Nicole Lee '24 Recruiting Profile

Growing up, my parents were determined to find a hobby that I would enjoy. My busy upbringing balanced  gymnastics, piano, ballet, tennis, and swimming lessons  from ages two to seven. Around that time, my mom bought my first pair of golf clubs for me to hit near the local range, and just as I expected, I was unamused by the ball rolling all over the place, and wondered why people found it fun. Nevertheless, with a new life of practice and discipline,, it was only a short amount of time before I surpassed my parents’ golf skills. When I first scored my hole in one at age seven, I sparked my own realization for this new talent in golf. Although casually playing golf from ages seven to thirteen, my mom enforced the discipline to practice weekly tournaments, even when I would always end up in last place.

 In middle school, I decided to take golf more seriously, with more aggression and a hands on approach, where I lived and dreamed around the golf course. But, my determination to become really skilled overnight drove me to burnout, with the desperation of wanting to achieve the results of being a great player. Making a rookie, yet crucial mistake, I focused on the results rather than the process of golf which led to the rest of the year not even wanting to touch a club.

 Around the summer of freshman year, my best friend and I trained at Jisan Golf Academy in Korea, with juniors aspiring to become professionals. I initially felt hesitant to attend, despite my best friend there, due to the embarrassment of my skills. I was insecure, and anxious about not touching my club for several months, and they were rumored to have all been homeschooled for their dedication to becoming a professional golfer. I was terrified, but as soon as I arrived, I realized they were some of the kindest, funniest, and most talented people I had ever met. This period was the first time I not only fixed my swing on my own without the support of my weekly coach, but the first time I truly had fun with golf. 

We would play games, gamble, and pair up into teams to see who would get the most points with the putts, as the losers would buy us all snacks. We would laugh together, make fun of each other, and encourage each other to play better. I recognized a level of empathy in a sport I used to dislike. These juniors captivated me, making golf cool and I even felt like I had a new perspective on golf, just like how Lindsay Lohan had her transformation in Mean Girls. I felt included, and felt cool, deriving away from the mentality that golf was “nerdy” or an “old people” sport. 

Coming back from the trip, I grasped a stronger level of empathy, fun, and motivation to become not only as good, but even  better than the juniors I met. The athlete in me no longer played golf with a desperation and burden of stress to become good. I truly enjoyed how to play golf, and could now focus on the process. 

During freshman year, I was one of two to transfer onto Varsity, and met some of my closest friends. Despite golf being an individual sport, teamwork is ironically crucial to our success. I always get excited whenever my teammates’ hit an amazing shot, just like on TV, or a shot that I know I cannot execute perfectly yet.. Seeing my teammates’ potential, I quickly ignored all of the bad shots as different from their value as a player. I was astonished how players better than me would think they are “bad” at golf and would get so upset about it, but all I am thinking about is how much they have improved, or how much of an asset they are to the team. For that reason,  I often encouraged and built confidence in my teammates, which I never realized was so crucial as a team member until I was on the receiving end. 

A couple of rounds I would practice and be dissatisfied with the way I shot, or the chips I hit way too far, or the drivers I would slice, yet, when I felt like quitting, my teammates reminded me of my talent and potential as a golfer, and to surpass my silly mistakes and to avoid taking them too personally.  It didn’t occur to me until a while later, that the encouragement and the belief was what prevented me from having a breakdown or quitting time and time again, which I am grateful for till this day. It was not until I realized that the encouragement and optimistic perspective I have towards others not only helped me play better, but when I was going through the roughest moments, they encouraged me when I needed it the most. I realized that being a team member, and working together is what builds a stronger player and bond among each other. 

I want to take golf as far as I can, while balancing my academic, student-athlete life. My deep affection for golf is strong enough where I now see myself as those old people at country clubs and public courses that nobody likes playing with because they go too slow. With that said, I plan on playing all throughout college, and to take golf as far as I can, even if my skills take me to the professional level. But, I am one who believes an athlete can also be studious.

 Fortunately, I attend the private, college preparatory school, Harvard-Westlake High School. With my love for learning and playing golf, I initially felt overwhelmed transitioning into a full-time student athlete. Having difficulty coping with stress, I felt jealous of those who only did a single extracurricular as if their life depended on it, or those who studied like crazy to absorb and truly learn the material given. After a couple of months,  I recognized that with time management and efficiency, everything I set out to do can be accomplished, and I no longer stressed with this “sacrificial” mentality. I continue to prove to myself, time and time again, that I can balance my academic, athletic, and social life through being a student athlete. 

Through the recreational activities of attending national diversity conferences, the leadership of our school’s asian club, and personal reading, I gain new perspectives from a wide spectrum of characters and backgrounds. Although the narratives of each book surrounds a different character, as I read I feel emotionally transported into a new world. Reading has contributed to a deeper understanding of human society, placing myself in another’s position and to experience what another is feeling. I have realized that everyone has their own dreams, and is trying their best in the chaotic world we live in. Even if I dislike someone, I can feel their disappointment or discouragement which prompts me to comfort them in the end.  

I have further amplified my interest towards understanding more cultures with my love for language learning by submitting four different language articles in our school magazine. Learning languages is one of my favorite subjects, and with it I can truly understand more backgrounds and broaden my scale of making new friends and meeting more people. 

I also love to dance hip-hop and k-pop choreographies as a hobby, in which I felt true love for the first time. I was not wanting to get better or working hard with a goal in mind, but rather the passion and love fueled my drive to get better.  Dancing also strengthened my muscles through conditioning and the constant repetition of synchronizing movements, which helped my body coordination of my golf swing.  My love for dance translated into golf as I increased my self awareness, and without hesitancy, I can truly say I love golf.  When I dance, I dance like nobody’s watching and I am at home in my bedroom just jamming out and trying new moves. Then, when I perform in  front of an audience, rather than getting nervous, I picture myself back in my bedroom, and dance because I enjoy it. The feeling of doing something for yourself, has been translated and applied to my golf which has made me a stronger player.

 I strengthened the skill of switching between a player who golfs for fun and the love, versus a perfectionist, intense, and serious player who is result-oriented. I am no longer  bothered by players who are professionals, rude, slow, or even in front of my own parents, because I am golfing for myself. I golf to constantly improve my performance. I perform not for my parents, not for my coach, and not for the audience, but for myself. I golf because I feel like the coolest and most amazing person in the world because I am constantly impressed with shots I always dreamed of accomplishing, and constantly feel in awe with myself. Every time I do well, the excitement and adrenaline is indescribable of how much joy I feel, and because I crave that self-fulfillment, I constantly practice to see another performance that will bring me to tears of how astounding I am.  My love for dance translated into golf as I increased my self awareness, and without hesitancy, I can truly say I love golf.