Reed On The Greens Dec. 15, 2022
by Jeffrey Reed, Editor, LondonOntarioSports.com
Top Photo: U. Alabama Athletics/David Gray

It’s hard to believe that standout golfer Taylor Kehoe of Strathroy has, thus far, flown under the radar, despite her impressive resume. Sure, the University of Alabama freshman is only 18. But even before the two-year member (2020-21) of the Team Canada Amateur squad had turned 10, she had been turning heads with her stellar play.

Kehoe, home for the Holidays and working on her game indoors at Golfers Hideaway in Komoka and with her Canadian coach, Gareth Raflewski of RiverBend Golf Community, certainly lets her clubs do the talking. Even at her young age, she has always golfed in a quiet, business-like fashion. Some would say she is shy. Others would say she has yet to realize just how good her golf can be.

But one thing is for sure, according to Mic Potter, the much-decorated, long-time Crimson Tide women’s head golf coach, and that is Kehoe’s best golf is ahead of her.

Taylor Kehoe with parents, Mike and Elisha. Photo: Twitter.

Potter said after an impressive fall season, Kehoe has shown glimpses of greatness while adjusting to life away from home, a daily routine juggling academics and athletics and top-level Division I team golf at one of the top U.S. universities competing in the ultra-competitive Southeastern Conference (SEC).

“It’s always tough to leave home, always tough to leave your country,” explained Potter. “Taylor has adjusted pretty well. But you can always count on that first semester of freshman year being an adjustment period.

“Everything is possible for (Taylor). Believing more in herself is the key. And the more we can nurture, there are endless possibilities for Taylor.”

Development Years

Daughter of Mike and Elisha Kehoe of Strathroy, Taylor first swung a golf club at age 6 and played her early rounds at Strathroy’s Bear Creek Golf and Country Club (now Willow Tree Golf), and at Caradoc Sands Golf Club. For the past six years, she has been a member at the private West Haven Golf and Country Club outside London.

“I love West Haven – we have a really nice practice facility and golf course, and I am treated very well there,” said Taylor, who turns 19 on Christmas Eve. “I enjoy working out at RiverBend as well, and with Gareth. I don’t think I would be where I am today in golf without his coaching.”

The Irishman-turned-Canadian resident Raflewski has slowly built a strong reputation for his short game coaching and now counts both LPGA Tour and PGA Tour players amongst his stable of students.

As a youngster, Kehoe chose to play provincial and AJGA events instead of competing on the Junior Tyson Tour. In 2018, she won the Future Links Ontario Championship and, at age 14, finished runner-up at the Ontario Junior Girls Championship.

Taylor Kehoe (third, left) and LPGA Tour’s Stacy Lewis (right). Photo: AJGA.

The next year was a coming out party for Kehoe, who again finished second at the Ontario Junior Girls event while winning two notable tournaments: the 2019 AJGA Dana Incorporated Junior Open, and the 2019 AJGA Pinehurst Junior. She also finished a respectable 12th at the 2019 Dixie Amateur.

“We first saw Taylor at an AJGA junior all-star tournament in Arkansas,” said Potter of the 2018 KPMG Stacy Lewis Junior All-Star Invitational at Blessings Golf Club in Johnson, Arkansas. At age 14, Kehoe finished T4. The next year, she finished sixth while posting a second-round 69.

“Our assistant coach, Susan Rosenstiel, was at one side of the course and I was on the other. She sent me a text and said, ‘You’ve got to see this girl. I hadn’t heard of her before, but she’s really good.’ So I walked over and watched her. And we kind of targeted her from that day on. She came to one of our camps so we could get to know her a little better,” said Potter.

Taylor Kehoe (second, left) and Crimson Tide women’s golf squad. Photo: U. Alabama Athletics Facebook.

Picking up where she left off, Kehoe assembled a 2020 golf season which put her on the radar of Golf Canada in their selection of their national amateur squad. She captured the AJGA’s Junior at Knollwood and Randy Wise Junior Open tournaments, and was a quarterfinalist at the 2020 Women’s Western Amateur Championship.

During her rookie campaign as a member of Team Canada’s amateur squad in 2021, the Strathroy District Collegiate Institute graduate won the AJGA Junior at 12 Oaks championship, and finished 13th at the prestigious Women’s Porter Cup.

Roll Tide

As Kehoe honed her skills on the links this past summer, preparing for her rookie season with the Crimson Tide, she captured the prestigious Alice Dye division for girls at the Dye Junior Invitational, held at the always-challenging Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, Indiana. She posted rounds of 70-73-74–217 (+1) from 6,399 yards to beat defending-champion Leigh Chien of Irvine, California by three strokes. Over the three-day tourney, Kehoe amassed 10 birdies and 33 pars and led after both rounds one and two.

Taylor Kehoe and Matt Maloney, winners, 2022 Dye Junior Invitational. Photo: Dye Junior Invitational.

Kehoe also finished T5 in the mixed four ball portion of the tournament, along with partner Trace Bracknell of Tuscaloosa, Alabama. They shot a combined 69-70-68–207 (-9) in the Pete & Alice Dye portion of the event, held at Crooked Stick for a third year.

“That was a big win for me, and a really fun week,” said Kehoe.

“I agree, (Taylor) is very focused and serious,” said Potter. “She’s a serious girl. But I think it’s interesting that when she won the Dye Junior at Crooked Stick – a really hard golf course – I noticed that she was a little looser, still focused but enjoying what she was doing. She wasn’t worried about what was going to happen. So one of the big keys for her (at U. Alabama) is to take the pressure off and just play golf, because she’s immensely talented.”

