Jacquelyn Stiles '19 Recruiting Profile

    As a student, I have always pushed myself hard to make sure that I succeed academically.  With sports, however, that wasn't always the case. I tried basketball and soccer, but I was never able to self motivate myself. Then, my parents helped me start golf. I had a tiny set of clubs since I was young that I learned a lot with, but after awhile I took a break and put the clubs away. Fortunately, everything that I had learned early on stuck with me, so after a few years, I pulled the clubs out again to see what I could do. At first, I couldn't really hit the ball far, but every time I watched my dad or the pros on TV I thought to myself, "Someday I will hit the ball as far and as perfect as they do!" I finally found the self motivation that I needed to pursue golf. So, I started to practice.  My father was even able to see how quickly I was learning and bought me a full set of clubs and found a swing coach for me to work with. After lots of hard work and long days at the golf course, I finally reached my first goal which was to hit the ball far and straight. It was after I had reached this level of improvement that my parents started signing me up for tournaments. With every tournament I played, I set new goals for myself . The biggest goal I set for myself for my first tournament season was to win at least one tournament. By the end of my first season, I surpassed my goal and won four tournaments. I was also able to place fourth overall in the New England Junior PGA Girls 14-18 year old division. I had accomplished so much my first season and for the first time felt proud of myself and my accomplishments.  I felt like I could actually see a future for myself with the game of golf.  The future I see includes playing collegiate golf and continually working to perfect my game. I have already begun preparing for the next golf season and I am now playing on the high school team. During the fall of my sophomore year, I joined the boys varsity golf team and was picked to play as one of their starters. By playing with the boys, I learned a lot more about the game of golf. I was even able to drop my handicap down to a 15.5. However, that's not all I was able to improve. Since I was playing with the boys, I had to play from the blue tees for most matches during the season. This helped to greatly improve the distances that I was hitting and lower my score. I am looking forward to another great golf season with the boys during my junior year of high school, participation in higher level tournaments during 2017, and the improvement that will to come to my golf game from continued training, dedication, and self motivation.