For all-star golfer, secret’s in her head

Fear can be a powerful motivator. Consider the case of Deer Park High School senior golfer Rachel McNeil, who came to the Stags with a keen interest in basketball and volleyball and turned into an all-star golfer.

“After basketball season my freshman year, I was planning to go out for track,” she said recently, “but my cousin more or less threatened me and told me I needed to play golf instead. I hadn’t picked up a club since I took lessons in the fourth grade, but I decided to listen to him.”

The eventual result, after a rocky start, was an all-Great Northern League selection last spring as McNeil has improved her scores by 35-40 strokes during the past three years, into the mid-90s.

“The first few times, I kept asking myself why I wasn’t better, especially because one of my bestfriends was playing at No. 1. But after one of our assistant coaches gave me a couple swing tips, I started improving a lot.

“I think the main reason for my improvement is mental more than physical, though. I began to believe in myself more, and sticking with it has taught me to work hard, be patient and be willing to step out of the box.”

Coach Darren Snyder, who also coached her cousin, is happy to have the 6-foot-1 McNeil on his squad.

“Rachel is a great athlete and a great kid, always does what I ask her to do. She came in not knowing a thing about the game and as a very competitive person, she wanted to be good right away. This experience has really taught her that sometimes success depends upon patience.

“That’s especially true in golf, where you can have the best round of your life one day, and the worst round the next day.”

McNeil, a three-year varsity basketball player, will move on to yet another new sport next fall when she plans to walk on in crew at Washington State University.

“They sent a letter to school asking about tall, athletic girls, and my counselor recommended me. I’ll be doing some mini-camps during the summer and then walking on in the fall.”