STANFORD, Calif. – Many consider golf the hardest sport in the world. To excel at a high level requires a unique combination of mental and physical skill, resilience and amnesia. The ball doesn't move, there are several minutes between shots, no timeouts and no teammates.
Lose your cool and your score usually climbs.
With that in mind, we asked the top-ranked Stanford women's golf team to reveal the best advice they have received for dealing with the pressure and ups and downs of the game. All were junior standouts and most competed in other sports.
You can see the team in action on Feb. 11-12, when Stanford plays host to the Peg Barnard Invitational at Stanford Golf Course.
Casey Danielson, senior, public policy major from Osceola, Wisconsin: "Learn from each round instead of focusing on the outcome."
Quirine Eijkenboom, senior, biology major from Starnberg, Germany: "Short game wins."
Jisoo Keel, senior, science, technology and society major from Coquitlam, British Columbia: "Just make the putt and get out of there!"
Calli Ringsby, junior, management science and engineering, Cherry Hills Village, Colorado: "Hit it hard and go find it."
Shannon Aubert, junior, science, technology and society major from Stuart, Florida: "Trust yourself and play like it's the last time you will."
Sierra Kersten, sophomore from Spokane, Washington: "Breathe."
Andrea Lee, freshman from Hermosa Beach, California: "Don't be afraid to step back in order to take a bigger step forward."
Albane Valenzuela, freshman from Vesenaz, Switzerland: "Always stay in the present."
Madie Chou, freshman, from Santa Ana, California: "My dad always told me that you can see someone's true character on the golf course. At the end of the day, nobody else cared what score I shot, but they would remember how I acted and how I treated them."
Emily Wang, freshman from Beijing, China: "Golf is just a game."