Along with Nashville’s Kynadie Adams, Kehoe is one of two freshmen who saw action on the links for the Crimson Tide during the fall season. The six-golfer squad features three Americans and three International players, including senior Emilie Overas of Norway, and junior Benedetta Moresco of Italy, a member of the Italian women’s national golf team.

Mic Potter. Photo: U. Alabama Athletics.

“Benedetta is one of the best amateur women golfers in the world,” Potter said. “She’s a team leader with a lot of international experience. One of the things Taylor needs to do is watch and learn from her, because everything is possible for (Taylor).”

The spring golf season determines divisional, regional and NCAA champions in U.S. college golf, but with rankings part of the equation, fall results are important, too – not only for the team, but for freshmen like Kehoe who are getting their feet wet.

Alabama’s next NCAA tournament is the Moon Golf Invitational, scheduled for Feb. 19-21 at Melbourne, Florida. The 2023 SEC Women’s Golf Championship will be contested at nearby Greystone Golf and Country Club (Legacy Course) in Hoover, Alabama April 12-16. NCAA Regionals run May 8-10 venue TBA, while Scottsdale, Arizona hosts the NCAA Championships.

The Crimson Tide’s best fall finish was fourth at The Ally tournament in mid-October at Old Waverly Golf Club in West Point, Mississippi. It was also Kehoe’s best tournament of the season and earned her SEC Women’s Golf Freshman of the Week honours.

Kehoe tied for fifth overall with a 54-hole total of 1-over par 217 (72-74-71). Not only was it a season-best finish, but she also recorded personal best marks for 18 holes (71), 36 holes (146) and 54 holes in the event. Kehoe led the field in par- scoring (-2, 2.83) and ranked in a tie for third in par-5 average (-2, 4.83). Her 38 pars were second-best in the field while her eight birdies matched Adams for the most on the team.

“That was a great week,” Kehoe said. “I really liked that golf course. And my dad came down, too, and we just hung out together.”

Best Yet To Come

Taylor Kehoe. Photo: U. Alabama Athletics/David Gray.

Kehoe can’t say enough good things about her fall semester at Alabama and about golfing for the Crimson Tide.

“I really like my coaches, which makes a big difference. Alabama has one of best U.S. college golf programs, and I am very happy with my decision to study here. And having a team to practice with and play with, and to do things with other than golf, has been great – competing as part of a team has been different and great experience. Our facilities here are great, too. The support you receive as an athlete at Alabama – you can’t get this anywhere else.”

Rendering of future home of U. Albama golf. Photo courtesy U. Alabama Athletics.

Currently, the Crimson Tide practice, play and train at the Jerry Pate Golf Center, Ol’ Colony Golf Complex and the Alabama Strength and Conditioning Complex.

Just how serious do the Crimson Tide take golf? In February, plans were announced through the Crimson Tide Foundation for a new nine-hole golf course, driving range, short game practice area and a golf house. Price tag: $26.8 million US.

Kehoe admits she has had to adjust to university life outside of Canada, but said she is fitting in nicely and taking in as much of the Crimson Tide experience as possible. “I really liked the Alabama-Auburn football game,” said Kehoe of the Crimson Tide’s 49-27 win over the rival Tigers on Nov. 26.

She hasn’t committed to a study major as of yet, but Kehoe said she is leaning towards Sports Management. Her ultimate goal? To play on the LPGA Tour, just like Londoner Maddie Szeryk who was an All-American at Texas A&M.

“I think that’s awesome,” said Kehoe of Szeryk, who, for a second year, gained full status on the LPGA following solid play at Q-School. “I’m really happy for her, and I think she’ll do really well on Tour.”

Taylor Kehoe was SEC women’s golf freshman of the week in October. Photo: SEC.

Potter offered more praise for his rookie golfer, whom he believes has potential leadership qualities as she becomes more comfortable on and off the course at Alabama.

“We are laying the groundwork for a really successful spring, and Taylor is a huge part of that. If she consistently plays up to her potential … (and) improves her scoring average, then she’s going to be a huge difference maker for us. And if we can get everybody else to come along and do the same thing, then we could end up at the end of the year a really good team,” said Potter, who, during his decorated 17 years at Alabama, guided the Crimson Tide to a national championship in 2012.

“Taylor has a great set of parents, a great family, which is pretty foundational to being successful, in most cases. They have given her an opportunity to do with golf what she wants to. It’s all you can ask for. It’s such a time consuming game. If you’re pushed into it, it can get to not being fun, really fast,” said Potter, who also praised Raflewski for his coaching.

“I see one or two areas of Taylor’s game that have really improved, and I think … Gareth has done a great job. We have sent him some videos for feedback. Our job as coaches is to keep her on task, make sure she’s getting feedback, and the more we were able to do that, the better she got this fall. It probably was not her best putting this fall, but we sent some video to Gareth, and I am sure she can clean that up pretty fast. When she putts better, it will make huge difference in her performance.”

Taylor’s sister, Mekenna, 16, is also a standout golfer with aspirations to progress with her young career. Having an older sister like Taylor is certainly inspiring for the Strathroy teen.

The Crimson Tide, meanwhile, can’t wait to see what Taylor does next on the golf course. Indeed, the best is yet to come.

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For more than 40 years, award-winning golf journalist Jeffrey Reed has covered the Canadian golf scene. He’s author of, The Canadian Seniors’ Golf Association, Celebrating 100 Years of Seniors Golf 1918-2018. Reach him at jeff@londonontariosports.com.