The women’s golf team’s season has come to an end with a fourth-place finish in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW). While this outcome showed their ability to stay competitive within the conference, the team couldn’t help but feel a bit let down by the final result. They had entered the tournament with high hopes and a strong season behind them, aiming for a top-tier finish.
The course that the tournament was played on is very flat with minimal trees. This is not an ideal situation for golf if there are high winds. The wind can affect the way that the ball is hit, as well as be a factor in deciphering what club to use for particular holes.
“We all did it, and we can do it. [Conference is] just different from what we’re used to, compared to a normal tournament,” senior Kelsey O’Connor said. “There’s not many trees there, so it’s super windy- just straight wind in your face all day.”
Not only is the course difficult, but the mindset going into conference championships changes compared to other tournaments. The pressure increases compared to regular tournaments, as does the desire to perform well—not only for your team but also for yourself.
There is also an extra day that gets added onto the championship tournament, which adds to the pressure and the challenge that is the CCIW championships.
“We play three days, and typically our tournaments are two days, and so adding the third day is a lot,” junior Abby Buechele said. “They put us back on a lot of men’s tees this year, which is even further than we typically play. So it was definitely more challenging.”
With all of these challenges being taken into account, golf is as much of a mental game as it is a physical one. It can be tough to stay positive and have the right mindset when it is just you as a player out on the green. The mental aspect of golf is something that can be really challenging and is really hard to cope with.
“[The game] really gets in your head because you think that you are so fully aware of how your balls can react,” sophomore Jama Burch said. “I will get frustrated with myself because I’m like, oh, I should have done that, but I didn’t factor it in. So then I’ll get mentally frustrated with myself, which then affects each and every shot in the game.”
While tackling difficulties that arose throughout the fall season, the team is now able to take a break before tournament play begins again in the springtime. The girls plan on using this off time to prepare as best as they know how for the resumption of tournaments.
Continuing to lift weights, put the time in inside the golf room and continuing to show up and work hard are just a few of the things that this team of golfers are doing to help be even more successful in the spring.
“I think the biggest thing we need is for people to continue to show up and just be there,” O’Connor said. Just needing more people to want to get stronger and wanting to practice and wanting to be better- we have that.”