Contact: Ava Yurchison, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, 630-637-5302
(written by Emily Zadny, Student Sports Information Assistant)

Sept. 26, 2016- When her older brother started playing golf, Megan Kelly wanted a set of clubs of her own. Right away, he noticed her natural talent for the sport and took her under his wing, teaching her the ins and outs of the game.  

By her freshman year of high school, Kelly had landed herself a spot on the varsity squad. Now a senior on the North Central College women's golf team, she has flourished over the last four years, but not after facing some challenges along the way.  

"I used to be very nervous and anxious when I golfed to the point that I would play bad," she said. "One day, my high school coach sat me down and said, 'Megan, if you're nervous, it shows you care.' Since then I haven't been nervous about being nervous and now can channel those nerves into my swing and good energy. I'd say that would be a defining moment of when I started playing competitively and well." 

Kelly knew right away when it came time to start making college decisions that playing golf was definitely going to be a factor. The Geneva native had narrowed her choices down to a couple of schools with golf programs, but her visit to North Central and the connection with the team solidified her decision where she would spend the next four years.  

"When I visited North Central, I really liked [Coach Thompson] and the program—the girls made me feel so welcome! I knew I wanted to be involved in on-campus ministry and FOCUS, so those two things pulled me here." 

An economics major with an environmental studies minor, Kelly has embodied the student athlete lifestyle, earning three consecutive All-College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) Academic honors and holding a team-best stroke average of 83.8 through 11 rounds of 18-hole play in 2015. This season, she paces the Cardinals with an 84 stroke average going into the CCIW Championship on Oct. 6. 

Kelly's success parallels that of the team as a whole this season. The Cardinals placed third at their home invitational last Wednesday and have had four players place in the top ten, two in the top five, and one individual champion. 

"Our team is really dynamic: we have a lot of different personalities, which is awesome," said Kelly. "We are also strong-willed; everyone on the team has really strong work ethics, which helps us stay motivated.  

"Most importantly, we always have fun together," she said with a smile. "That's our main priority. It's great to play good golf but if we don't have fun then why are we doing it? We always have fun on the way to tournaments or on the course; if we see each other at different holes, we'll wave or do something crazy to loosen up a bit!" 

Staying loose and remaining calm on the course is something Kelly makes sure of before each tournament. Over the years, she has established a pre-game routine to put her at ease before she steps into the tee box. 

"I always make sure I have eight golf balls in my bag. I have to have my BMW ball mark from the BMW Championship on my cap— if I lose it I'm screwed," said Kelly. "I also pick a song at the beginning of the season and listen to it on the van while I put on my shoes. Usually, it's a Christian song to help me calm down and focus before I go out on the course." 

Kelly also remains calm balancing her hectic schedule of class, practice, extracurricular activities, and of course, Netflix time. When she's not golfing, Kelly is a member on the FOCUS executive board, a driver for the campus shuttle, and an avid fan of Parks and Rec and Madmen on Netflix. Being involved in multiple activities has helped her develop her time management and organizational skills, two things she is thankful for. 

"You just do it," said Kelly on the challenges of being a student athlete. "You have to manage your time, set side time for practice and studies. Sometimes you'll have to be good at multi tasking and juggling multiple things at once. In the beginning it can be over whelming but now I can't imagine doing it any other way!" 
Kelly is keeping her post-graduation options open, but would like to find herself back on the course one day playing a slightly different role: as a coach. With her final year of college golf coming to an end in the next few weeks, Kelly is ready to make it her best year yet. 

"I am going to miss literally everything—well, maybe not classes," said Kelly, reflecting back on her four years as a Cardinal. "Honestly, I'm just going to miss being on this team and playing golf competitively because it's my favorite thing to do. These friendships I have made here are indescribable and hard to come by. We're all really tight and always have fun when we are together. We have a really good dynamic on the team and that's my favorite thing." 

The Cardinals send the junior varsity squad to the Aurora University Fall Invitational on Monday. North Central will tee off as the hosts at the CCIW Championship Oct. 6-8 at Naperbrook Golf Course.