Champion golfer Bobby Jones once said “Golf is a game that is played on a five-inch course — the distance between your ears.” This year’s Green Hope women’s golf team focused within that important space to reach the state finals.
Green Hope had three golfers participating in the state competition at Pinehurst after taking four golfers to regionals. Samantha Chu (‘25), Marlo Arndts (‘27) and Jocelyn Lester (‘25) all competed on the state level with Chu recording a hole-in-one during competitive play. Although no golfer won an individual championship, having two juniors and a freshman compete bodes well for the future of the team.
The ladies endured challenges over the course of two grueling days of play. Day one greeted the golfers with sunshine and pleasant temperatures; however, on day two, temperatures dropped and tested the players both mentally and physically.
Lester described the tough conditions. “Throughout the two days of states, the weather was wildly inconsistent, with warm weather on Monday, and very cold weather on Tuesday. [The weather shift] definitely played a role in our ability to score well against a difficult course,” said Lester.
Abrupt condition changes and the pressure of state competition leads to the question of what does it take for a golfer to mentally focus? In an interview with the GH Falcon, Coach Kristy McGaha discussed how a golfer handles pressure, and she gives a clear vision as to how to coach when golfers are out on their own.
When asked what it takes for a golfer to move forward after a tough shot, Coach McGaha expressed that this is the most difficult aspect of the game.
“This [moving forward after a bad shot] is so hard, honestly. It is easy to say, ‘just forget about the bad shot, the four putts or the triple bogey on the last hole’, but it seems to them an almost impossible task. The mental focus and short memory required is, by far, the hardest part of golf, and I think especially with teenage girls.”
The mental strength to move past tough situations and mistakes marked a clear focus during practices.
McGaha explained, “We focus on this aspect every practice, every match. Nearly every time I talk to them, I remind them to say to themselves, ‘I can’t change it.’ The previous shot cannot be undone. It is whatever it was forever. We can’t change it. We must move on from it.”
Driving the ball off of the tee, hitting short putts or ensuring a solid score seem to be specialized, individual aspects of the game; however, the team focused on togetherness to overcome adversity. In order to face challenges, the ladies banded together to ensure success.
“My coach and teammates were definitely a big inspiration for me throughout the season. Each practice we continued to drive each other to be better. Encouraging words after a bad hole, or sharing the joy of someone’s accomplishments drove me to overcome the challenges of playing a mental sport such as golf,” Lester said.
Practicing aspects of an individual sport within a team organization required focus and attention to detail. Independent elements such as having a pre-shot routine are essential to success as a golfer. McGaha believes in “practice with a purpose”.
“I encourage them to work on having their own pre-shot routine that includes resetting their focus to just this shot, selecting a target, calculating distance, club selection, and visualizing their ball flight. I preach focusing on the present. We consider our range practice as practicing with a purpose. Rather than just mindlessly hitting balls,” said McGaha.
Now that the season has officially ended, the team is resetting goals for next year. Coach McGaha is encouraged by the fact that underclassmen will be returning, her goals matching the team goals of taking even more golfers to states as well as coming away victorious. As for Lester, she said that her most important goal comes from her inner drive.
“I plan to continue to improve my golf game over the summer with tournaments in preparation for my senior season, where I hope to lead the team to play in the state championship next year and place first in our conference,” said Lester.
The future is bright for the ladies, and that five inch course keeps getting larger with support and success.
