An iPod, a set of golf clubs and a 1991 Jeep Cherokee named “Trusty Rusty.”

That’s what Futures Tour rookie Briana Vega counts on. The clubs are what help her make a living, while the other two she depends on to get from one tour stop to the next.

“Yup, I’ve got the iPod, and one of those things that converts it in the car. That’s really beneficial,” she said. “And I’ve heard from a lot of my friends to get the books on CD or something, because you get sick of listening to music.

“I know a bunch of people from playing collegiately, a lot of girls from the ACC. I had a friend out here already, so I kind of prepared for what it was like.”

Vega, who wrapped up her career at North Carolina State in 2004, is new to the professional scene, but she already is growing accustomed to the rigors of the Futures Tour travel schedule.

After this weekend’s Lawrence Futures Classic at Eagle Bend Golf Course, the players have a two-week break. Then, after five weekends of competition comes another two-week sabbatical, followed by an eight-week marathon of events to wrap up the 2005 season.

Vega flew to the April 22-24 Jalapeño Futures Classic in McAllen, Texas, from her home in North Carolina and has been on the road ever since in a rental car. She’ll finish the tour this season in Trusty Rusty.

The Jeep fits in perfectly in the Eagle Bend parking lot, along with the dozens of out-of-state license plates that have seen countless miles of highway and will see plenty more before the season ends in August.

Most of these players travel with their lives in their back seats.

Futures Tour player Becky Lucidi teaches a group of young golfers her chip-shot technique.

“I have a rice cooker,” tour rookie Saki Uechi said. “I’m Japanese, and I love Japanese food. I kind of sacrifice some clothing so I can bring my rice cooker.”

Other than the cooker, Uechi said there was no way most players could stay level-headed on the road without what has become one of life’s bare necessities — a cell phone and a good wireless plan.

For some players, the extra possession they can’t forget is a lucky charm, such as the stuffed Tweety Bird that fourth-year veteran Lisa Whitt travels with.

But in most cases, the best thing to have on the road is simply someone to follow to the next destination.

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The tour is filled with plenty of groups of close friends who help each other not just on the course, but on the rural roads they travel as well, forming caravans from one town to the next.

“It’s better to be with somebody,” said Jana Peterkova, a third-year player. “Sometimes there’s a road where there’s no people and no signal for your cell phone, and if something happens, you’re in the middle of nothing.”