NAME — Milan Patel
AGE — 19
A ce, albatross, birdie, brassie, eagle, mulligan.
If these terms are foreign to you, you're not a golfer.
Morgan Pressel, the top female amateur golfer in the country, hears these terms a lot, and she'll be hearing them even more when the LPGA's "qualifying school finals get under way on Wednesday.
"Q" school is one way that amateurs can qualify for events sponsored by the Ladies Professional Golf Association. Although players can't officially join the tour until age 18, they can compete in events if they receive exemptions from tournament sponsors.
Morgan, 17, from Boca Raton, Fla., has had an impressive golf career, starting at age 12 when she qualified for the U.S. Women's Open. She, Sydnee Michaels, 17, Jane Rah, 14, and Taylore Karle, 15, were among the girls competing in the PING Junior Solheim Cup, played in Westfield over Labor Day weekend against a top-ranked team from Europe.
They took a break from practice to talk about the role of golf in their lives.
All started the game at young ages with the encouragement of family members -- Morgan, at age 8 from her grandfather, and Sydnee, Jane and Taylore from their fathers.
"My dad just introduced me to the game," said Jane, Torrance, Calif. "I was a figure skater and he just kind of got me into golf. I switched."
Sydnee, Temecula, Calif., started playing at age 9. She was busy singing, tap dancing and figure skating when an invitation by her dad changed her world. "I went out to the driving range once and hit a few balls, and I liked it," she said.
Taylore, Scottsdale, Ariz., started at age 10, also at the instigation of her father.
"He thought it would be fun, like a good family sport, and then my brother and I got really good at it. And he was like, 'We should turn this into something really good,' It came out pretty awesome.
Increasing numbers of young people are attracted to golf. According to a nationwide study by GOLF 20/20, an initiative of the World Golf Foundation and other golfing interests, there were more than 6.1 million players ages 5 to 17 in 2002.
Golf clinic
Interest also was high at a golf clinic offered before the Junior Solheim Cup, which the American athletes won.
Annie Sheppard, 13, Fishers, was one of scores of kids who sought instruction. "I came to the clinic because the tournament was here, and I thought it'd be pretty cool to get some instruction from the pros and the players in the tournament."
Diana Poulin, 13, Carmel, has played golf for seven years but still wanted more help on her game. "These clinics do help because you can get different instructions from different coaches," she said.
Scott Silver, 14, Carmel, also hoped to elevate his game. "I've played for about eight years, and I've done a few of the junior tournaments here. It gives you another point of view from different instructors, but it's also cool because you get to see pro players and how they swing."
But just because kids like to play golf doesn't mean they like to watch it.
Ian Bradley, 12, Fishers, says he'll occasionally watch a tournament but not for long because "sometimes it gets kind of boring. It's more fun to play."
Playing golf is not as easy as it looks, the teenagers say. "It's really challenging," said Chris Harwood, 15, Westfield. "Every time you pick up something, something else is wrong."
It isn't easy for Jane, Taylore, Sydnee and Morgan either. While all have won a number of golf tournaments, they have invested a lot of time in their sport and say it continues to offer plenty of challenges.
Said Sydnee: "Everything matters -- the wind, the grass -- there are a ton of different grasses -- the difference in the distances . . . if it's uphill, if it's more downhill. Then there's so many different shots."
That's why they get angry when people question the rigor of golf.
Morgan challenges critics to just try a round of golf. "Just go out and see how difficult it really is," she said.
Many hours of practice
To get to this high level of play, these players have had to spend most of their free time playing golf. Most try to get in six to eight hours of golf a day.
Taylore described her typical routine as going to school from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. every day and then playing golf "till like 8 at night."
"And weekends it's just basically the whole day," added Jane.
Although it takes a lot of time, the Junior Solheim Cup players don't feel as though they are missing anything. "Obviously, it's not the same as if I didn't have all the time in the afternoon, but I don't think it's hurt anything," Morgan said.
Sydnee says there are some consolations to missing things at home. "Like this summer, I was traveling everywhere, all over the country. So I didn't really have that much of a chance to stay at home and hang out with my friends at school, but I have so many friends in the circuits."
The girls think about going pro, but at least two of the four want to go to college.
Sydnee, who has been offered a full-ride scholarship to UCLA, says, "I am planning to go pro, but I don't think anytime soon. I think I would like to get a few years of college under my belt."
Taylore also wants a college education.
As a high school freshman, Jane has time to decide. "I'm just starting high school, but it just all depends. If I can be able to dominate in junior and amateur golf, I think, 'Why not go pro?' "
As U.S. amateur champion, Morgan is preparing for a run at the pro circuit. She has accepted an invitation to play in the Safeway International LPGA tournament in Phoenix in March. Although she will still be 17, she has received an exemption.
Morgan knows the competition is tough at the pro level, and she hopes that she's ready for it when she turns 18 in May.
"I hope that I continue to improve and that I continue to get better and hopefully . . . I can get to the point where I can dominate. But I think it's going to be very difficult, and I sure hope I haven't peaked out yet," she said.
Do any of the local teens who participated in the clinic see a future in golf? Not really.
"I think it'd be a little bit arrogant to plan on being a professional golfer," said Robert Silver, 12, Carmel, "but if I had the opportunity to become better in the sport, then I'd definitely take it."
ASSISTANT EDITOR: Lauren Bruns, 14
REPORTERS: Justin Byers, 13, and Steven Thompson, 14.