Overlooked. Underrepresented. Forgotten. Girls golf has been overshadowed by other sports for years, but freshman Lily Patel is looking to change that.
Westfield’s girls golf team finished 8-5 this year, tremendously improving from last year’s 3-8 record. One might wonder how a program can turn around that fast, and the answer to that question can be attributed to newcomer Patel.
Patel dominated this year. In her first season, Patel took first place in nine of the 12 matches in which she competed. With scores dominating the board, Patel was able to qualify for the Tournament of Champions, held on May 16, placing 49th out of 77 golfers. One of Patel’s most astounding accomplishments was her first place finish in the Union County Individual Tournament.
The golfer’s journey began long before she stepped onto the high school stage.
“My dad introduced me to golf at a young age,” Patel said. “He put a plastic cup down and we would putt around the living room and play games together.” At four years old, Patel was sinking putts, which would later translate to the holes of her home course, Plainfield West Nine.
Here, Patel became involved in the First Tee program, where kids learn life lessons integrated into the game of golf. In 2021, Patel began taking lessons from former LPGA pro Karen Noble at Fairmount Country Club in Chatham, and her career took off.
Despite years of playing golf, Patel had only ever played with her family and coach. Experiencing a team environment was new to her.
“Because golf is an individual sport, being a part of a team and getting to meet upperclassmen was really fun,” she said. “Also, I loved getting to meet so many other people at the other schools and creating relationships with them.”
Although she had never been a part of a team before, Patel was an incredible teammate both on and off the course this season. Brooke Horowitz, a junior on the golf team, said, “She’s definitely one of the better players and a lot of people on the team know that, but she never acts as though she’s above anyone else, and she is always looking to lift up other people.”
Patel’s talent extends beyond golf. She is an active member of the school community, participating in Project Glimmer and French Club at WHS. In addition, she helps to teach classes to young kids at First Tee after school and on weekends. Patel excels in the classroom, too, making the distinguished honor roll every marking period in the 2022-23 school year. Westfield assistant head coach Jayne Summers remarked, “She happily played in every match regardless of all other commitments or school workload and shot highly competitive scores in all. Coming in as a freshman, this brings great possibilities for the next three years, and I am confident that she will be an integral part of the team.”
It is safe to say that Patel has much more to accomplish.
“Golf opens so many doors, and I would like to play at some competitive level in college, and continue playing the game for the rest of my life,” she said.
With time on Patel’s side, it is going to be exciting to see what she brings to the future of girls golf.
