RecruitPKB: What I was surprised to learn through college golf

Recent Mercer University grad and golf alum, Jaelyn Tindal, shares her thoughts on what she was surprised to learn throughout her college golf experience. Jaelyn has also joined the Brandi Jackson Golf and RecruitPKB team as we continue to strive to provide education and guidance to the girls who are seeking to find their right college golf fit. As everyone knows, college is a time centered around personal growth and tremendous potential for learning. The entire experience presents a “sink or swim” opportunity for students to figure things out. Playing collegiate golf intensifies the need to learn, not only about the game, but also about one’s self. Beyond the standard lessons learned in college, such as how to manage time, improve study habits, or make responsible decisions, I was lucky to have learned so much more through my collegiate experience. “Fair is a place where pigs win [...]

By |2019-01-18T12:06:17-05:00January 18th, 2019|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Myth 5: There is plenty of scholarship money

Ok, so it's the myth of all myths in the college recruiting world, especially when it comes to women's scholarships. We have all seen the article floating around that there are hundreds of women's golf scholarships that go unused every year and there is so much money available for a girl who can play golf. After working in the college recruiting world for over 9 years now, I can attest to there definitely being truth behind that because I receive numerous messages from coaches that they still have scholarship money for girls as they near the end of that recruiting year (I received 3 just this past week). However, and a big HOWEVER, is that many times these programs with the scholarship money available aren't always the programs that the girls want for their college experience. They tend to be small/rural schools, or schools with lower ranked academics, [...]

By |2019-01-30T16:31:31-05:00January 10th, 2019|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Myth 4: I Can Beat Those Players

Probably one of the comments I receive most often from players and parents is “I can beat those players” when they look at the team’s roster and results. They see that some of the players have scores and averages that are higher than what they as a junior golfer are currently shooting. And while that is certainly the case many times and it will help you determine if the program is realistic or not, there are some factors to consider that make it not quite as easy to judge as you might think. There are many reasons why junior golf and college scores are not easily compared. 📌 Courses are longer 📌 Courses are tougher 📌 Tourneys are played in tougher weather during fall and spring 📌 You are competing against all new players who are all really good 📌 You have the added pressure of the [...]

By |2019-01-03T12:08:37-05:00January 3rd, 2019|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Lets Make 2019 Awesome

I hope you are having a wonderful holiday break so far. With the new year brings up the plans for everyone to set goals or make resolutions. While it's important to do that as well (and not just at the start of the year), I have been picking a word as my "word of the year" for the last few years. This past year my word was "create" which many times throughout the year I reminded myself of why I picked this word and how it related to my decisions and mindset in all areas of my life. This year my word is "focus". It came to me on my drive here to Pine Needles and to be honest I am not loving it but I just feel that it came to me for a reason so I am going to spend 2019 figuring out why. What [...]

By |2018-12-27T15:57:26-05:00December 27th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Happy Holidays

I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! It has been a pleasure to share insight about junior golf, college recruiting, and my own journey with you over the past year. This wraps up my 6th year as the RecruitPKB College Consultant and I look forward to another awesome year for the PKBGT, RecruitPKB, and the growth of girls golf in 2019!

By |2019-01-18T12:06:38-05:00December 20th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Myth 3: I am open to all opportunities to play college golf

Many players will say “yes I’m open to anywhere, I just want to play college golf.” But in reality, when it comes down to it they are often very picky about the factors they want and don’t want in choosing a school. Don’t get me wrong that is part of going thru this process is to figure those things out and find a school that fits you best. But when you take into account enrollment, academics, location, cost, team ranking, majors, and other factors a recruit can quickly go from “anywhere” to “nowhere”. It is certainly understandable and commendable to have certain criteria and expectations with your education. Many of you have worked extremely hard to earn good grades and accolades so don't feel pressured to sacrifice that if that is an important factor for your decision. Just keep in mind when it comes to recruiting the [...]

By |2018-12-15T13:34:49-05:00December 19th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Myth 2 The Coach Will Ask Me Lots Of Questions

The assumption, many times, is that a coach is going to ask you a lot of questions because you, as the recruit, are the one being “interviewed”. Don’t always assume that to be the case because many times a coach will expect the recruit to be prepared with questions to ask and may even expect the recruit to lead the conversation. I recently had a player experience this with an initial call with a coach who didn't ask her any questions and expected her to do all of the asking. Thankfully she was prepared with lots of great questions and kept the conversation going. In most cases, a coach does this just to see if you are prepared and able to show the initiative to ask your own questions, but in some cases, coaches will honestly just be kind of lazy and not willing to do their [...]

By |2018-11-29T11:29:48-05:00December 6th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Myth 1: Coaches Only Care About Scores

Yes, tournament scores are probably the biggest initial factor in determining a coach’s interest in a recruit, especially when they are just looking at a resume. In order for a coach to take the time to learn more about a recruit their tournament scores (not handicap and not high school scores) typically need to fit in a particular range. The next important numbers for a coach to check, especially for selective and very selective academic schools, are your GPA and test scores. From there coaches have their own way of deciding what sparks their interest, it could be the swing video, a well-written intro email, a follow-up phone call from the recruit, Trackman/Flightscope numbers, a recruit who has played other sports, or the source of the referral for that recruit. Obviously, the coach is going to want to see a recruit play but many of these factors [...]

By |2018-11-29T11:11:05-05:00November 29th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Why Parents Shouldn’t Write Emails

While I know it may be tough as a parent to want to help your son or daughter through this process to make sure they get everything done in a timely manner, it is very important that players write ALL of their emails. I know their schedules can get really busy and recruiting tasks may get put aside for school work and practice, but parents writing emails for the recruit is a major red flag among the college coaches. There are several reasons that it is important for the player to write the emails: 🚩 Once the coach meets or talks to the player and their language and ability to speak doesn’t match up to their emails then a coach is going to see through it. 🚩 The player needs to learn the responsibility of keeping up with the emails and replying in a timely manner, a [...]

By |2018-11-19T16:59:13-05:00November 23rd, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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Recruit PKB: Behind in the Process

One of the hardest parts of my job is talking with families who have gotten behind in the process and realize they have missed out on a lot of opportunities. They see other players taking visits and committing to schools while they struggle to get coaches to reply to emails. Many times these are players who are just as good as the ones getting all of the opportunities. It's tough to hear these stories of players who really want to play in college but struggle to find somewhere to play. If you're not one of the top 5 players in your recruiting class in your state then the process can quickly pass you by. You must be the one recruiting the coaches and not waiting for them to recruit you. Once the thought of playing college golf comes into the equation you need to set some goals [...]

By |2018-11-07T17:03:42-05:00November 7th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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