July 6, 2020

What high school golfers should know about college golf

Reading Time: 4 minutes

So you’re heading off to college! If you are anything like me you are the most nervous you have ever been, but also the most excited. Whether you are competing at an NCAA Division 1,2,3, NAIA or Junior College, you are becoming a student-athlete, and that comes with a lot of responsibility. Your first semester will be the hardest, and then it will start to get easier as you learn the process and get into a routine. Here are some lessons I learned throughout my Division 1 golf career, hopefully being informed will make the transition the slightest bit easier. 

Time Management

Yes you have probably heard this a million times but I can’t stress it enough. Golf is different from other sports. A basketball or football team hops on a bus, travels to a game, and heads right back to school. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but that is not golf. If you are headed away for an event, expect to get in the van on Thursday night and not get back until Sunday night, usually pretty late. As someone who lugged 30 pounds of textbooks with her to every tournament, you do not have as much time as you think you do, most of your time is spent on the course. It is important to know what responsibilities you have and to have a plan. Make a schedule! There is a lot more time in a week that you might think. Make a plan and be aware of what your responsibilities are so you are not getting back at 8pm after practice and having a 5 page paper due at 11:59pm. 

You are a STUDENT-athlete

I always thought it was a cheesy line, student comes before athlete so you’re a student first. As much as I brushed this one off it is one of the truest statements. Unless you plan to go on tour, you are at college to get an education and start your professional career. Don’t lose sight of that when you are caught up in the practice 6 days a week, gym 4 days a week, and want to hang out with your friends too. Not only do you need to make sure you have time for schoolwork, but you have to put the same effort into homework that you would practice. Not to scare you but after your’e time at college you’re going to be thrown into the real world and it is important you have the tools, and grades to succeed. 

Team Arguments

This one is not golf-specific, it may not even be sports specific. Not everyone sees eye to eye and gets along, in any team setting. This is where team dynamic is put to the test. You are around or with your teammates almost every single day. There are going to be clashing personalities and people who will argue. One fight between two teammates can tear the team apart but throw a little respect into the equation and the team will only get stronger. It is human nature to be built and wired differently. There will always be arguments and disagreements between teammates, especially when you spend so much time together. If you find yourself in this position, like I did, I challenge you to look at your teammates. One of my teammates and I could not stand to talk to each other and I slowly noticed the riff between the two of us was tearing the team in half. We respected each other enough to leave the drama at home and to show up for the team.

Have a good mental headspace & take time for you

This might be my most important piece of advice. You will be busy and sometimes you will feel like there is not enough time in a day to do what you need to do. Forget about time, the stress is what got to me. The three tests I have to study for, being in the gym two hours a day, being on the course for another 5 hours, having a student government meeting, or community service hours to attend. I started to wonder if my head was ever going to stop spinning.  No matter what happens you will be alright. Remember to always put yourself first and if you find yourself having a hard time dealing with the stress of college life, talk to someone. Almost every college athletic program has some sort of student support service. Figure out what your school has to offer and take advantage of those services if you need to. It is not a sign of weakness to ask for help or talk to someone about your fears, stress, and worries, it is a sign of strength because you are putting yourself first. 

Only 7% of high school athletes get the chance to play college sports. You are one of those lucky people, and I want you to make the most of your college career. I want you to leave saying the same thing I am, I would not change a single thing about my college golf career.  Sometimes it was hard, sometimes I wondered if I should give up, but the experience made me stronger and molded me into the person I am today. Ultimately you get to decide how your college sports career goes, so give it your all and have the best four years of your life! 

May 15, 2020

My experience as the only girl on my high…

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Being from the northeast, girls golf teams were few and far between. My time playing high school golf was an amazing and fun experience. I consider myself lucky because this is not the case for a lot of girls who are a part of co-ed golf teams. It’s 2020 and the last thing that any high school student should be worried about is acceptance from their teammates. I want to share my positive high school experience with you and highlight the one factor that has made every team I have been a part of successful. 

It’s a week before school starts, I show up to our home course for tryouts. You could say that I was a little nervous because I had prior knowledge that the last time any girl made the varsity team was 5 years prior. I am about 20 minus into my warm-up when I realize I am the only girl there. Now the anxiety really starts to set in, I had a million thoughts running through my head. Are they going to like me? Do they want a girl on their team? Are they going to talk to me? I spent the next 20 minutes prior to my tee time working myself up over… well over nothing really. 

I thought the guys would stereotype me, not give me a chance and that was not the case. I realized immediately that the guys were kind and treated me like they would any other person.. The only reason I was scared was because of the stereotypes of women in golf. Over the next three years on the team, I made some of the best memories with my teammates. Through it all I come back to one factor, one factor I think is essential for keeping a positive team atmosphere whether it is golf, soccer, football, men, women, co-ed, everyone!

My high school golf team had a respectful atmosphere. The guys on my high school team treated each member of the team as an equal. Shooting a low score did not make you popular and having a bad day did not get you ostracized. This is the main reason my experience was so great. It had nothing to do with men vs. women or freshman vs. seniors, we were all out there trying to shoot the best scores we could and have fun doing it.

Any athlete would have bad experiences with teammates that have a lack of respect for one another. Not only will they have a bad experience, but the team will also crumble. You often hear the phrase “a team is only as strong as its weakest player”. My question then becomes, why so often do we hear stories of teammates putting each other down if someone is faster, stronger, shoots lower scores? By choosing to participate in such behavior the bully is making their own team weaker. In my high school and collegiate experience, no matter the sport, true teammates respect one another.

I could have written this as a list of stereotypes of women in golf and a list reasons why they are not true, but I think we have all seen enough of that. There was never a day I woke up and did not want to go to practice. I wanted to hang out with the guys, we always had fun with one another. My advice to everyone reading this is to just be respectful of everyone you encounter. No matter the race, ethnicity, gender, or the other million things that make every person unique in their own right, treat everyone like a human being. We could all use some more respect and positivity in our lives, be the person to spread that to others. 

I’d love to hear your stories as well! Feel free to email me at chelsea@nextgengolf.org.