The key word is ‘team’ for Durham Academy’s young golfers as they discuss interpersonal dynamics, mental strategies and what keeps them motivated

By Anna-Rhesa Versola | Photography by John Michael Simpson

Jenna Kim, 14, says being part of a championship team feels good, but the key word is “team.”

“It’s a really good experience to be on a team because golf is a pretty individual sport,” she says.

This year, the Durham Academy girls golf team will do their best to repeat their championship performance at the next North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association tournament in late October. Jenna was a seventh grader when she joined the varsity girls golf team. Last year, she was the youngest student to ever win the NCISAA girls golf championship as an individual.

Coach Kevin Wicker says he was recruited by founding coach Greg Murray, who retired in 2022 after 43 years at the school, to continue building the program, which focuses on character, integrity and self-reliance.

“Every person who goes out there, they have to play their own ball for the next 18 holes, which is about 4 ½ hours,” Kevin says. “There’s no timeout. There’s no substitutions. That’s all them.”

Kevin, who works at UNC as a fiber-optic technician, begins his days early so he can meet the players after school for practice and matches. He played golf in high school and college, then coached for 18 years at Northern High School. He says helping the players build positive mindsets and healthy interpersonal relationships is more rewarding than winning. “After matches, we go out to eat dinner,” Kevin says. “You want the team to be close. When they’re at the table and they’re talking about golf shots, or even when they’re talking about life, it’s fun to hear these young adults. It keeps me excited to come back and do it all over again the very next day.”

For Saia Rampersaud, 16, playing with a team changed her perspective on the game. “I have to make myself stay in the present and not worry about what’s happened in the past or what will happen if the shot goes badly, because I am not only playing for myself here, I’m playing for my team, and I play for the school,” Saia says. “Having something bigger than yourself to play for is also really [important].”

She says her team is maturing. “Something that’s different about golf is that you control the ball [and] you control yourself, and so I think everyone taking accountability for themselves is really going to set us apart this year,” Saia says. “Last year is when we really stepped it up. We had a few seniors who we really wanted to win for. I think the girls on the team wanting it more than we had previously was probably the main factor of why we won it.”

Saia says there is a simple quote that sticks with her while she’s on the links. “Our old coach, Mr. Murray, right before every tee, he’d say, ‘believe in yourself,’” Saia says. “It really means something to me and is inspirational, especially right before the first tee shot, because I know that he believes in me.”