Professor Kelly Whiteside (right) hosted sportscaster Dottie Pepper (left) at Montclair State as part of the School of Communication and Media’s Colloquium Series.
Photo credit: Emma Cimo
This spring, Dottie Pepper, LPGA-Champion-turned-sportscaster, will take the trip to Augusta, Georgia to be the first woman to be a part of a CBS broadcast commentating on The Masters golf tournament.
Pepper came to Montclair State on March 2 to speak with students in the School of Communication and Media to share her thoughts as she looks forward to the occasion.
“Am I scared? Absolutely,” Pepper said. She noted how much greater the opportunity is now, being so soon after the first few women were invited into the formerly all-male Augusta National Golf Club.
Pepper still remembers the first time she went to the club as a Furman University student, laughing as she reminisced on the fact that she parked on what is now the driving range.
Looking ahead to the April 7 start date, Pepper plans to prepare for this event just like any other — by over-preparing. She doesn’t want to be hit with any surprises come tournament day.
Pepper shed some light on her transition from player to broadcaster, showcasing the fact that she had primarily “zero push-back.”
“The last time I checked, a golf ball didn’t know if you were male or female,” Pepper said. She stressed the fact that, if you work hard and do your homework, there is no reason you can’t succeed.
Pepper also spent some time talking about another issue that she has been focusing a lot on recently: bullying. She co-authored a children’s book series entitled “Bogey Tees Off” with the hopes of getting her message across.
“I believe that if you can read, there is nothing you can’t do,” Pepper said. She had three main reasons for writing her books: persuading children to play golf, encouraging children to read and teaching kids life lessons along the way.
Pepper talked about the fact that she, too, was bullied when she was younger and that she hopes to make a difference through talking to children and through her book series. As Pepper put it, “It’s a little way to maybe change a lot.”
