It was hot, boiling even. For Junior Grace Lindsey, the last nine holes of the Charles- ton Classic Invitational felt as brutal as the sweltering heat. But as the temperatures rose, so did Lindsey, propelling into the top 10 for the match and a spot on the All-Tournament team.
Going into the match, Lindsey came with confidence. That was until she met the level of competition that she was up against.
“My thoughts were like ‘no big deal’. But when I got out there, I played against these people… they were actually really really good… I had never heard of them before,” Lindsey said.
That was an obstacle. A hurdle she conquered with her swings, placing her in the top ten for the tournament.
Although she had not placed where she originally wanted, both her coach and teammates were proud of her.
“She never got frustrated with any bad shot… she stayed tough… and grinded it out so to speak on the backside,” said her coach, Jeffrey Emory.
Lindsey has proved to have grown tremendously as a person and a player since she first picked up a golf club. The sport has played a significant role in
her family life, as her dad, sister, and brother were once golfers as well. This would lead to her joining the sport at the age of 7.
“Golf is like my whole life… because when I look back, I don’t know where I would be without it. So, it just means… a much bigger thing than just like a sport to me,” Lindsey said.
However, her sport has not only been positive for her. When Lindsey was younger, she broke her wrist, an injury that fatally impacted her swing. A couple of years later when she got to the eighth grade, she almost decided to quit the sport forever. At that point, Lindsey had been playing the sport for years and she felt like everything she had worked for was over. Similarly to other athletes, Lindsey had lost her spark and desire to play any longer.
She sat her parents down and told them the news. That she was done. She was not going to play another season, and there was no hope for her. But then she thought of the people who had gotten her to where she was.
“I [didn’t want] to give up on everybody… or make them think they weren’t… good enough… I wanted to stay with them,” Lindsey said.
Looking back, Lindsey is grateful for not giving up, for it led her to where she is now. One of the top golfers on the Wando team.
Molly MacDonald, one of Lindsey’s teammates and close friends, has been golfing with her since they were little. They had met each other at a junior PGA match at Bull’s Bay.
“I was terrified of this girl who was shorter than me but could probably hit the ball about 50 times faster than I could… she was quite scary at the beginning,” MacDonald said.
Yet, as they became closer and Lindsey evolved in her sport, MacDonald noticed a
“It’s honestly hilarious thinking about old Grace… she was shy… now sometimes she’s like one of the most energetic people out there. But she’s also grown more confident… she carries herself higher and it’s really nice to see,” MacDonald said.
Not only has she grown as a person, but she has also improved as a teammate. Ac- cording to MacDonald, Lindsey pushes her teammates to practice every day, and she is always there for them.
Even though she tends to shoot low scores, she stays humble and never rubs it in their faces. Even her coach has noticed this shift.
“She’s gotten more powerful… she stays focused. Her mental game has gotten way better,” Emory said.
Both MacDonald and Emory have been with Lindsey through the ups and downs of her golf career. To them, it is crazy to see how far she has come.
“It’s been really good to see her growth… from being a little… seventh grader to being someone who’s now a leader on the team,” Emory said.
