Alumni Spotlight Stephanie earned her life on the course
N
ot everyone expects to take a golf lesson from Stephanie Lewis-Pullen ‘01.
Working in a sport dominated by men, Stephanie understands that some people may be uncomfortable taking instruction from a woman. But she doesn’t let it get to her. She knows she is as knowledgeable as any male in the game. It just may take awhile for some golfers to warm up to the idea. “Yes I’m a young female, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know how to teach a golf swing,” says Stephanie, Bermuda’s only female golf professional.
That drive, to face down obstacles and meet challenges head-on, she learned in part at The Bermuda High School. She may have started out hiding under an easel on the first day of Year 1, but she later earned an A* in both biology and chemistry and served as president of the Student Society.
“Being an all-girls school, that was something they taught you: you can do anything you want. Just push through it and don’t give up so easily,” Stephanie says. That wasn’t always easy. She
remembers boys on the golf course when she was growing up telling her that girls couldn’t do science, something she never confronted at BHS, where expectations were high and talents nurtured.
“BHS did that a lot for me. I could have been a very quiet child, which is funny to a lot of people. I’m a very loud, boisterous person. But I got that from knowing no matter what I said my friends were there to back me up. My teachers were there to help me and that was something that was fostered and encouraged.” Stephanie credits many teachers for giving her that confidence to take risks, including Mark Thorpe, her science and chemistry teacher at the time. Mr. Thorpe remembers her as one of those girls who “burst into the classroom.”
18 Torchbearer Spring 2013
“My first impression of Stephanie was that she was very gregarious and was one of those students who wanted to help anyone in any way,” he says. Stephanie’s family was also integral to her development in golf - both her parents, Eldon and Debra, and her grandfather, David, play the game. She remembers asking her mother if she could go out and join her father chipping golf balls in their yard: “So I took my Fisher- Price plastic oversized set and mimicked what Dad did.” Her father always nurtured her, she says. He never pushed. If she showed an interest, he was there to help. If she “wasn’t feeling it” that day, they didn’t play That, Stephanie remembers, was the key.
“My fondest memories are that no matter what I did during the week, no matter how stressful school got as I got older, I always had that outlet,” she says. “It was something my dad and I could stay close with, and still to this day bond over. We never thought about not doing it. It was just a natural progression of our relationship.”
Stephanie spent a year at Limestone College in South Carolina, on a golf scholarship, before transferring to the University of Toronto, where she earned a double major in psychology and economics. In December 2012, she completed her MBA, online, in operations management from the University of Wisconsin.
When home from university during the summer, Stephanie worked at Rosewood Tucker’s Point. When she graduated in 2007, Kevin Benevides, the golf director at the time, approached her about a job.
Stephanie says she had never considered a career in golf outside of playing professionally. But at Tucker’s Point, she discovered a new talent. “I found a knack for teaching, particularly kids and women,” Stephanie says. “I really enjoy teaching women because I know how hard it is to learn the game. And as a girl, I never had a female instructor. So it was something I could give back to the game.” More frequently, she sees families enjoying the game together. In the past, men may have looked at a round of golf as time away from the family, she says. But as more women
and children take up the game, she sees it becoming very much a family sport, particularly in Bermuda.
She says husbands and fathers often approach her about helping their wives or daughters pick up golf so they can play together. “It’s great to see families and young people getting involved. And doing it together not as a (man’s) escape.”
In 2009, Stephanie was
recognized as Bermuda’s “Most Promising Young Person” in the BELCO annual VIP Excellence Awards. She saw it as validation of her success in what is still seen as a man’s game. “It’s getting people excited about the game,” she says. “Watching them hit that first really good golf shot. Or watching them break 100 for the first time. I really enjoy being a part of that.”
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32