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Orem sophomore Kaylee Westfall walks off the No. 18 green during the final round of the 4A state girls golf tournament at Talon's Cove in Saratoga Springs on Thursday, May 9, 2024.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

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Orem sophomore Kaylee Westfall watches her shot during the final round of the 4A state girls golf tournament at Talon's Cove in Saratoga Springs on Thursday, May 9, 2024.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

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Orem sophomore Kaylee Westfall watches her putt during the final round of the 4A state girls golf tournament at Talon's Cove in Saratoga Springs on Thursday, May 9, 2024.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

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Orem sophomore Kaylee Westfall tees off during the final round of the 4A state girls golf tournament at Talon's Cove in Saratoga Springs on Thursday, May 9, 2024.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

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Orem sophomore Kaylee Westfall walks toward the No. 18 green during the final round of the 4A state girls golf tournament at Talon's Cove in Saratoga Springs on Thursday, May 9, 2024.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

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Orem sophomore Kaylee Westfall (left) talks strategy with her dad during the final round of the 4A state girls golf tournament at Talon's Cove in Saratoga Springs on Thursday, May 9, 2024.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

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Timpanogos junior Sydney Draper watches her putt during the final round of 4A state girls golf tournament at Talon's Cove in Saratoga Springs on Thursday, May 9, 2024.

Jared Lloyd, Daily Herald

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With the small bits of hail pelting down from the clouds as she walked up the 18th fairway to conclude her 4A girls golf tournament on Thursday afternoon, it might have been easy for Orem sophomore Kaylee Westfall to wonder why she ever chose to get into the sport.

She nearly didn’t.

“My dad started playing golf and eventually started training my older and younger brothers,” Westfall said. “He would ask me to come play and I always said I didn’t want to play because golf is boring.”

Eventually Westfall’s dad stopped making the invitation — and she had a change of heart.

“I was like, I should probably go golfing because he would just leave me,” Westfall said. “That’s kind of how I really got into it and it’s been amazing. I am so grateful that I did.”

As so many do, she got hooked on the thrill that comes with making a great shot.

“I love hitting good shots,” Westfall said. “When I hit a good shot, it keeps me going. When I hit a bad shot, I try and learn as much as I can from it and see what I can do better. I love hitting a good drive or a long putt. That makes me really happy. It’s my favorite.”

She had plenty of those during the two-day tournament at the beautiful Talon’s Cove golf course in Saratoga Springs, firing a total score of 153 (9-over-par) to earn second place.

“The tournament was really great,” the Tiger sophomore said. “I had a hard time getting the ball to the hole, so a lot of birdie putts didn’t fall. I was getting a lot of pars. It wasn’t as great as I wanted it to be, but I still feel like I did well overall.”

She said that she felt like most of the clubs in her bag were working when she needed them to.

“My drives were amazing,” Westfall said. “I was hitting them very straight. I was putting them where I needed to be. My chipping this weekend was very good. My irons were OK. My woods were very good. I feel like all around I was doing much better than my score showed. I left a lot out there but I’m just really happy about how I played.”

She knew it would be a tough task to catch Crimson Cliffs sophomore Kate Walker, who shot a 65 (7-under-par) on the first day.

Westfall actually had the best score on Day 2, coming in with a 76 (4-over-par). But Walker was only one stroke back, allowing her to earn medalist honors.

“Kate is an amazing player,” Westfall said. “I haven’t played with her very much, but I know that she is such a good player. I was coming out just trying to hang with her. She did amazing on the first day, so I’m really happy for her. I’ll be able to continue to play with her throughout the year in other tournaments and the following years.”

Westfall ended up being the only Orem representative to make it through to the second day, but she said she was thrilled that the Tigers made it to the tournament at all and honored by all of the support.

“I don’t know how long it’s been since Orem made it,” Westfall said. “This year was really amazing. My teammates did really great. Even when I was the only one who made it to the next day, so many of them came out and watched me. I’m so grateful for my coaches, my family, my friends, everyone who just supported me.”

She did get to play with a familiar golfer as Timpanogos junior Sydney Draper was also the lone Timberwolf representative. Draper finished tied for 19th with a two-day tally of 177 (33-over-par).

Westfall said that she’s looking forward to continuing to improve as she comes back for the next couple of years of golf as a Tiger.

“When I’m doing bad, I feel I need to train harder just to stay in it,” Westfall said. “Because I didn’t stay in it for a couple of shots. I think that through the coming years I’ll just keep working, keep grinding, and we’ll see where it takes me because I believe that I can be so much better than I am right now. It’s just going to take a ton of work. I know that if I just keep grinding, I’ll get there one day.”

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