Cori Bertossi '21 Recruiting Profile

The first time I golfed was the most embarrassing moment of my life. It was my freshman year of high school, and it was my first time ever golfing. Since there was no girls’ golf team at my school at the time, I decided to give golf a try by joining the boys’ golf team. Little did I know, by deciding to try this new sport and working to improve my skills at it, I had entered a larger part of my life that would change me as well as change the history of my school.

My high school golf career began the spring of 2018 when all I knew about golf was what I picked up on in the movie, “Happy Gilmore.” Whether it was the voice of God or my recollection of my uncle’s love for golf, I decided to give golf a shot. The coach of the golf team, Mr. Kish, did not cut anyone from the team, so I figured I had nothing to lose. One day, when the snow cleared off of the Country Club golf course, Mr. Kish took the team to the driving range to practice hitting balls with different clubs. Since I was a freshman, I was practicing with the freshman boys on our team, which terrified me because as shy as I was, the opposite gender intimidated me. By silently observing the boys select their largest club, I also chose the largest club in my bag. I teed up the ball to about the height the boys were, and I took a few practice strokes. “Fire when ready,” Mr. Kish called out to us. So I took aim, pulled back my club, and swung with all my might. This was a mistake. The ball flew inches away from my face and towards the other end of the tee-boxes on the driving range. It was a completely and utterly terrible stroke. My face turned bright red, and I could hear snickering. My coach looked at me, and he looked at where the ball had landed. Oh no, I thought. I’m going to get cut from a no-cut team. But Mr. Kish did something unexpected. He smiled and said, “Well, that’s a first.” I was so embarrassed, but at the same time, Mr. Kish’s reaction gave me some kind of comfort and made me yearn to improve to impress him. 

After this incident, I chose to keep golfing. By receiving advice from my coach, switching up my game, learning the rules, and observing professional golfers, I developed and honed my skills. I worked intensely at it, and I enhanced my game. As my game improved, my love of the sport increased, but there was still a barrier between my good game and my great game. My sophomore year was still spent on the boys’ team, which I did not thoroughly enjoy because I could barely participate in any matches. I would have to seriously gain some muscle and skill if I wanted to out-play them. It was harder to improve and learn the game if I could not play as much. I needed to change this, and the idea of a girls’ golf team popped into my head. As the idea engraved into my brain, I asked my coach about it. He stated that other schools had teams, and that in order for us to have one, I would have to find at least five other girls to participate. This proved to be difficult because many girls in my small school played other sports, firmly believed golf was boring, or did not feel comfortable trying something new. I was not going to give up, though, so I attempted to get anyone I could. I shared my embarrassing story, assured girls that they could improve, and expressed my love of the game and how I would not have found my love for it if I had not tried it out. After all of my effort, I gained exactly five girls for the team. In the beginning of my junior year, the first girls’ golf team for my high school was added to the roster. I, along with the other girls on the team, made history that year, and I played the best golf games I had ever played, which still keep improving. 

If someone told me the most embarrassing day of my life would be one of the worthiest days of my life, I probably would not have believed them. It is still hard to believe that I made history in my school, and it all started with me trying something new and expanding on it. By expanding one’s horizons and improving one’s skills, one can change the world.