May Management, sharing of experience advocated by Mathilda Cappeliez and Pierre Mazier

Mathilda Cappeliez, a shooting star of French Golf whose trajectory was too quickly interrupted, and Pierre Mazier, also a graduate of the American university, created May Management to share their high-level experience and help young golfers progress towards the professional world. in France or the United States.

Comments collected by David Charpenet

At 25 years old, Mathilda Cappeliez is already retired from the professional circuits. A former great hope in French golf, the player from Évian-les-Bains had a brilliant amateur career before hitting the wall of professionalism head-on. After a short and painful experience at an American university, the holder of a Bac S returned to France to relaunch her career. But the covid break got the better of her last hopes of joining the very high level, despite a final surge in 2022 with a seventh place at the Terre Blanche Ladies Open.

If I had the same problem today, I still wouldn't really know who to turn to for help.

Mathilda Cappeliez

« I had problems transitioning into the real adult world. We're alone and it's not easy, she regretted. I definitely wasn't prepared enough. Neither to go to the United States, nor to go to university. I only spent a year in the USA and when I returned the problems were already too established. Unfortunately, I did not find sufficiently caring people who wanted to find the solution to my problems with me. If I had the same problem today, I still wouldn't really know where to turn for help. I still managed to get my American second division and LET card. But since I wasn't supported as I should have been, it didn't last long. It wasn't technical, but rather mental. »

May Management to bounce back and help young people progress

Far from letting herself be defeated by this sporting challenge, the former student of Sabine Etchevers decides to join forces with Pierre Mazieralso a promising amateur who attended an American university, to create May Management in 2024 and in particular avoid young golfers from falling into the same traps as Mathilda. “ This painful personal experience now allows me to help young people not to make the same mistakes as me. The difficulties I experienced from 19 to 23 years old, I try to turn them into a strength now, to help young people by being kind. For Pierre it was different since he had a very positive experience in the United States. He loved it. This gives us great complementarity. »

A complementary American experience

For Pierre Mazier, the experience was indeed very positive in an American university already used to welcoming French golfers. “ When I arrived at Texas Christian University, two French people had passed just before me, Julien Brun et Paul Barjon. Paul even finished his last year while I started my first. So the transition was smooth for me. I really had a very good golfing and personal experience. I actually stayed in the United States for seven years. After my four years of college, I took the PGA Tour Canada cards. My professional career only lasted one year and then I worked in the golf industry in the USA for two years, before returning to France at the end of 2022. This is also added value from our collaboration with Mathilda who hasn't had as positive an American experience as I have. We have a lot of similarities and also some differences which allow us to have a more global and complementary sharing of experience. »

Share our experience to best advise athletes at each stage of their career

Pierre Mazier

This sharing of experience is materialized in four key moments that Mathilda Cappeliez and Pierre Mazier have identified to best support players towards the high level. A philosophy that the former resident of Texas Christian University summarizes on the May Management website: “ share our experience to best advise athletes at each stage of their career. »

« We have imagined a four-step support project to address the gaps that we have clearly identified, developed Mathilda Cappeliez. First you have to define the sporting project to find good technical, physical and mental support. Search for partners, clubs, optimize budgets...»

«Then you have to prepare the connection between golf and studies. You have to go to the United States in advance to prepare for the player's arrival. Find the most suitable universities, host families if necessary…»

«The third step is the most important: sports and academic monitoring. This is a crucial step for which we are really left to our own devices. I really wish I had some help moving forward in my time. We will of course not always be on site, but we put the player in contact with an entire structure at the university to continue to monitor the player's development and adapt the support.»

«Finally, the transition into the professional world remains a delicate moment that we particularly support. When young people leave their American university where they are very supervised, they can find themselves a little alone to manage everything. And if you want to surround yourself with a large, efficient team, it’s expensive. We therefore help to ensure that everything goes well. »

Collaborations with players and coaches to develop

Mathilda Cappeliez and Pierre Mazier quickly understood that May Management needed to collaborate with recognized entities in the golf world to gain credibility and expand their network of influence. For the two former professional players, collaboration with the academy Renaud Gray Golf Institute was an obvious choice. “ We have known Renaud for a long time. We rubbed shoulders with him within the hopeful pole or in the French team, recalled Pierre Mazier. When we created May Management, we wanted to build relationships with the French Golf Federation, clubs, coaches and academies. We have been collaborating with the FFG from the start and contacting many clubs and coaches to explain our approach to them. It was completely logical for us to create a special relationship with the Renaud Gris Institut. They already have a very complete structure and we bring our added value in terms of support towards the United States or transition into the professional world. »

Open our network to our community of players

Mathilda Cappeliez

Other players in the world of professional golf were involved in the project through webinars. First of all, it's the former caddy Axel Bettanalso husband of the former player Sophie Giquel-Bettanwhich was requested. Then Paul Barjon and recently Agathe Laisné. « To best support young people and in the interest of sharing experience, we regularly set up webinars with speakers who have experienced the high level. We started the series with Axel Bettan who caddied great players (Editor's note: he notably won the Women's British Open 2017 with the South Korean IK Kim). Paul Barjon, a friend who plays on the PGA Tour and the Korn Ferry Tour that I met at TCU. And recently Agathe Laisné. » (The latter kindly offered her time to May Management during its preparation for the final of the LET cards in Morocco, after a complicated year on the LPGA Tour). “ We were keen to open our network to our community of players », concluded Mathilda Cappeliez.

“Tailor-made” support

To have a positive influence on the future trajectory of golfers, May Management had to gain the trust of players and families. A significant difficulty when trying to target young adolescents. “ It's exciting to take care of very high-level young people who already play in the national team for example, or more novice profiles who are passionate. If we can help them that's fantastic, noted Mathilda Cappeliez. We particularly target young people between 13 and 16 years old to facilitate their possible path to the high professional or amateur level. We want to really meet people, which means going to events and golf clubs. So we go to youth tournaments a lot to meet the players and their families. This is fundamental to creating a bond of trust. We want to create a human and caring relationship. As we are a small structure, we are particularly attentive to the needs of the players and their desires and we do not come with a speech or a method ready in advance. We adapt. We do tailor-made. »

Professional golfers stuck in the second or third division often complain of having been left to their own devices when they turned professional. This type of initiative can help fill a gap in the French golf landscape on the path to high level. Let's wish good luck to this duo of young retirees from the professional circuits on the road to supporting the future hopes of French golf.