SE: Isaac Enjoying Busy Summer Highlighted by Big 12 SAAC Honor, Qualifying for U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship
Aug 06, 2018 | Women's Golf, Sports Extra
By Corbin McGuire
Reid Isaac's summer has been slightly busier than she had initially planned. And the K-State women's golf sophomore already had a pair of tournaments, a few one-day qualifiers and summer classes on her schedule.
Isaac's not complaining about it — quite the opposite. That's because her hectic summer stems from a pair of positive achievements. First, becoming one of K-State's two Big 12 Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) representatives and, second, qualifying for the U.S. Women's Amateur Championship.
"I've been super busy, taking classes and practicing and all these opportunities that have all come from going to K-State," Isaac said. "It's been busy but exciting."
In terms of the Big 12 SAAC honor, Isaac joined K-State baseball senior Brogan Heinen and replaced Krista Haddock after the Wildcat soccer senior earned one of three conference positions in the autonomy governance structure.
When the position opened and K-State academic counselor Marissa Edwards informed Isaac she was selected to fill the spot, the Wildcat golfer said it was "such a great moment for me and a great opportunity."
One part of the new opportunity included traveling with Heinen and Haddock to Irving, Texas, for the conference's annual SAAC meeting on July 27-29. There, Isaac said she soaked up a ton of new information from Big 12 administrators on everything from student-athletes' rights, NCAA rules and mental health. She also met the 21 other representatives from the rest of the conference schools and networked with former Big 12 student-athletes whom are thriving in their professional careers.
Her biggest takeaways?
"Probably that leadership is so important and to speak up as a student-athlete," she said. "The administration wants to know what we think and how we feel. Our voice matters."
The only true sophomore to attend the event, Isaac said the experience reinforced her original motivation for getting involved with SAAC so early in her K-State career.
"I'm really big on planning for my future and taking steps that will benefit me later in life, not just during college but after it, in the process of finding a job. I think this is an awesome thing for my resume but also to learn a lot. There's a lot of networking that's involved with Big 12 SAAC, so getting to meet different employers and see what they're looking for is an important thing to me," she said. "It's a big deal. I really enjoy representing K-State in everything that I do, so I think it was such a great opportunity to show up and represent K-State in the best way possible."
Isaac looks to do the same at the U.S. Amateur Championship at the Golf Club of Tennessee in Kingston Springs, Tennessee.
The Montgomery, Texas, native qualified for the prestigious seven-day event, which begins Monday, by posting an even-par 71 to tie for third at a regional qualifying event on July 2, at the Sweetwater Country Club in Houston, Texas.
"I'm really excited," Isaac, the first Wildcat to qualify for the event since Gianna Misenhelter did in 2011, said. "It's a big deal to even qualify but to go out there and represent my school, show everyone what K-State's about and hold myself to a high standard is really exciting."
Isaac said she credits how she earned the opportunity to her first year at K-State.
In the one-round qualifier, she followed a double-bogey with two birdies in her final 10 holes to be among the top six to qualify. Earlier in the summer at the Texas Women's Stroke Play Championship, Isaac bounced back from a 4-over par 76 to start the event by shooting a 72 and a 70 in the final two rounds to finish in the top five.
"I definitely think the coaching was a big part of why I've improved so much since coming to K-State," she said. "We talk a lot about mental game and that's something that's really improved for me, but also just the routine and the practice that we do is huge for my game."
Now, Isaac faces one of the toughest fields yet. Additionally, the U.S. Amateur's format — 36 holes of stroke play, with the top 64 scores advancing to a match play bracket — is unique. It's not completely foreign to Isaac, however.
"I played in the U.S. Girls (Junior Championship) two summers ago and I did not make match play, so that is definitely one of my goals. My focus is just to play well, set the tone for going into the fall," she said, with K-State's first fall tournament set for September 15-16 in East Lansing, Michigan. "I know our season kicks off pretty early, so I hope I can keep the momentum from the summer going into the fall."
Reid Isaac's summer has been slightly busier than she had initially planned. And the K-State women's golf sophomore already had a pair of tournaments, a few one-day qualifiers and summer classes on her schedule.
Isaac's not complaining about it — quite the opposite. That's because her hectic summer stems from a pair of positive achievements. First, becoming one of K-State's two Big 12 Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) representatives and, second, qualifying for the U.S. Women's Amateur Championship.
"I've been super busy, taking classes and practicing and all these opportunities that have all come from going to K-State," Isaac said. "It's been busy but exciting."
In terms of the Big 12 SAAC honor, Isaac joined K-State baseball senior Brogan Heinen and replaced Krista Haddock after the Wildcat soccer senior earned one of three conference positions in the autonomy governance structure.
When the position opened and K-State academic counselor Marissa Edwards informed Isaac she was selected to fill the spot, the Wildcat golfer said it was "such a great moment for me and a great opportunity."
One part of the new opportunity included traveling with Heinen and Haddock to Irving, Texas, for the conference's annual SAAC meeting on July 27-29. There, Isaac said she soaked up a ton of new information from Big 12 administrators on everything from student-athletes' rights, NCAA rules and mental health. She also met the 21 other representatives from the rest of the conference schools and networked with former Big 12 student-athletes whom are thriving in their professional careers.
Her biggest takeaways?
"Probably that leadership is so important and to speak up as a student-athlete," she said. "The administration wants to know what we think and how we feel. Our voice matters."
The only true sophomore to attend the event, Isaac said the experience reinforced her original motivation for getting involved with SAAC so early in her K-State career.
"I'm really big on planning for my future and taking steps that will benefit me later in life, not just during college but after it, in the process of finding a job. I think this is an awesome thing for my resume but also to learn a lot. There's a lot of networking that's involved with Big 12 SAAC, so getting to meet different employers and see what they're looking for is an important thing to me," she said. "It's a big deal. I really enjoy representing K-State in everything that I do, so I think it was such a great opportunity to show up and represent K-State in the best way possible."
Isaac looks to do the same at the U.S. Amateur Championship at the Golf Club of Tennessee in Kingston Springs, Tennessee.
The Montgomery, Texas, native qualified for the prestigious seven-day event, which begins Monday, by posting an even-par 71 to tie for third at a regional qualifying event on July 2, at the Sweetwater Country Club in Houston, Texas.
"I'm really excited," Isaac, the first Wildcat to qualify for the event since Gianna Misenhelter did in 2011, said. "It's a big deal to even qualify but to go out there and represent my school, show everyone what K-State's about and hold myself to a high standard is really exciting."
Isaac said she credits how she earned the opportunity to her first year at K-State.
In the one-round qualifier, she followed a double-bogey with two birdies in her final 10 holes to be among the top six to qualify. Earlier in the summer at the Texas Women's Stroke Play Championship, Isaac bounced back from a 4-over par 76 to start the event by shooting a 72 and a 70 in the final two rounds to finish in the top five.
"I definitely think the coaching was a big part of why I've improved so much since coming to K-State," she said. "We talk a lot about mental game and that's something that's really improved for me, but also just the routine and the practice that we do is huge for my game."
Now, Isaac faces one of the toughest fields yet. Additionally, the U.S. Amateur's format — 36 holes of stroke play, with the top 64 scores advancing to a match play bracket — is unique. It's not completely foreign to Isaac, however.
"I played in the U.S. Girls (Junior Championship) two summers ago and I did not make match play, so that is definitely one of my goals. My focus is just to play well, set the tone for going into the fall," she said, with K-State's first fall tournament set for September 15-16 in East Lansing, Michigan. "I know our season kicks off pretty early, so I hope I can keep the momentum from the summer going into the fall."
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