Photo by: Hailie Sandor
Practice Makes Perfect for Kuehn at North & South Amateur
7/19/2020 1:55:00 PM | Women's Golf
PINEHURST, N.C. – Wake Forest women's golfer Rachel Kuehn followed in her mother's footsteps at this year's Women's North & South Amateur, taking home the prestigious title in a playoff.
Her mother felt nothing but pride and love for her daughter.
"I am not a crier, but I just couldn't take it, I was beyond proud. I was so proud. I was so happy. There were just so many emotions I had been holding back all week and I just exploded with happiness for her. I cannot say how happy and proud I am for her," said Brenda Corrie-Kuehn, Wake Forest All-American and 16-time participant of the U.S. Women's Amateur.
But it was not an easy road to get to this moment. The Demon Deacons were the top team in the country when the rest of the spring season got canceled. And then the first half of summer amateur events was also canceled. It's been a long-awaited moment to be able to compete again, but once she was able to get out there, Rachel did not skip a beat. She won the Carolinas Four-Ball Women's Championship with partner Jensen Castle just a few weeks ago and is primed to make a run at the U.S. Women's Am the first week of August.
"Not being able to play in the spring and having everything canceled in the first half of summer definitely puts more weight on the opportunities we do get," said Kuehn. "Every tournament is important, but when you don't have as many opportunities, the ones you do get mean a lot more and feel just a little more important."
According to Wake head coach Kim Lewellen, this win was bound to happen.
"Rachel has been playing fantastic golf for the last year, so it's no surprise that she won. But it is especially special for her to win this event, with its rich tradition and being in her home state of North Carolina. What an outstanding memory for her to have," said Lewellen.
Kuehn's mother mentioned specifically Rachel's growth since getting to college. She got into junior golf on the later side and developed quickly in the beginning, plateaued a little bit throughout her junior career, but has become a different player since joining the ranks of college golf.
With Wake Forest at the top of the ACC and finishing as the top ranked team in the country, the expectation is high. But Kuehn has lived up to that expectation in not just her performance, but the way she carries herself. Her and her mom both know there is "on-the-course Rachel" and "off-the-course Rachel."
"I have seen Rachel grow as a person and a player exponentially since she started college. Just watching her play, she has a maturity out there that not a lot of people get. What I see in her is a tremendous amount of growth. She's here right now acting silly and having a good time, but she is very mature on the course," said mom.
And Rachel seconded that.
"I'm not one of those people that stays in the zone 100% of the time. There are definitely times to focus but you have moments where you can take a step back," said Kuehn. "In between shots and going hole-to-hole, you can let your mind wander and just take in the moment, but when you get to your ball you zone in and focus on your shot. I would mentally exhaust myself if I focused too much."
With the U.S. Women's Amateur just weeks away, Rachel's growth and maturity will only benefit her. According to mom, Rachel is more prepared for this U.S. Women's Am then she ever was.
Kuehn trusts her mom and her experience, and the pair often discuss her rounds on the way home. Rachel is well-aware of her mother's experiences and knowledge of the game, and the way she never sugarcoats anything. Mom was with her all week at Pinehurst as her biggest support and number one fan, even if she gave her a few more gray hairs. But she was able to detach herself in a way that Rachel sometimes can't. If Rachel gets caught up in the moment, her mom is there to give a more objective perspective, whether it be a mental component or a strategy play.
No one ever plays a perfect round of golf, so there is always something to learn, especially when you have someone like your mom there who may see things you don't, or see things differently than you do.
Kuehn's caddie, Keith Silva, was also a staple of her week at Pinehurst. One of the best caddies around, Kuehn was able to get paired up with him through a family friend. She is a firm believer in everything happening for a reason, and this is a prime example.
"Everyone said all week I had the best caddy and I just kind of smiled and went with it. But at the end of the week I can tell you it is 100 percent true. He knows the course like the back of his hand. If we disagreed on something, I trusted him more than I trusted myself. It became more of a 'what do I do' rather than 'this is what I want to do, what do you think?' which is huge for me, I am a stubborn person. It's fun to see how God works though because it worked out so well."
And by 'so well', she means winning the tournament on the 19th hole with the best caddy, in her home state, and with her mom watching. But none of that was going through her head as she approached her 4.5-foot putt to win. She knew exactly what she needed to do, and it wasn't because of her caddy or her mom.
Kuehn has honed her putting skills over the past few months with her favorite drill, the 'Rachel-torture drill' as Wake Forest assistant coach Ryan Potter calls it. The drill is set up with tees aligned in north, south, east, and west directions around the cup and distanced at three feet, four feet, five feet, and six feet out in each direction creating 16 different putts. To complete the drill, you have to make 16 putts in a row from three feet, then 12 in a row from four feet, eight in a row from five feet, and four in a row from six feet. Then you have to go around and make all 16 putts in a row.
Torture may be an understatement, but Rachel was well-prepared for this moment because of it.
"I'm sitting on the playoff hole in the final match with a 4.5-footer to win. The only thing that was running through my head was 'this is the drill. This is the putt. This is what it's been for.' Everyone gives me a hard time because I do it so much. But I knew I had done this thousands of times before and I'm just thankful I put a good stroke on it."
