CHILLIWACK, B.C. — Golf is hard. So are biochemistry and molecular biology. Now try balancing them all as a NCAA Division I athlete. That has been Rebecca Kim’s world the past three years at Oregon State University. And yes, it can be stressful at times, but the 21-year-old Surrey resident would not change a thing.
“It’s been amazing,” Kim said after opening the 121st playing of the B.C. Women’s Amateur Championship at Chilliwack Golf Club with a solid one-under 71. “I can’t praise my coaches and my teammates enough. Playing golf with a heavy major like biochemistry and molecular biology is only possible because of the cooperation of my coaches and my professors.”
Kim seems to be handling the balancing act that all student athletes face without any problems. She heads into her senior year at Oregon State with a grade-point average of 4.0. That’s right, three straight years of straight A's. Asked when she last had a B, Kim smiled and sheepishly replied: “I have to be honest with you. I don’t know that I’ve ever had a B in my life. I hate to be that person.”
Kim plans to go to medical school after graduating from Oregon State. It certainly doesn’t appear that her grades will hold her back. So is golf harder than biochemistry? “It depends on the day,” Kim said with a laugh.
“But I honestly think it is a good brain workout for me because in biochemistry, a lot of the time there’s a right answer. That’s the one thing I enjoy about school and my major, you get it right or you get it wrong. Out here on the course, it’s almost the opposite, right. There are different ways to play each shot. So it’s been a privilege to kind of exercise the creative side of my brain on the golf course and the more academic side in the classroom.”
Kim’s one-under 71, which featured three birdies and two bogeys, left her alone in second place heading into the second round of the 54-hole event. She’s four shots behind two-time defending champion Amy Lee of Langley.
In addition to her heavy-duty major, Kim is also pursuing a double-minor in chemistry and public health. She’s playing some tournament golf this summer and will also travel to Indianapolis next month for a NCAA Division I student athlete advisory committee conference. She said it will be a joy to play three rounds of competitive golf this week without having to worry about a paper that is due or an exam on the horizon. “I feel like I am on vacation,” she said with a laugh.
Kim, whose two younger sisters are also in the Chilliwack field, said college has been everything she had hoped for. “I cannot praise my experience enough,” she said. “It’s been such a joy.” Kim has battled hard to earn a place in Oregon State’s starting five and the Beavers made it all the way to the NCAA Championship tourney this past spring.
That made for a long season and Kim’s time management skills got a real workout. “We actually had a tournament this year during finals week,” Kim said. “So that was a tough trip. But everyone is in the same boat. I may have to study a little harder for certain things, but we all come off the golf course, we shower up and we go study. We have fun while we do it. There’s a lot of camaraderie.”
Like everyone else in the field, Kim is chasing Amy Lee, who is attempting to win her third straight B.C. Women’s Amateur. The 18-year-old had four birdies and an eagle as she began her title defence in fine fashion. Lee, who is off to the University of Texas this fall to begin her collegiate career, played in last month’s U.S. Women’s Open at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif.
She missed the cut, but collected some valuable experience and returned home with lots of great memories. She enjoyed every minute of it, but acknowledged feeling overwhelmed at times. “The number one thing was there were so many people,” she said. “So many spectators, rules officials and of course all those great players. It was like overwhelming, but I feel like I learned so much.”
Four players — Emma Kral of Victoria, Anna Wu of Victoria, Luna Lu of Burnaby and Jayla Kucy of Edmonton — are tied for third after opening with even-par 72s.
Along with the B.C. Women’s Amateur, the B.C. Mid-Amateur Championship for players aged 25 and older and a Mid-Master Championship for players 40 and over are also being contested at Chilliwack. Vancouver’s Nonie Marler, who opened with a one-over 73, has a one shot-lead over Taya Battistella of Burlington, Wash., in both of the Mid-Amateur and Mid-Master competitions.
Click HERE for complete first round scoring.