By Kalena Reynolds | Staff Writer
While most college students are only a two hour plane ride from home, Gifu, Japan senior Sera Hasegawa is multiple continents away from not only her family and friends but also her hometown.
When Hasegawa was six years old, her dad, who golfed as a hobby, started teaching her the sport. When Hasegawa began asking for her own set of clubs, her dad came back with an ultimatum: She needed to prove that she was serious before he would invest in the clubs for her.
Even though Hasegawa had yet to reach middle school age, she followed through with her dad’s proposition and showcased her commitment to the sport with an extremely disciplined practice regimen.
“I was practicing every day. I didn’t miss [practice] until 12 or something, even when we were going on family trips, like overnight trips, we would practice in the morning and then come back and then go practice later on,” Hasegawa said.
While Hasegawa said that practice wasn’t always enjoyable and there were times when it was difficult to have such an intense schedule at such a young age, she said that she always loved the competition aspect of the sport and that her motivation largely stemmed from being able to compete in tournaments.
“I really didn’t enjoy practicing, but sometimes still, practice is not always fun, but I think tournaments are kind of always fun for me,” Hasegawa said.
While the competitive aspect of the sport has always been a priority for Hasegawa, she originally planned on turning pro out of high school, but an injury during her junior year made her reconsider her priorities.
“I got injured, so I couldn’t play golf for a month or two months, and I just felt like, ‘It’s still high school. I think I should find another option besides golf,'” Hasegawa said. “So I was like, ‘Hey, I think I should go to college and then learn to make connections, like those things. I still have more time, life is going on even though I stopped playing.'”
Hasegawa’s swing coach reaffirmed the decision by encouraging her to “study in the States” so that she could keep pursuing golf while also working on a career outside of the sport.
Once Hasegawa graduated high school, she spent her freshman season at East Tennessee State University, where she earned the Southern Conference Freshman of the Year Honors and made the All-Conference team.
She shot a pair of rounds in the 60’s and had a career-best 67 at the 2022 Clover Cup her Freshman year.
Ultimately, Hasegawa entered the transfer portal after her freshman year because she wanted to be in a more competitive program. When she committed to Baylor, her Golfstat ranking put her at No. 3 on the Bears’ roster.
Hasegawa said that she loves the coaches in the Baylor program. Since transferring, she has improved her skills and made friendships within the team that allow her to be inspired and competitive at the same time.
“They [coaches] believe in me, like how I practice or do on the golf course,” Hasegawa said. “They don’t really try to control me. So I do like that, and I like my teammates. They’re friendly, and hanging around with them is always fun, and we can be really competitive.”
Teammate and Bangkok, Thailand, senior BaiMai Seema said that Hasegawa holds herself to an incredibly high standard, not only as a competitor but also as a teammate, friend and student.
“I think the main thing that sets Sera apart from other competitors is that she is a perfectionist who has high expectations from herself,” Seema said. “She doesn’t show arrogance towards others but keeps her standards high. She knows her strengths and weaknesses, so she knows what to work on. Her confidence is what everyone aspires to be because she knows her game well and always knows where the ball is going.”
After college, Hasegawa plans to play pro in Japan for a few years and then return to the U.S. to continue playing pro.
“I think starting from Japan is a good idea, and then hopefully come back here later on,” Hasegawa said. “If I become a good player. I just feel like it’s hard staying here, not on the main tour on LPG.”
Baylor women’s golf will be back in action on Jan. 27 for the Match in the Desert in Superstition Mountain, Ariz.
