro event on her 19th birthday.
All of that is good and fine, but Sunday is where Pano is bound to register like never before, as she has earned a late afternoon tee time at the AIG Women’s Open. And will do so with a New England Patriots logo on her chest.
Pano is three under through 54 holes at the Old Course and though she may not be able to catch Jiyai Shin, who is four shots ahead, Pano is putting together the best tournament of her young career. She hit every green in regulation Saturday, en route to a second-straight 69, made even more impressive by the wicked crosswinds the Old Course has offered all week.
After making five bogeys in her first round, she’s labored through just two since, slowly climbing the leaderboard in St. Andrews. All of which means plenty of TV time. For her and the New England Patriots.
There are a number of reasons why Pano is the only female pro sporting an emblem of an NFL team — and likely the only pro golfer of note around the world. She’s a lifelong fan herself, born and raised just west of Boston. Her father has been a season-ticket holder for 40 years. But it all dates back to two summers ago when she was grinding through the early days of a professional career on the Epson Tour. Pano had been rocking a stand bag all season, but upgraded to a much bigger Titleist staff bag when she qualified for the 2022 U.S. Women’s Open. A bigger bag means plenty of unused sponsorship space. Plenty of 17-year-olds would elect to put the logo of their college of choice in that vacant position, but Pano didn’t have a college. So she went with the blue, red and silver Pats trademark.
“That was supposed to be a one week ordeal,” she said Friday. “I did an interview with the Patriots about it that week and didn’t think anything of it but thought it was amazing.”
A week later, the Pats called again. This time they wanted to make it official. The logo has been on the bag and her shirt ever since.
“They are supportive of everything I do,” Pano says, “and to have something that you’ve idolized and watched on TV and be supportive of you is really cool.”
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Pano isn’t completely unique. PGA Tour pro Patrick Rodgers was once sponsored by the Indianapolis Colts, his favorite team, sporting the blue horseshoe logo on his bag. But that sponsorship is no longer, making Pano — ranked 109th in the world — the best golfer with such an interesting brand affiliation. And in terms of fanhood, the relationship is an obvious fit.
Out of obligation mostly, Pano says her favorite player is Tom Brady. It would be hard to choose another. “I met [him] one time and I was super starstruck. He’s a really nice guy, and I just kind of forgot for a moment that he can’t just live inside my TV screen. But it was incredible to say the least.” But she also calls herself a Julian Edelman girl. (Aren’t we all?)
Pano was happy to explain her partnership with the Pats for the umpteenth time Saturday afternoon, but after hearing the basics of the setup, we had to press for more. When the Pats are sponsoring you, what kinda juicy perks come along with it?
“I have been to a couple of games,” she said. “I’ve been on the field before the game last year, the Chiefs game, and I’ve gotten to meet the Krafts a few times which is really cool.”
She paused, and then smiled.
“They did help me get some Eras Tour tickets last year, so that was really cool.”
That’s right. Taylor Swift tends to rate a bit higher than anything else.