Freshman Teammates Grow Through Golf

Two six-year-old girls grew up together, learning the basics of golf. They sported colorful, Bahama length shorts every week and practiced with  two-foot long clubs. Beginning as competitors, but now best friends, these girls have grown together through golf.

From ages six to thirteen, Freshmen Karoline Nelson and Martha Saferstein played and competed against each other every Thursday morning in a “Junior Golf” tournament at different courses in Kansas City.

The competition between the two was always strong. Nelson consistently hits long drives but they aren’t always straight, while Saferstein hits consistently straight drives but they aren’t always as long. Even though they have different playing styles, the girls still score similarly every round.

Playing against each other was always a battle. This continued until Nelson and Saferstein began to grow up, put the competition behind them, and learned to laugh and have fun with each other and bond over golf.

“When we were kids we were kind of really competitive,” Nelson said. “But now that we are older there isn’t much competition. We just want each other to do well.”

Nelson and Saferstein are now playing for the East golf team. Both of them are currently on JV, but throughout the year they will be working to play in different varsity tournaments. They’ve become great friends, through playing together but also by hanging out outside of golf.

Just from the tryouts, they could tell that the East girls golf team was a very tight-knit group of girls. From out of town tournaments to late night dinners, the golfers spend a lot of time together, giving them plenty of time to build friendships. Nelson and Saferstein were both excited to be a part of it.

“[The girls] are all sisters almost,” Saferstein said. “They are one big family.”

With hopes of personal best scores and new friends in mind, Saferstein and Nelson are anxious for their first high school golf season. After all, they aren’t six-year-olds with two foot long clubs anymore.