Feb. 26, 2014
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- Sophomore Kate Granahan (Allentown, Pa.) recently joined the team in the fall season. Unlike most of the girls that have been recruited throughout their high school years, Kate took a unique approach to making the team. Kate participated in the walk-on tryouts and was the only girl offered a spot on the team.
"I played three or four rounds and handed the scores into coach [St. Pierre]. We talked about the rounds and she was basically looking to make sure that I had the scores to be able to keep up with the girls," Granahan said. "I played with some of the girls and coach wanted to make sure that I had the chemistry with them to make sure I could be on the team."
Kate has received guidance from all of the girls on the team, helping to ease the transition onto the team.
"The older girls on the team are awesome. They are good to look up to. I try to mirror my swing and everything about their game," said Granahan. "We hangout outside of the golf course and they are good to look up to. They push me to be the best player I can be."
Kate brings many strengths to the team. The strongest part of her game is her ability to get up and down. "I like chipping and I am also pretty good at hitting fairways."
Granahan participated in the Nittany Lion Invitational, her first collegiate tournament, this past fall. "It was so intense and really competitive. The girls were out there to win, so it was a different kind of feel than just playing with family and friends." She shot an 89 in the first round and then set a career low with a score of 81 in the second round. "By the third day, I pulled it together. The first day was kind of a mess but you learn so it was fun." She shot an 82 in the last round, putting her tournament and collegiate career average at an 84.
As the spring season is getting closer, Granahan is taking the lessons learned from the fall season and applying them to the spring season and throughout her career moving forward.