Girl's Golf

by Christopher Medina, highlights, Sports, November 12, 2008

“FOOOOORE!” shouts Andrea Whittle as she scores under par at golf match. You may recognize Whittle from ‘Gables Live’, the morning news broadcast, as one of the hard-hitting anchors. News is not Whittle’s only forte, she’s also a part of the school’s prestigious girls’ golf team.

            After school, you can catch Whittle out on the Granada Golf course. Whittle has been playing golf for two seasons. She is one of the team’s veterans alongside senior Leigh Cooper.

“It was difficult to have quite the tenderfoots added to our team, but they learned so quickly and were very eager to learn,” said Whittle.

Cooper and Whittle set the competitive standard as the only veterans on the girls’ golf team, and focused on ensuring that the two new players, Chloe Watters and Gabriella Olemberg, were ready to compete.

            Tracy Watkins, girls’ golf coach, was another influential part of the team.

“Even if it was raining, Ms. Watkins would walk onto the field with her umbrella and say, ‘It’s a great day for golf,’” said Cooper.

Watkins has been the coach for girls’ golf for [INS3RT NUMBAH] years. “The girls had such a willingness to learn,” said Watkins, “This year was exciting and more than I could ask for as a coach. It went above and beyond!”

            There were 9 matches this season. Southwest, Sunset, Michael Krop, Miami High, and Miami springs, Coral Park were their opponents this season. The stats for the season were winsOne of their better wins was against Southwest and Coral Park. “The girls all scored the highest that they have ever scored at any match and the animosity was just incredible,” said Watkins.

Another thing that the team shares equal thoughts on is the motivation on the team. “Ms. Watkins humor definitely keeps us going,” said Cooper. Their biggest fan and the one with the most animosity is their very own player, Chloe Watters. Watters was always there to cheer on her fellow players and her confidence would just motivate them to play their best, hence the nickname they deemed her, “Chloe Confidence.”

            It was a very new and exciting season for girls’ golf. “It’s disappointing for the season to close because all 4 players are graduating this year,” said Watkins. However, their stats, bonding, and the learning experiences the girls had was more of a blessing than a disappointment.