The wind rolled off the cliffs of Torrey Pines North course as the Bishop’s Girls Golf Team teed off their final CIF round. 10 strokes behind one of the stronger teams in San Diego, Cathedral Catholic High School, and one round left, The Bishop’s team was ready to compete in the final. But the team won long before this final round; all the small moments, the mental prep, and the unity of the team led to this moment and the win. What exactly did this CIF experience look like, and what was the preparation required?
Monday, November 3rd, the team had successfully secured the chance to go to day two of the CIF round. They first played at Balboa Park, and even though Balboa Park plays particularly to the strengths of those who play it often, they were still able to maintain their distance just off Cathedral to place them exactly where they wanted to be for Wednesday—10 strokes behind them, and so close to being in the lead.
Tuesday, November 4th, was their day off. Nonetheless, the girls were preparing mentally to succeed. Maggie Hu (‘28), a second-year varsity member who has been playing golf for four years, recalls the team meeting that Coach Will Peters led in his classroom during lunch. “He walked us through what he wanted from us, how we were going to approach the day, and what the conditions were going to be like,” Maggie said. “We went through the course and just prepared mentally.”
Golf has long been known as a sport where the mind matters just as much as the swing. Jennifer Yang (‘28), two-time Coastal League Player of the Year, reflects on the impact this has on her game. “Mentality is a huge part of the golf game—it’s not just your skill. I always just try to calm myself down before the hole and not think about the before and after. You have to stay focused in the moment, hole by hole.”
Similarly, Maggie notes the importance of mental toughness during a round. “Bad shots can’t define your round because you never know what is going to happen on the golf course,” she said.
Co-captain both this year and last, Kailin Xuan (‘26), notes the importance of staying present in order to stay grounded while competing. She also mentions how the schedule of the Golf Team’s practices this year have affected her, and the team’s performance on the course, “Our practice schedule changed a bit this season. We trained both on campus and through practice rounds, along with weekly matches. This structure helped all of us stay competitive while all improving together, which was great for building mental preparation.”
Wednesday was game day and the final round of CIFs. Coach Peters smiled as he remembered the dynamic of the team that day. “It was so positive… even though golf is so mental and there’s so much pressure, it never really felt like that during CIFs—especially not during the second round.”
However, that pressure was outweighed by the bonding and genuine care that each player had for their teammates before or during the round. Coach Peters mentioned how the focus was not on each player’s score, but on the group as a whole. “I was sitting on the seventh green to do live scoring with a whole load of snacks, and when each of the girls came through, they would come straight up to me and be like, ‘how are the other girls doing,’ all they really seemed to care about was the team, and that’s what makes it special,” he said.
Kailin also highlights her experience on that final green, one that truly impacted her. “It was my last hole playing for the Bishop’s Girls Golf team after four years, and even though we were all in different groups, it felt like we were finishing that last hole together,” she said.
What happened next made the night one to remember. Sitting on the 18th green (the final hole of the round), it became clear that the girls had achieved something special. They had won. Coming into the round 10 strokes down, they came out winning by 21 strokes, meaning they had beaten Cathedral between the rounds at Balboa and Torrey by 31 strokes.
Coach Peters recalled a short but striking conversation with another coach that summed up the entire season. “Where did you all come from?” the coach wondered. Coach Peters answered with the truth they had proven that day: “We were here all along.”
