RecruitPKB: Let’s Talk About Goal Setting

Goal setting is an important step in the process of becoming the best junior and collegiate golfer you can be. But goal setting and the process of achieving them have been up for a lot of debate over the years. So I wanted to take the next couple of weeks to share my thoughts on setting goals and how I've learned to approach this process in my own life now in comparison to during my golf career. For starters, it starts with setting goals for yourself, not for anyone else. As a young athlete, I do believe your parents, coaches, and other adults are the best resources for advice and support on setting the right goals. Many times they do have a better understanding of what success looks like in the future and that the process isn't always going to be fun and games. They know that [...]

By |2018-10-04T11:15:34-04:00October 4th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Club Golf in College

The goal for most young female golfers is to move on to play varsity golf in college, however, that plan doesn't always work out when the school of your choice and the golf program's needs for a player like yourself don't match up. If this does happen to you, it doesn't mean you have to give up playing golf once you get to college. The statistics on playing varsity golf in college aren’t exactly optimistic. According to the NCAA, only 2% of male high school golfers will play Division 1, and 3% for females. For students that don’t go to Division 1 though, there’s still plenty of options available. Division 2, Division 3, NAIA, NJCAA, as well as several smaller leagues provide a competitive outlet for students. One option that is often overlooked is non-varsity college golf. Club golf has grown tremendously in the last couple years [...]

By |2018-09-19T20:12:22-04:00September 19th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Trying Out Competitive Golf Again

For those who may follow my social media (@bjacksongolf) you probably saw that I decided to play some competitive golf again for the first time in almost 8 years. My last full season was in 2009 where I played 11 LPGA Tour events that year and the rest on the Symetra Tour, then I only played a handful of events on the Symetra Tour in 2010 and officially gave up full time playing by 2011 so it has been quite a while since I played competitively. And within those 8 years since "retirement" I don't exactly play much golf period, except a few charity outings every year so this was quite the decision to play some competitive golf again. So for the last 4-5 weeks, I tried to commit some time each week to practicing and playing some rounds of golf. I switched my workouts from training [...]

By |2018-08-24T13:52:34-04:00August 16th, 2018|Player Performance Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Bad Attitude in College Recruiting

How much does a bad attitude affect a golfers chance for a scholarship? "Positive attitude is the number one thing I look for and a bad one is an instant radar killer. Have one and you’re off my radar immediately." - DI Women's Head Coach "Depends on the coach. Attitude might not affect scholarship but may affect how many options he/she has. A bad attitude usually reflects character, and character is the number one thing we look for in a recruit." DII Women's Head Coach I was recently asked this question on Instagram during a Q and A session so I reached out to a few coach friends of mine to see what they had to say. A bad attitude is definitely a consistent factor in a coaches "red flag" list. Keep in mind tho that all coaches do have different player styles that they like to see [...]

By |2018-07-26T11:53:53-04:00August 9th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Tournament Schedule

A very important step to remember is to email coaches with your upcoming schedule. Now that we are in full-time spring golf and the summer months are just around the corner it is a great time to do this. Coaches have no way of knowing where you will be playing unless you tell them. So, if you want them to come out and watch you play, make sure you let them know where you are going to be. Don't wait until the end of summer to send them your results, make the opportunity available for them to come out and watch you play. For 2019 recruits, coaches are able to reply to your emails so it may be a good question to ask if they plan to recruit at a tournament nearby that you are considering playing in. If you are a sophomore or younger you don't [...]

By |2018-04-05T11:30:43-04:00April 12th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Masters Takeaways

One of the best takeaways a young player can get from Masters week is to watch the Masters on the Range coverage. If you don't get a chance to watch, here are a few takeaways from how the pros warm up: 📌 Most aren’t going to get too technical the morning of a tournament round 📌 They focus on balance and tempo with their swings 📌 They give themselves different lies around the practice greens 📌 They focus on putting fundamentals, usually with a training aid or some tees 📌 They take their time and focus on every shot they hit 📌 They aren’t rushed or anxious Your warmup is NEVER the time to get frustrated or in your head about not hitting it perfect or not feeling 100% confident. It’s the time to accept what is going on that day, trust your abilities and not fight [...]

By |2018-04-05T11:35:10-04:00April 5th, 2018|Player Performance Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Parent Role and the Coaches

This week's "Parent Role in the College Recruiting Process" will cover a parent's role with college coaches. The relationship a parent builds with a college coach through the process can have a major influence on the coach's decision. Below are a few areas to be aware of as a parent so that you as well can make the best impression on your daughter's future coach. Say hi to coaches at tournaments but don't approach them: Because recruiting rules can vary depending on a player's grad year, always stick to the side of caution when you see a coach at tournaments. Be friendly and say hi but try to allow them to begin a conversation if they choose to. Some coaches are more talkative and will carry on conversations with parents, others just want to be left to themselves so they can watch the players and evaluate. The same [...]

By |2018-03-22T16:12:41-04:00March 22nd, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: College Tournaments

This is an assignment that I can not emphasize the importance of enough, go watch college golf tournaments. Some teams have already played 2 or 3 tournaments but there are some great opportunities ahead to plan a trip to a college golf tournament. If you are in the midst of the process and talking with several coaches then you need to go watch them "in action". It is one thing to sit across the desk from a coach and ask questions, maybe even chat by phone and get to know each other, but you MUST get a better feel for how they are when they are coaching during a tournament. There are a lot of different coaching styles and not all are going to be ideal to your personality. If you get the chance to watch, pay close attention to how they interact [...]

By |2019-03-22T09:25:35-04:00March 7th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: What NOT to do with an intro email

This past week I received a message from a college coach who wanted to share an email she had received. This email had so many things wrong with it that she wanted to make sure others knew and didn't make similar mistakes. I won't share the actual email but I do want to list out the mistakes that both myself and the coach concluded were necessary to address. Keep in mind this email was considered an "introductory email" where you are trying to make the best impression on a coach. The email was written and sent by the parent and not the player, a major turnoff to most all college coaches The email was typed on a phone and not a computer, leading to numerous formatting, grammatical and spelling errors. Simple words like "you" and "and" were shortened to "u" and "n" The very first sentence addressed [...]

By |2018-02-15T12:27:52-05:00February 15th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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RecruitPKB: Include Your References

"This is frustrating.  A request with no opportunity to respond. It would be good if you could do a blog to your mailing list and tell kids to be specific about times, places, (swing) coach's numbers for responses and figure out whether or not the coach is interested....... By the way, I think it's rude if I just no-show a kid and I wouldn't do that if it was possible to avoid it, but this makes it tough to avoid.  My goal is to treat all players with dignity and kindness whether or not we are interested or not." This past week a college coach at a top 75 ranked DI program forwarded an email to me that she received from a 2020 recruit. She thought if I shared why the email frustrated her as a coach it might help others not make the same mistake. The [...]

By |2018-01-26T12:28:34-05:00January 26th, 2018|College Recruiting Articles|0 Comments
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