Emily Wang '19 Recruiting Profile

    At the age of nine, I was introduced to golf by my dad. He would bring my older sister and I out to a nearby golf course, where we would constantly play chipping and putting games. My dad didn't know at the time, but not only are those memories that I will always cherish, but they were also a key element to shaping both of his daughters' golf games to what it has become today. Those simplistic games taught me imperative values on the golf course. The most important lesson I learned was that your round isn't necessarily defined by your driver or tee shots; instead, it is determined by your short game.  Your chipping and putting plays a large role in the deciding factor of whether or not you are going to birdie, par, bogey, or worse, regardless of your tee shot.  As my sister and I grew older the games flourished into something bigger; we had a healthy rivalry between the two of us and pushed one another to get better. My sister has influenced me in more positive ways than imaginable; her admirable work ethic and determination are two traits that I strive to possess and watching her play college golf has only pushed my desire to play at the college level more evident.  

    Playing golf has immensely impacted my self awareness and personality; it has shown me that I can be extremely stubborn, sometimes impatient, and that I tend to overthink situations. But golf not only revealed my personality traits to me, it also shown me that I could use the stubbornness to my advantage and that things don't always come instantaneously and that it's vital to stay calm for the best results.  All of the things that I learned through golf has helped in school, at home, and in stressful situations.  At the golf course, my outgoing, positive personality has given me an advantage while playing in competitions; while it's easy to become cynical and down on yourself, I always focus on the what's good. It gives me an edge over other players because I have one less obstacle to overcome, myself. While some people might view being stubborn as a negative trait, it's actually all in the eyes of the beholder, I see it as a very desirable trait . In tournaments, I don't just give up if I start to play poorly, there's always something in me that keeps fighting and doesn't let myself stop trying my very best. My resilience is what also pushes me to improve and sharpen my game.  After playing golf for about seven years, I have had my fair share of ups and downs; I used to limit myself from being able to improve because of my mental. Self doubt and other negative thoughts clouded my brain and it took me years to finally see it; at the beginning of my freshman year of high school I finally started to improve my mental state of mind while playing and now I am finally free of almost all the doubt, the fear, and the negative energy; and it feels AMAZING. My academic goal for the rest of high school and college is to be successful in each of my classes and not only pass each class, but thoroughly understand each concept that I learn next.