Fangirl Down

Fangirl Down (2024) is an adult romance novel by Tessa Bailey. The novel is the first in Bailey’s Big Shots sports romance series. Fangirl Down traces the evolving relationship between Josephine Doyle and Wells Whitaker. For as long as 26-year-old Josephine can remember, she has been professional golfer Wells’s number-one fan. When Wells realizes that he’s failing to maintain his reputation in the golfing world, he quits the PGA tournament. He eventually invites Josephine to caddie for him so that he can resurrect his career and she can afford renovations on her family’s pro shop in Palm Beach, Florida. Both on and off the golf course, they discover that they have a strong connection. Josephine and Wells’s unexpected relationship leads to an exploration of The Redeeming Power of Love, The Importance of Encouragement and Support, and the Journey Toward Fulfillment and Personal Growth.

This guide uses the 2024 HarperCollins paperback edition.

Plot Summary

The novel opens in Palm Beach, Florida. Professional golfer Wells Whitaker is in town on a stop for his PGA tournament. He plays at the Palm Beach Gardens golf course, where his loyal fangirl, Josephine Doyle, cheers from the sidelines and waves her Wells’s Belle sign. Wells has seen Josephine at all of his Florida matches but is irritated by her positivity, considering how poorly he has been performing on the course in recent years. Josephine knows that Wells isn’t doing well but refuses to stop following his career. After the match, however, Wells tears up Josephine’s sign and tells her he’s dropping out of the tournament.

Three weeks later, Josephine is overcome by despair when Hurricane Jake destroys her family’s pro shop, the Golden Tee. Josephine has grown up with golf and dreamed of resurrecting her late grandfather’s shop for as long as she can remember. Furthermore, running the shop while managing her type 1 diabetes has been her way of proving herself to her parents, Evelyn and Jim Doyle. Surveying the shop’s damages, Josephine wonders what her future will hold.

Wells’s sudden appearance outside the shop shocks Josephine out of her thoughts. He demands to know what happened and if Josephine is okay. Josephine explains that the shop isn’t insured and she’s worried about affording the repairs and her medical expenses. To boost her spirits, Wells suggests that he’ll rejoin the tournament if she agrees to caddie for him. Josephine agrees to the arrangement because she needs the money to fix the pro shop and take care of herself.

Josephine and Wells meet back up in San Antonio, Texas, for the next stop on the PGA tour. Throughout their time at their Texas resort, Josephine and Wells realize how attracted they are to each other. Wells is volatile and rough around the edges, while Josephine is kindhearted and energetic. However, they love being in one another’s company, both on and off the golf course. Josephine gives Wells new ways of thinking about his game and reminds him why he loves golf. Meanwhile, Wells lets Josephine know that he’ll support her in any way that she needs. He starts following her on her glucose monitoring app and carrying around glucose tablets in case she needs them.

Over the following weeks, Wells begins to improve on the golf course. Everyone in the golfing world is shocked by his comeback and attributes his professional resurrection to his new caddie. However, Josephine can’t work for Wells forever, as she needs to get back to Palm Beach to finish repairing the pro shop in anticipation of its grand reopening. Wells knows how important the shop is to Josephine but also worries that he won’t succeed for the rest of the tournament without her.

The characters agree to keep dating but decide to take some time apart in an attempt to understand what they mean to each other and if they can be together in the future. While playing in the final game of the tournament, Wells channels Josephine’s encouraging voice in his head. Meanwhile, Josephine’s parents offer to run the shop so that she can go see Wells finish in the tournament. When they reunite on the golf course, Wells wins the championship, falls to his knees, and proposes to Josephine.

Eight years later, Josephine and Wells have built a happy life together and started a family. One day, Wells returns from a tour and tells Josephine he’s going to retire so that he can spend more time with her and their family and help her with the pro shop.