TROPHY CLUB, Texas — Golf is a seesaw between heart and mind. Thoughts bounce. Desires burn. All in hopes of getting up and down – without getting too up or too down.
"It takes a lot out of you emotionally," admitted pro golfer Hayden Springer. "The whole goal is trying to come back to neutral.”
You could say Hayden Springer was destined for a life in golf.
The 27-year-old grew up in Trophy Club and became a standout at Byron Nelson High School – named after the legendary golfer.
"My goal is to win," Springer said. "I’m not showing up to finish second. I’m showing up to win.”
As a teenager, he competed against fellow North Texas natives Will Zalatoris and Scottie Scheffler.
In college, Springer won the 2019 Big 12 Championship while playing for TCU. He defeated Oklahoma State star Viktor Hovland by one stroke. But as Scheffler, Hovland and Zalatoris rose to fame on the PGA Tour, Springer's dream remained just that.
"You know I’ve been dreaming about [playing on the PGA Tour] for 20 years," Spinger said. "But you never know if it’s gonna happen.”
Prior to TCU, Springer first played college golf at Texas Tech. It's a good thing he did.
During his first day on campus, he met his future wife, Emma – a golfer on the Red Raiders women's team.
"If I said I was going to study hall, he would say, ‘Oh, I need to go to study hall too'," Emma recalled.
Springer noted, “I thought she was cute. But I was kinda like, 'I got no chance.'”
Five years later, they were married. Not long after tying the knot, the family of two became three. Emma was pregnant with their first child, Sage.
"It felt like we were just starting our life," Emma said. "It was a surprise to us.”
Late into Emma’s pregnancy, an ultrasound revealed Sage had Trisomy 18, a severe condition caused by an extra chromosome 18. Survival rates for babies with Trisomy 18 average two days to two weeks, if they survive the delivery.
"We had signed a DNR [Do-Not-Resuscitate]," Springer said.
Emma and Hayden went to the hospital to deliver Sage fully expecting they would not be able to bring their baby girl home.
"We sat there and we were just looking at each other crying," Springer said. "Crying tears of joy but also not knowing what’s gonna happen.”
Not only was Sage was born, they brought her home. Two years later, the Springer's welcomed their second daughter, Annie. As the family navigated their new normal, Springer charted his path to the PGA Tour.
"There were times he would be in South America or Canada and [Sage] was in the ICU," Emma said. "And that comes back to the support system and the village that we had.”
"If we didn’t have our families and our parents to support us, I don’t think I’d be playing golf," Hayden added.
Springer kept battling – doing whatever he could to beat the odds – while Sage did the same.
Fewer than 5% of children with Trisomy 18 live more than one year. Sage brightened the world for more than three.
She passed away in November 2023.
To honor Sage’s life, Emma and Hayden started Extra to Love, a nonprofit to help families affected by Trisomy 18 and Trisomy 13.
The name "Extra to Love" is in honor of the extra chromosome.
"It’d be really easy to be sad for the rest of our lives, but we don’t feel like that honors her memory and who she was and what she’d want for us," Emma said.
The Springer's also find comfort in the laughter and exuberance of little Annie.
"That’s definitely good medicine for your heart," Emma said.
"She keeps you moving forward," Hayden said.
A month after Sage's passing, Springer arrived at TPC Sawgrass in Florida for the most important golf tournament of his life: the final stage of PGA Tour Q School.
To fulfill his dream of making the PGA Tour, Springer had to finish the tournament in the top five.
“I definitely had Sage on my mind," Springer said. "It was just thinking about her. And not even feeling much because you’re just, like, numb.”
With Emma and Annie watching from the behind the ropes – and Sage watching from above – the husband and father finished tied for fourth.
Hayden Springer made it to the PGA Tour.
Then on the Fourth of July, Springer stamped himself into one of golf's most exclusive clubs.
In the opening round of the John Deere Classic, he matched the course record with a 59, the 14th sub-60 round in PGA Tour history.
Springer recently finished his first season on the PGA Tour, which included three top-10 finishes and nearly $1,000,000 in earnings.
For Emma and Hayden, the journey marches on, finding balance between the emotional ups and downs.
But, they're riding high these days, with baby No. 3 on the way.
A little extra to love.