Local golf pro coaches junior Cate Leydig to elite tournament in Big Sky

Tom Conway reflects on teaching Big Sky’s young golfers

By Leslie Kilgore EBS CONTRIBUTOR

As another season winds down at the Big Sky Resort golf course, head golf professional Tom Conway has much to commemorate. In his second year in charge, Conway continues to coach several aspiring, young Big Sky golfers to compete at the regional and national levels.

Having started as the assistant pro in 2013, Conway began developing many of the local juniors’ golf games from young ages.

“I worked with Camp Big Sky in my early years with a lot of kids in the camp getting their first taste of golf with that program,” Conway said. “Many of those kids still come to the golf course and are hopefully lifelong players to this day.”

While most of his work has been private lessons with all ages and ability levels, he also developed the Big Sky Junior League in 2019 as a way for kids to start golfing competitively in a low-stress and fun environment.

“If there is a kid in high school and on the golf team, I have very likely given them a lesson at some point,” Conway said. “Lone Peak High School has had a steady stream of good players over the years, and I hope that success continues.”

One of those players is Cate Leydig, a local teen who had the opportunity to play in the American Junior Golf Association tournament hosted at Big Sky Resort’s course in late August. Since 2019, Big Sky Golf Course has hosted this annual tournament which brings the top junior golfers in the world to play four days of highly competitive, elite golf.

“AJGA is the premier junior golf tour in the world,” Conway said. “Having an event of this caliber in Big Sky is an amazing way to showcase our golf course and the community of Big Sky to people from around the country and the world.”

Conway explained that qualifying for an AJGA tournament can be a difficult process. Almost every tournament has a local qualifier the day before to give local players a chance to compete. 

“There are a few other ways players can qualify for [AJGA] tournaments but for the most part players are qualifying the hard way,” Conway said.

Leydig got her first opportunity to play in the AJGA tournament this year, qualifying as a local competitor for the host course. 

“Cate and I have been working together since she was about five years old, and she’s been playing in local junior tournaments and finding great success from a very young age. We decided this was the year to test her skills against the best in the country,” Conway said.

Leydig said she spent many years watching and volunteering at the AJGA tournament in Big Sky, with the hope that she would be good enough to play in it one day.

“The AJGA is one of the most competitive junior golf tours in the nation and it was a dream come true to compete in the event,” she said. “I’ve been working with Tom since I was five, and he’s the reason I’m the golfer I am today.” 

Conway added that watching the AJGA tournament in Big Sky feels like watching a professional televised tournament and can be just as exciting. He also mentioned that his grounds crew works extra hard each year for days in advance to get the course in the shape expected by players of this caliber.

“A lot of the athletes playing in this tournament will go on to play Division I in college and a couple will go on to play on the PGA or LPGA Tour. Getting to see future stars in the making is an incredible experience,” he said.

The Big Sky Golf Course plans on continuing to host the AJGA tournament, with the possibility of other local junior golfers getting the chance to also participate.       

In addition to Leydig, Conway also mentioned Lone Peak High School juniors Dylan Manka and Olivia Kamieniarz, who were members of the 2024 state champion Big Horns alongside Leydig. They are preparing for the high school spring season, along with another busy summer tournament schedule next year.

Leydig will not be playing on the Lone Peak golf team this spring as she will attend a Junior Pro Golf Association school in Hilton Head, South Carolina to continue working on her golf game and play year-round.

“Tom has always pushed me to be the best I can be, continually improving my technique with a calm and positive approach while instilling a love for the game,” Leydig said. “I wouldn’t be playing in tournaments like the AJGA if it weren’t for the time and effort he has put into making me a better golfer. I’m grateful that I got the opportunity to represent him and Big Sky at the AJGA event, and hope to compete in the future.” 

Conway is excited for Leydig’s opportunity to play at a more elite level this year but is also confident that Manka and Kamieniarz will carry the Big Horns this spring with how hard they’ve been working on their games.

“Being able to watch the kids grow and watch how their golf game changes over the years is extremely satisfying,” Conway said. “The highlight for me this year was being able to watch the Lone Peak High School girls win the Class B state tournament by a large margin. It just goes to show how much time and effort they put into their games and I am so proud of them.”