Sophomore Lauren Kim drove Texas women’s golf to victory in the Mason Rudolph Championship last month, another chapter in the story of the young golfer’s career.
Kim and fellow sophomore Farah O’Keefe each shot 11-under-par in Vanderbilt’s 54-hole course, the third-best team score in program history. Head coach Laura Ianello also logged her first win as coach for the Longhorns.
“We haven’t gotten a win in quite some time,” Kim said. “For my freshman year, we were so close many times. Being able to do it with our new coaches, especially, was an unbelievable feeling.”
Ianello has not only brought a trophy to Texas just four months into her tenure, but the right mindset, too, according to Kim.
“She takes care of you like you’re her own child,” Kim said. “She always says, ‘Stay where your feet are. Just think about what’s right in front of you.’”
Kim is no stranger to the green, hitting balls at her father’s driving range and first having interest in competing at age 10. With practice and her father’s support, Kim was already competing in the Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship two years later and has been proving herself ever since.
Although amateur and collegiate events have their differences, when she won the Stephens Cup in Dallas last year, Kim knew she could handle either.
“I wasn’t expecting a win to come so fast,” Kim said. “Getting that individual win there opened my eyes and made me realize I could actually compete at this level and I’m just as good as all these top players.”
While working on qualifying for the traveling squad, players are doing their own thing, but the chemistry amongst the team keeps them together.
“We make sure everybody’s included,” Kim said. “We’re going for dinners, lunches, hanging out and studying. … I think when we travel or go to any tournament, we probably laugh the most and have the most fun.”
Kim grew up in Canada before making her way to Texas. Looking for higher competition and an environment more suitable for golf, hearing from UT was ideal.
“We get all the support, we get the golf courses and we have our own facilities,” Kim said. “I think that was what really caught my eye … and everyone is amazing. I could tell that if I came here, I would have a lot of fun. … With my teammates, it will probably be my lifelong friends.”
While Kim continues to conquer golf courses, her experiences with the sport has brought her a mentality of focusing on the present.
“In a school context, when you have lots of assignments and things to do that may seem overwhelming, just think about one thing at a time,” Kim said. “Taking that and putting it into the golf perspective, focusing on one shot at a time.”
