Born a Player, Raised Into the Game

Sophomore Lincoln Hirrlinger swings for the stars on the MHS Golf team

Story by: Marde Sparks

Swinging clubs from the age of six, Lincoln Hirrlinger–a 15 year-old golf player–cannot remember a day where the game wasn’t in his mind. He was inspired to play the sport by his uncle Jaren Watson who would spend time with him hitting golf balls in the backyard. He then was supported by his father, who guided him into the sport and brought him to where he stands in the game today.

Hirrlinger considers himself to be above average at a local level, but doesn’t think he stands out on a professional level. He played in North Texas PGA as a 10 years old, has won or placed top 5 in IGA since his was nine years old, took fourth place in state last year, and took seventh in nationals in Arizona.

Hirrlinger recalls never losing a regional tournament last season and has won the Junior Club Championship three times. The biggest tournament he said he has competed in was the Men’s Amateur Tournament, which stood out to him because of the intense energy in the spectating area.

Role models are a big part of Hirrlinger’s inspiration and he sees professional golf competitor Jordan Spieth as one of his role models. He also said that he considers anyone who helps him improve his skills, role models, such as his coach, Jeff Brown.

The most difficult part of the game for him is the mental challenge. “Golf is such an up and down game,” Hirrlinger said. “You can be on and hit the ball so good, and you’re going birdie, birdie, birdie, then you hook it out of bounds and bogey, you’re back to par. It’s mentally fatiguing.”

Hirrlinger practices almost every day, sunrise to sunset in the summer and three to four times a week during the off-season. He says he is very lucky to have many family members and adult role models to support him in the game and pay the fees which he couldn’t of paid himself in his earlier days of golf. Supplies for Hirrlinger usually cost a total of $1500 to $2000 and tournament entry fees could range from $25 to $350 plus travel costs.

He said he is really thankful for his coach. “Coach Brown wants me to work for it in order to succeed and doesn’t believe I should be spoon fed, in risk of it causing me to burn out,” he said.

Hirrlinger dreams of receiving college scholarships in golf and competing on a professional level. He believes that if he keeps up his practicing habits and continues to improve his skills, reaching those goals will be near in the future.