RecruitPKB: Don’t Panic but Be Proactive

"Just wanted to let you know that for 2020 we have one verbal commitment and another offer out.  Assuming that gets accepted we would only have walk-on opportunities available for 2020." - Top 25 Ranked DI Women's Golf Program In consulting my 2020 recruits, I have received several responses like this from coaches who are already wrapping up their 2020 recruiting class, during the fall of a recruit's sophomore year.  I know it's hard to believe and part of me doesn't like to share this because I know it makes players panic and stresses them out. But I have also seen the lack of knowledge and understanding of the reality of the recruiting process and they find out this information too late. Thankfully on a positive note, I have also had several 2018 recruits, current seniors, who have just wrapped up their recruiting process by making their decision in [...]

By |2017-10-13T21:50:40-04:00October 12th, 2017|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments

RecruitPKB: Q and A with UNCG Coach

Recruit PKB College Consultant recently asked the UNCG Head Women's Golf Coach Janell Howland to answer a few questions about her recruiting and coaching philosophy. What is your own coaching philosophy?  People first, Students second, Golfers third.  Everything we do in our program revolves around those 3 things, in that order.   What do you love about being a college coach?  Seeing personal growth from each girl from the time they get to me until the time they graduate.   What do you look for with a resume and swing video?  Grades, Golf Scores from multiple years to see how they are trending, Extra activities that they are involved in. I want to see an all-around person as well as an athlete.   What are some good questions you ask players on visits to help determine the best fit?  What size of school are they looking for?  What size of team are [...]

By |2017-09-25T20:46:18-04:00September 28th, 2017|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments

RecruitPKB: Ceiling of Improvement

"If you don't do the things you're not good at then you'll never get better" This doesn't just mean practicing or working on those things a little to say you did it, it means dedicating time to actually get better at those things! - One of the earlier years of being on Symetra tour, my college boyfriend, who was a pretty good golfer, was caddying for me and he noticed that I was having more longer irons into greens bc the courses were playing longer. But during my warm up and practice, I would only hit them about half as much as I did my shorter irons. - My 8 iron was my favorite club, it always had more wear on it than any other club in my bag!! I loved grooving it on the range shot after shot and I would get excited on the course when [...]

RecruitPKB: Team Roster

Seems pretty easy but it's surprising how little a recruit pays attention to the team roster. Here are a few tips on what to look for: 🔹 How many players are on the roster? 🔹 How many seniors would leave the year before you would join the team? 🔹 Did those seniors contribute to the team? 🔹 Are there international players on the team? 🔹 If so, what percentage of the team is international? 🔹 Are there more in-state or out of state players on the team? 🔹 What are the other junior golf bios of the players on the team? These are just a few general tips for what to pay attention to when looking at the team's roster. - While you can learn a lot from the roster there are also a lot of variables that you won't know, such as, how the scholarships are divided, if the program is fully funded [...]

By |2017-09-13T11:48:13-04:00August 10th, 2017|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments

RecruitPKB: College Coaches Gut Feeling

Last week I shared a Q and A that I asked the Georgia Southern Women's Golf Coach, Emily Kuhfeld, to submit for me. She shared some great answers so if you missed that please go check it out HERE. I was reading over her answers and there was one that stood out to me that I wanted to elaborate on a bit more for all of you.  When I asked Coach Kuhfeld about questions that she uses to help her determine if a player is a good fit or not this was her response "There is also a part of recruiting which is hard to explain; it is almost like a gut reaction to the player. I listen to myself on this, and what kind of overall feeling I get with the bond between myself and the recruit." This is probably one of the best ways to [...]

By |2017-09-13T11:48:13-04:00August 1st, 2017|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments

RecruitPKB: My Mom Wants to Share Her Side of the Story

My mom wanted to share her side of the story as she watched me grow up in the junior golf world, then move on to college and professional golf. She thought this might help a junior golf parent better understand the big picture of what junior golf and college golf is all about.   Brandi Jackson, I think it’s time for your Mom to speak up.  So, if you will, indulge me for a few minutes.   First, let me say how very proud I am of the professional that Brandi has become.  She pours her heart and soul into her business and everything that she does.  I see this more and more every day.  Quite often as we make plans for family trips, or even simply to meet her for dinner, we know that the plans have to be made around her schedule of meeting with [...]

By |2017-09-13T11:44:41-04:00July 8th, 2017|College Recruiting Articles|1 Comment

RecruitPKB: A College Player’s Perspective Part 2

Louise Oxner recently graduated from the University of Louisville where she played collegiate golf all 4 years. Louise played junior golf in SC and was a member of the PKBGT. I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to consult Louise on her college recruiting and we have maintained a friendship ever since. I sat down with Louise for lunch a couple of weeks ago while she was in town to catch up on her post-college plans. I also asked her to share some thoughts on her experience of playing college golf and what advice she would have for junior golfers going through the process. What did you learn the most about playing college golf? I have learned how to manage my time more efficiently and how to make better decisions on my own.  I definitely feel like I make better decisions on the golf course and [...]

By |2017-09-13T11:48:14-04:00June 14th, 2017|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments

RecruitPKB: A College Player’s Perspective

Last week I shared some insight from Howard Bertram, who's daughter Sarah played on the PKBGT, before playing college golf at Gardner-Webb University. I asked Sarah to share her thoughts on her college golf experience. What did you learn the most from playing college golf? Through golf, I learned to look beyond just the game itself. From my experience, I remember the van rides, silly trick shot sessions, and spending time with my teammates in countless hotel rooms more than actually playing golf. Though golf is important (it got me to where I am today), the lifelong friendships and memories I have made along the way are what I value the most. Looking back, the things that seem little at the time are actually the big things.   How was your school, coach, and team a good fit for you?  First and foremost, Gardner-Webb is a Christian [...]

By |2017-09-13T11:48:14-04:00June 8th, 2017|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments

RecruitPKB: A College Parent’s Perspective

I met Sarah Bertram and her father, Howard, during her junior year of high school. She had done a little work with the college recruiting process but had not gotten very far at that stage and she was one of those late arrivers to the game so we had a few things working against us. We did her evaluation, put her resume together and got going ASAP. After months of searching, emailing and visiting colleges she found her home at Gardner-Webb University, a DI school in Boiling Spring, NC with 2700 students. I was able to follow her college golf career, mostly through social media and her dad, which we all know social media can be a tad misleading at times when it comes to someone being happy or not. Thankfully, Sarah had an amazing 4 years of playing college golf! I asked her dad to share [...]

By |2017-09-13T11:48:14-04:00June 1st, 2017|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
Go to Top