Senior Maia Briggeman tells the story of how golf came into her life and the unexpected impact it made.

As a girl who’s laughed her way through life, Maia Briggeman (12) took on a new activity going into her freshman year to fill her free time but wasn’t necessarily planning on taking it seriously. She later realized that much of her time would go into her newfound love for this activity, and it would continue to fill her spare time for the rest of her high school career at Evanston Township in Chicago, Illinois. 

“I really just picked a random sport at the beginning of my freshman year. I don’t really like sports that much or balls that are coming at me, so I just thought, ‘Golf is cool, I guess.’ It started mostly as a joke because I was so bad. I didn’t even play in matches, but then I actually got kind of good and was moved up to varsity,” Briggeman said. 

Briggeman soon realized that golf had been making a bigger impact on her life than she originally anticipated. It began to strengthen her bond with an important figure in her life, but also brought her new relationships. 

“I play with my dad a lot, which just brings us closer together. I also play with my friends who are on the team. I was able to meet a ton of new people, which was definitely good for the fall of my freshman year,” Briggeman said. 

Though the idea of golf began as a joke at the beginning of her high school career, it became a passion of Briggeman’s. She decided to continue for reasons other than just the love of the sport itself. 

“I wanted to continue doing it after seeing the upperclassmen and how invested they were. They made everyone feel welcome, and even if I wasn’t the best at the sport, it was still enjoyable,” Briggeman said.

Maia Briggeman (12) laughs with a smile that is often on her face because of her golf teammates. “Because of the amount of people I’ve met from golf, it would be hard to just leave that group. I got so close with them, and even though I’m not the best at it, they keep me going,” Briggeman said. Briggeman planned on continuing her golf career through her senior year.