When you can drive a golf ball 240 yards, shoot consistently in the low 70s and stay cool as Kapalua trade in the heat of back-nine battle, there’s not a lot of ambiguity about what is expected of you.
So, yes, Saint Francis senior Hansol Koo will indeed play golf in college. A $20,000 scholarship to Portland State University will see to that.
And, indeed, Koo intends to pursue a career as a professional golfer once she’s ready.
But there’s more to Koo than all of that. Not that anybody asks.
Consider:
Koo enjoys school and excels at math.
Before she took up golf at age 12, she was a swimmer.
Her favorite way to unwind after a long day of school and practice is to listen to K-pop or watch Korean dramas. ("On Air" is a particular favorite.)
Koo intends to study psychology in college in hopes of one day becoming a sports psychologist.
So there. It’s not all about golf.
Except when it is.
Born and raised in Seoul, Koo came to the game relatively late for a prospective pro but developed quickly thanks to daily instruction and practice.
Still, Koo’s parents wanted her to develop as a complete person, something that wasn’t going to be easy in their golf-crazy home country.
"In Korea I’d have to choose between golf and education," Koo said. "We moved here because my parents wanted me to have both."
With her father still working in the construction industry in Korea, Koo and her mother came to Hawaii when Koo was in the eighth grade. Koo obtained permanent residency in 2012.
At Saint Francis, Koo enjoys life as a normal teenager. On the course, Koo continues to discover the ways in which her special talents can broaden her world.
Last year, Koo placed fourth at the Hawaii State Women’s Amateur Stroke Play Championship, sixth at the AJGA Bob Jones Junior Championship in Yorba Linda, Calif., and 17th at the AJGA Junior at Centennial in Medford, Ore. She also qualified for the 2013 USGA Women’s State Team.
"Through golf I can travel to different places, meet different kinds of people and learn about various cultures," Koo says.
Much ado: Congratulations to 14-year-old Ari Dalbert of Waianae ("Teen infuses power and life in Shakespeare characters," Feb. 15), who represented Hawaii at this month’s English-Speaking Union National Shakespeare Competition in New York City. Dalbert’s impressive performance on the Lincoln Center Theater stage earned him recognition as one of 10 finalists out of a field of 58 talented actors.
Reach Michael Tsai at mtsai@staradvertiser.com.
