One glimpse at the remarkable accomplishments of Miki Ueoka over the past four years is all it takes for a parent to see what is possible with junior golf.

The 2007 Kauai High valedictorian just graduated from the University of Santa Clara with three collegiate victories, four all-conference honors and, oh yeah, a degree in biochemistry with a minor in public health science.

Ueoka’s next move is medical school, but first she plans to move back to Hawaii and save some money.

Make that save more money.

Golf gave Ueoka and her family — father Richard played football for the University of Hawaii in the ’50s — the freedom to focus on everything about college but how they could afford it.

There are at least 25 more Hawaii State Junior Golf Association members headed to collegiate programs on golf scholarships this fall, and four more orally committed to ranked teams for 2012.

Ueoka wishes them luck, and warm weather. She jokes that it was the toughest part of the transition for a kid from Hawaii who already “had a sense for what’s out there” after traveling to places like Florida, Oklahoma and Washington for junior golf tournaments.

“It’s cold and it’s not just cold, you have to wear a bunch of clothes,” Ueoka said. “One of the first things I noticed was how people swing in a jacket. Hawaii people can’t swing in wet jackets. Our shirt just gets wet because it’s hot.”

Seriously, Ueoka can wrap up her past four years in one word: balance.

She had her eyes on med school early. Golf was always on her mind, but toward the back.

“I definitely wanted to compete, give myself the best opportunities I could,” she said. “I chose Santa Clara because I felt I would have the ability to get a degree in biochem, get out in four years and still compete in competitive tournaments. I looked at that balance going in. Golf was not a means to get there, but it was definitely a consideration. I didn’t want to just go and golf. I had a broader picture.”

Balance was a necessity from the beginning. She graduated with a GPA of 3.5-plus in a demanding major while managing a demanding practice schedule. For Ueoka, so outgoing the HSJGA had her host a marketing video before she left, it was just as critical to succeed socially and deal with “all the things people don’t necessarily tell you about” when you go to college.

She thrived in the independent atmosphere, studied her okole off, and learned a lot about time management.

“The biggest thing basically is knowing how to allocate your time, being smart about it,” Ueoka said. “My freshman year I was not tempted to go out. I had to buckle down. I had labs twice a week. I really needed to be smart about how I studied, how I practiced and how I spent the rest of my time.”

Clearly, whatever she did worked.