Manuela Ramirez, a Junior at East, has become a household name throughout the local golfing community in St. Charles.
“Honestly I think it’s an addiction.,” Ramierez reflected. Due to her breathtaking talent on the golf course and extreme dedication to the sport, she has wowed many in the Kane county area and beyond. Starting her golfing journey only 3 years ago, Ramirez has had impressive improvements and success on the green.
“I started golfing actually at the end of 8th grade,” Ramirez said, “My parents were just like, ‘hey, do a sport for high school, so I started playing golf and really enjoyed it’,” Ramirez said.
Despite what some may call a “late start” to the golfing world, Ramirez has shown her abilities on several courses throughout the area. “I think in a way [golfing] came naturally,” Ramirez recalled, “but golf is such a technical game and practice is really necessary. You need to practice a lot more than you think.”
While she started golfing at the end of 2021, her love for the sport started a few years prior. “I use to live in florida and I [would] to go to lots of tournaments just to watch,” she said, “Just watching the professionals play just looked so fun and amazing to me. It really got me into trying to get better at golf.”
Although her scores are nothing short of amazing, it takes more than just natural talent to succeed. “It’s a sport where you can always improve. You’ll never be perfect. Even the best golfers ever, they can always improve. It’s that rush of ‘I wanna do better’ that really keeps me going,” Ramirez said.
“Daily I spend around 5-7 hours playing golf. I leave school and then get back home around 9 but I love it. Time flys when I play golf,” she highlighted.
The varsity golf player played for East during this year’s IHSA Sectional Championships. While so much pressure can leave athletes stressed, Ramirez described her ways of keeping stress minimal while preparing for her tournaments. “I always try and stay calm because golf is [a] very mental [sport]. Just have fun and stay relaxed, don’t think about it too much,” she said.
While playing such an important role for the team, being the top player, it’s important to have a good support system to keep spirits high while golfing. Charlotte Tassone, a sophomore and varsity golf player at East, and Ramirez keep each other close during games. “I can always talk about my golf game to her,” Ramirez said, “ I give her tips she gives me tips. It’s always very fun, shes my go to person.”
For most student-athletes, balancing school, extracurriculars, and sports can be a hassle, but Ramirez finds a solution to all the chaos, “I try to get my work done at school. I use my class time the best I can. When I get home I try to go over any homework I have. I do homework in the mini bus on the way to practice too,” she said.
Outside of golf, Ramirez created and currently runs the engineering club at East. “I actually have my own club,” she said, “We also have big projects planned for the school and it’s gonna be super fun. I love engineering, it’s my passion. I want to go into engineering after high school.”
Ramirez plans to continue to golf for East next year. She’s excited to play for varsity once more for her senior year.
