game in Northern Califor- nia. The courses are great, of course, but there’s also this tradition of giving back to young golfers. There’s a feeling of community and it’s special to be a small part of it.”
Alexandra was given
a “merit membership” to tony Lake Merced Golf Club, just like Johnny Miller was granted access to Olympic half a century
earlier. Alexandra counts as mentors Bay Area legends Kay Cockerill (the two-time U.S. Women’s Amateur champion) and Juli Inkster (the LPGA Hall of Famer). Last year, as a high
school senior, Alexandra won the San Francisco City at Harding Park, which was, she says, “like coming full circle for me.” She was heavily recruited by many traditional golf powers
but decided she wanted to use golf to get the best education possible; this fall she began competing for Princeton. (Her sister is playing for U.C. Davis, a rising program that at press time was on the verge of cracking the top 20 in the GolfWorld coaches’ poll. Andrea also captured the NCGA Women’s Cham- pionship earlier this year.) “Golf has changed my life
in so many positive ways,” Alexandra says. “Some of my closest friends I met at tournaments or just hanging out at golf courses. I can’t even imagine where I’d be without golf.” Sebastian Crampton
knows the feeling. The high school junior turned heads last spring by nearly playing his way into the U.S. Open, ultimately falling one stroke short in a 36-hole sectional
Every member of the First Tee is eligible for Youth on Course but must demonstrate a mastery of golf skills and etiquette before being allowed onto golf courses unchaperoned.