Pillers choose low-key celebration after high-profile Sunday efforts

After a stellar Sunday on the golf course, Fort Worth’s first couple of professional golf spent Monday in a less-than-raucous celebration mode.

For Martin Piller, a former Texas A&M golfer, it marked his career-best finish in a PGA Tour event. For Gerina, a sixth-year member of the LPGA Tour, it was another close brush with her first career victory, a quest that will continue in Thursday’s opening round of the Volunteers of America Texas Shootout at Las Colinas Country Club.

With both players in contention Sunday, Gerina began her day in California by watching the early stages of the telecast of Martin’s final round. He left the course in San Antonio in search of a place to watch the remaining telecast of Gerina’s final round.

Eventually, the two connected at DFW Airport in the wee hours of Monday morning after Gerina’s red-eye return flight from San Francisco.

“He was there to pick me up in the morning. So we got to hang out for the day,” said Gerina Piller, who noted that both golfers were “really tired” but managed to squeeze in time to watch the replay of Martin’s final round from their home in Fort Worth before Martin returned to DFW for a Monday night flight to this week’s PGA Tour stop in New Orleans.

“It was cool to hear about him playing well and him going through his round. He’s in a good place right now,” she said.

The same can be said of Gerina, who heads into Thursday’s opening round with three top-10 finishes in her last four starts at LPGA events. She said she is “getting really comfortable” with seeing her name on leader boards this season after battling self-doubts earlier in her career. She’s also enjoyed watching the two on a commercial for sponsors Barbasol and Pure Silk that plays off their competitive nature and began appearing recently during golf telecasts.

“I’ve done media spots and sponsorships before. But to do it with your husband and your best friend is pretty cool,” Gerina Piller said. “In a way, it’s a little more challenging because we get the giggles while they’re shooting. But they did a great job. We just had a blast filming it.”

Stanford stays busy

Stanford skipped last week’s LPGA stop in San Francisco to focus on preparations for both events and hopes to improve on last year’s sixth-place finish in Irving. She said playing in front of galleries packed with friends and family members will motivate her this week.

This story was originally published April 26, 2016 at 7:40 PM with the headline "Pillers choose low-key celebration after high-profile Sunday efforts."