And that one stroke, perfected by that one drill thousands of times over, was the winning moment she's been preparing for.
Her mother felt nothing but pride and love for her daughter.
"I am not a crier, but I just couldn't take it, I was beyond proud. I was so proud. I was so happy. There were just so many emotions I had been holding back all week and I just exploded with happiness for her. I cannot say how happy and proud I am for her," said Brenda Corrie-Kuehn, Wake Forest All-American and 16-time participant of the U.S. Women's Amateur.
But it was not an easy road to get to this moment. The Demon Deacons were the top team in the country when the rest of the spring season got canceled. And then the first half of summer amateur events was also canceled. It's been a long-awaited moment to be able to compete again, but once she was able to get out there, Rachel did not skip a beat. She won the Carolinas Four-Ball Women's Championship with partner Jensen Castle just a few weeks ago and is primed to make a run at the U.S. Women's Am the first week of August.
"Not being able to play in the spring and having everything canceled in the first half of summer definitely puts more weight on the opportunities we do get," said Kuehn. "Every tournament is important, but when you don't have as many opportunities, the ones you do get mean a lot more and feel just a little more important."
According to Wake head coach Kim Lewellen, this win was bound to happen.
"Rachel has been playing fantastic golf for the last year, so it's no surprise that she won. But it is especially special for her to win this event, with its rich tradition and being in her home state of North Carolina. What an outstanding memory for her to have," said Lewellen.
Kuehn's mother mentioned specifically Rachel's growth since getting to college. She got into junior golf on the later side and developed quickly in the beginning, plateaued a little bit throughout her junior career, but has become a different player since joining the ranks of college golf.
With Wake Forest at the top of the ACC and finishing as the top ranked team in the country, the expectation is high. But Kuehn has lived up to that expectation in not just her performance, but the way she carries herself. Her and her mom both know there is "on-the-course Rachel" and "off-the-course Rachel."
"I have seen Rachel grow as a person and a player exponentially since she started college. Just watching her play, she has a maturity out there that not a lot of people get. What I see in her is a tremendous amount of growth. She's here right now acting silly and having a good time, but she is very mature on the course," said mom.
And Rachel seconded that.
"I'm not one of those people that stays in the zone 100% of the time. There are definitely times to focus but you have moments where you can take a step back," said Kuehn. "In between shots and going hole-to-hole, you can let your mind wander and just take in the moment, but when you get to your ball you zone in and focus on your shot. I would mentally exhaust myself if I focused too much."
With the U.S. Women's Amateur just weeks away, Rachel's growth and maturity will only benefit her. According to mom, Rachel is more prepared for this U.S. Women's Am then she ever was.
Kuehn trusts her mom and her experience, and the pair often discuss her rounds on the way home. Rachel is well-aware of her mother's experiences and knowledge of the game, and the way she never sugarcoats anything. Mom was with her all week at Pinehurst as her biggest support and number one fan, even if she gave her a few more gray hairs. But she was able to detach herself in a way that Rachel sometimes can't. If Rachel gets caught up in the moment, her mom is there to give a more objective perspective, whether it be a mental component or a strategy play.
No one ever plays a perfect round of golf, so there is always something to learn, especially when you have someone like your mom there who may see things you don't, or see things differently than you do.
Kuehn's caddie, Keith Silva, was also a staple of her week at Pinehurst. One of the best caddies around, Kuehn was able to get paired up with him through a family friend. She is a firm believer in everything happening for a reason, and this is a prime example.
"Everyone said all week I had the best caddy and I just kind of smiled and went with it. But at the end of the week I can tell you it is 100 percent true. He knows the course like the back of his hand. If we disagreed on something, I trusted him more than I trusted myself. It became more of a 'what do I do' rather than 'this is what I want to do, what do you think?' which is huge for me, I am a stubborn person. It's fun to see how God works though because it worked out so well."
And by 'so well', she means winning the tournament on the 19th hole with the best caddy, in her home state, and with her mom watching. But none of that was going through her head as she approached her 4.5-foot putt to win. She knew exactly what she needed to do, and it wasn't because of her caddy or her mom.
Kuehn has honed her putting skills over the past few months with her favorite drill, the 'Rachel-torture drill' as Wake Forest assistant coach Ryan Potter calls it. The drill is set up with tees aligned in north, south, east, and west directions around the cup and distanced at three feet, four feet, five feet, and six feet out in each direction creating 16 different putts. To complete the drill, you have to make 16 putts in a row from three feet, then 12 in a row from four feet, eight in a row from five feet, and four in a row from six feet. Then you have to go around and make all 16 putts in a row.
Torture may be an understatement, but Rachel was well-prepared for this moment because of it.
"I'm sitting on the playoff hole in the final match with a 4.5-footer to win. The only thing that was running through my head was 'this is the drill. This is the putt. This is what it's been for.' Everyone gives me a hard time because I do it so much. But I knew I had done this thousands of times before and I'm just thankful I put a good stroke on it."
And that one stroke, perfected by that one drill thousands of times over, was the winning moment she's been preparing for.
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