Golf - A Game for Life

By Shannon Miranda

If it's true that golf is a game you can enjoy for life, then Sammi Blackburn, daughter of United Performance Metals' Assistance Foreman Chris Blackburn, certainly has a head start on the rest of us. Although just 11 years old, Sammi has already been playing for years and has even won championships in area junior events.

While Sammi first got involved with golfing by being taken along to the course when she was very young, Chris admits that she does not get her skill from him, or anyone else in his family for that matter. At about the age of eight, she started golfing by herself. Chris recalls the time when Sammi really began to enjoy golfing. "You could tell that when she started getting good and hitting the ball well, she really liked it," he remembers.

Sammi is currently in the sixth grade at Monroe, but she does not play golf for them. The junior gold tournaments that she enters take place all over the country. This year, Sammi was in the Southern Ohio PGA. This association holds 15 tournaments a year with age groups ranging from 9-17. Some of the locations include Middletown and Columbus. Just recently, Sammi won the Hamilton County Park District Championship. Also, she qualified to play in the U.S. Kids Golf World Championship in Pinehurst, North Carolina.

As with any sport, much of Sammi's time is consumed with her golfing. In the summer alone, she plays in about 25 tournaments. She has come to find more friends within her golfing than at school. These friends are from all over the country, and she has kept in touch with them through e-mail throughout the years. Just recently, Sammi was able to attend the U.S. Women's Open and meet one of her favorite players, Paula Creamer. She also looks up to professional women's golfers Natalie Gulbis and Michelle Wui. Chris says that he believes his daughter will continue to play golf in the upcoming years and even into college. Chris comments, "As parents, we are really proud of what she has done."