The payoff of practice

Jaclyn Lee's personal drive to always improve her game is a big part of her success

Calgary’s 16-year-old Jaclyn Lee is a pretty serious golfer these days, and her hard work is paying off.

Jaclyn’s most notable accomplishments include taking the winner’s spot at the 2013 BC Open and in the 2012 CN Future Links Western Championship, among several other wins at smaller tournaments. And while initially Jaclyn was not enthusiastic about the game of golf, she has discovered enjoyment and success through practice.

“She wasn’t necessarily a natural,” said Jaclyn’s mother, Maria, “but she thought it was fun and was playing so much and practising a lot, so she just got a knack for the game.”

Jaclyn first started golfing in 2008 at Vintage Hills Golf Course (now Two Eagles Golf Course and Academy) in the Okanagan region of B.C., where her father, Stephen, had decided to get the family a lifetime membership in hopes of making golf a family sport. However, a change in ownership at the course led to the lifetime membership being cut down to only five years. To make sure they got good use out of their membership before its expiry, Stephen set about getting the family to the course as much as possible.

“When I first started in the summer, I dreaded the mornings where we’d have to wake up and go golfing early in the morning,” said Jaclyn. “I was really just looking forward to hanging out with my friends in the afternoon.”

Nonetheless, Jaclyn and her sister, Carolyn, continued to go along with their father’s family-bonding plan and played nearly every morning that summer. Little did Jaclyn know she was laying the groundwork for an exciting future in golf.

“There was a course marshal at Vintage Hills—Bob Waterfield—who saw my playing and thought that I should devote more time to it,” said Jaclyn. “He thought that I should work on my swing and work on getting better. As I got better, he helped me realize that I actually liked golf and it wasn’t such a chore.”

Jaclyn continued to practise her game, and it quickly grew to become the big part of her life that it is today.

“I practise a couple of hours every day,” said Jaclyn of her current training. “I make sure that my swing is where I like it to be and make sure that I hit the ball well.”

Jaclyn holds a position on the Team Alberta Junior Development Team along with eight other girls—including her sister. The team is selected each year through a variety of tournaments; each is worth a certain number of merit points, and the nine girls in the province with the most points make the team.

Winning the CN Future Links Western Championship last year, said Jaclyn, has been her most memorable moment in golf.

“It was really cool playing in a playoff, and it was just a really fun thing to win,” she said. “It was a two-hole playoff, sudden death. It felt really good . . . it was the biggest tournament that I’d ever won . . . Experiencing it with all of my emotions was just really cool.”

Jaclyn’s strength in the game is typically in her drives, but because of an injury last year, she was forced to work on other aspects of play.

“I always have had a strong long game,” said Jaclyn, “but last year I got injured—I had tendonitis in my right elbow. That made me really have to work on my chipping and putting because I just couldn’t do the driving. It was a really good thing for me to work on my short game.”

Her positive attitude and ability to push through the tough times are huge when it comes to Jaclyn’s golf game.

“I don’t really get stressed when I play,” she said. “Golf is a frustrating sport, but you’ve just got to keep grinding it out when you’re out on the course. Keep positive, because there’s not much more you can do besides just push through it.”

Over the next few months, Jaclyn will be competing in a variety of tournaments—and in the long run, she hopes to get a university golf scholarship and play at the collegiate level.

“I’d say that it’s been a tough journey, but it’s all worth it,” she said. “It’s a lot of hard work but it pays off. My passion for the game allows me to work hard and get better in the game.”

Player at a glance

Name: Jaclyn Lee
From: Calgary
Birthdate: May 16, 1997
Age: 16
Favourite course: Predator Ridge: Vernon, B.C.
Accomplishments: Winner of the 2012 CN Future Links Western Championship; winner of the 2013 BC Junior Open
Longest drive: 290 yards
Best score: 68 on a par 72
Favourite school subject: Math