The most decorated golfer in Big Sky history
Eric Gallo - April 24th, 2008When her career as a Lumberjack is over, senior golfer Sophia Choi will be remembered as the most decorated golfer in not only NAU history, but also Big Sky Conference history.
”It has been a great experience at NAU and I have met a lot of great people,” Choi said. “I just came up here to play and have fun, and I never expected to break these records and league histories.”
One of Choi’s main goals coming into the Lumberjack program was to grow as a person.
“My main goal was to finish my academics and learn more about myself through golf, so it was a whole self-growth process, and I feel like I have accomplished that,” Choi said.
Choi was recently named the Big Sky Player of the Year for the third time in her career. She is the first golfer in Big Sky history to win the award three times. Choi was also named to the All-Conference team for the fourth consecutive season; she is the third player in league history to accomplish that feat.
“I definitely knew her name and who she was when I researched this job,” said head coach Brad Bedortha. “She is well respected as a golfer and a person. She has been awesome. I wish I had her for three more years.”
Bedortha said one of Sophia’s biggest strengths on the course is how she sends the ball into the air.
“Her ball striking is probably her biggest strength,“ Bedortha said.
This season, Choi has played in nine tournaments and has led the Lumberjacks in scoring for seven of them. She claimed a victory in the La Quinta Inn & Suites Mt. Shootout, posting rounds of 76 and 75. Choi leads the team in top-10 finishes with six as well as top-20 finishes with seven. Choi is also the only Lumberjack golfer this season to post rounds of even or under par, which she has done twice this season. So far this season Choi has a round average of 75.8 with an 18 hole low of 69.
Choi and her teammates also had to go through a coaching change.
“This season we went through a period of time where we did not have a coach, but we used each other as a crutch and was a great bonding experience,” Choi said. “It was an adjustment because Brad has different philosophies on the game than our previous coach.”
For her career, Choi has posted nine rounds of even or under par. She has 16 top-10 finishes, as well as 25 top-20 finishes. Choi also has victories in the 2006 Bobcat Desert Classic and the 2005 Big Sky Conference Championships. Choi posted a career best of 69 in the 2008 NCAA West Regional Preview a few weeks ago.
While Choi has been racking up the conference awards, her mom’s allergy to grass keeps her from watching her daughter on the course.
“It is funny because she has never seen me play before. She watched me play half a hole once, but she was sneezing so much that she had to go to the pro shop and wait for me to get done,” Choi said. “She has always been my No. 1 fan. She has been there to help with the psychological aspect outside of the course. She was always there to reassure me after a bad day and I would go out and have a good day the next.”
Choi has also been a leader for the Lumberjacks as one of three upperclassmen on the golf team.
“The young golfers on the team are just like sponges and are willing to learn, so that makes a huge difference,” Choi said. “I would hope that by leading by example the younger golfers can absorb that and mimic that on their own, because everybody has their own strengths.”
Bedortha has also taken notice of Choi and her rapport with her teammates.
“Sophia is an open and bubbly person; she and her teammates get along really well,” Bedortha said. “She is usually just in the van chatting and having a good time. She is so nice and friendly on the course. I kinda wish she had that mean streak in her, but that just is not her.”
With her Lumberjack career coming to a close, Choi will be looking to perform well in the last tournaments of the year.
“She always plays hard, and that is why I give praise to her,” Bedortha said. “She competes all the time and never gives up on a round or herself.”
She might be nearing the end as a Lumberjack, but her academic career will not be over.
“I am going to be taking a year off before I go to graduate school. My degree is in audiology, so I am going to go to school for that so I can get a career in that,” Choi said. “People have asked me about golf as a career — maybe down the line, but for now I just want to get my schooling done.”
This week the Lumberjacks will compete in the Big Sky Championships. The Lumberjacks have finished second the past two seasons at the conference championships.