Wellesley College grad on 'Big Break'
Susan Choi never played competitive golf until she was a senior in high school.
Now, as a 23-year-old, the former Wellesley College star is appearing on the Golf Channel's "Big Break: Ka'anapali," has turned professional, and is competing on the LPGA's Futures Tour.
"I'm a string bean at 115 pounds and I usually get outdriven, so I'm working on strength and conditioning," said Choi, who is spending time in Orlando, Fla., working with Bill McInerney Jr., her instructor for the past four years. McInerney was also the head coach at Wellesley for four years, including Choi's final three seasons.
"I must burn off everything I eat because I won a hot dog eating contest in high school."
Choi, a two-time All-American at Wellesley, also won $600 when she collected her first paycheck for finishing third at a Suncoast Series minitour event.
"That was my first goal as a pro," said Choi, who had two first-place finishes on the Suncoast Tour in Florida as an amateur and is a past winner at the Boston Men's and Women's Amateur tournaments.
McInerney, director of instruction at the McGolf Learning Center in Dedham, arranged for Choi's appearance on "Big Break," a weekly series that uses skills competitions to narrow the starting field of 12 contestants, with the prizes including an LPGA tournament slot for the big winner. Taped in December in Hawaii, the series aired its second episode Tuesday at 10 p.m. The results of each week's competition are confidential until the show is aired.
The show's format "was a good fit because I've always worked hard on my skill shots, especially my short game," said Choi, who overcame a wrist injury to participate in "Big Break."
Although she qualified for the Futures Tour, Choi does not have full exempt status. She hopes a good showing in this season's tournaments will improve her ranking. The top five money winners on the Futures circuit move up to the LPGA Tour.
"My wrist is healed and I'm ready to go," said Choi, a native of Long Island in New York, who plans to attend the LPGA Tour's qualifying school in November. "I'm feeling really good about my swing; now I also have to focus on the mental side of the game."
Said McInerney: "Susan is ahead of schedule. She has the talent to succeed. All she needs is the experience."
Bentley College second baseman Christine D'Amico, a graduate of Shrewsbury High, was named Northeast-10 Conference Softball Freshman of the Week after she hit .419 over 10 games. D'Amico also handled 35 of 36 chances in the field.
Former Nipmuc Regional High head football coach Kevin Gilmartin, an assistant last season at Nichols College, has been hired as offensive coordinator at Mount Ida College, joining new head coach and former Nichols assistant Mike Landers. A standout player at Williams College, Gilmartin also coached at Hofstra and Hamilton.
Bentley College freshman Corinne Flieger, a graduate of Hopkinton High, broke her own outdoor record at the Waltham school in the 100-meter hurdles with a 15.80 time at the MIT Invitational.
Medway's Melissa Scata, a senior on the Keene State College softball team, set a school record when she belted her 25th career home run in a victory over UMass-Dartmouth.
Marvin Pave can be reached at 508-820-4223 or marvin.pave@rcn.com.
