Senior TJ Kliebphipat Gets First Taste Of NCAA Regional
5/8/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
SPOKANE, Wash. - Gonzaga University's women's golf team tees off at noon Thursday at Tumble Creek at Suncadia Resort in Cle Elum, Wash., in its second straight venture into the NCAA Golf Regional.
One participant who will tee off this year will be the lone Bulldog senior, Tai Jade 'TJ' Kliebphipat.
Hampered a year ago with a sore wrist, the native of Panorama City, Calif., is looking forward to being a part of the regional line-up this year after having to sit out a year ago.
"It feels exciting; extra exciting I can be a part of it and get to come back for graduation. None of us have played that course before so it will be a new experience for all of us," Kliebphipat said while getting ready for a recent practice on A.M. Corner, Gonzaga's outdoor on-campus target green, putting green and sand bunker practice facility.
With Cle Elum only a 3-hour drive from Spokane, she'll be back in time for Sunday's graduation since the final round is Saturday.
Kliebphipat has played in nine of Gonzaga's 10 outings to date with four Top 20 finishes this season. She has played 104 rounds in her Gonzaga career with five Top 10 finishes.
She vividly recalls starting her golf career as a 9-year-old and receiving her first set of clubs.
"I started when I was nine. Dad was super obsessed with Tiger Woods at the time; that was a big era for Tiger Woods. One day in elementary school when he picked me up he surprised me with a brand new set of clubs and it started from there," she said.
But she didn't become an instant golfaholic.
"Practicing was tough as for any kid who just doesn't want to practice," she said. "As I got older then I kind of realized you play tournaments, you get rewarded when you win so practicing was more worthwhile than it was when I was younger."
And as she got older the goal of becoming a collegiate golfer grew stronger.
"It was on my mind and my parents' mind early into high school. Probably my freshman year when I decided to join the golf team, then realizing a lot of scholarships were readily available for women golfers," she said. "Our family decided we'd all work hard to get a scholarship and try to play golf in college."
Little did she know she would end up at a place called Gonzaga.
"I had no idea about Gonzaga, never heard of it before. Victoria (current assistant coach Fallgren) was playing in a tournament with me halfway into her final summer as a junior golfer. She had all the Gonzaga gear on so all of us were asking about Gonzaga and where is that. She said it was a great school in the north and she'd talk to the coach about it. Brad (head coach Rickel) e-mailed me, set up an official visit and the rest is history from there," Kliebphipat said.
After promising freshmen and sophomore campaigns, the wrist injury set her back last season. But she found some solace.
"Frustrating isn't the right word," she said. "It just allowed me to see you have to work hard and injuries do happen. I tried to play; I played in almost all of the events in the spring (last year) except for conference and regional. It kind of motivated me for this year, especially since it's my last year, to play through it, fight hard for it and take care of it slightly better. It's definitely not 100 percent. It's a little achy sometimes after a practice or after a round of golf. It's been resting. It's been doing well with all of the rehabilitation. It's better than it was before, but still not at its best."
Whenever her collegiate career ends - whether it's this week in the regional or later this month in the NCAA finals - she's hoping there's golf after Gonzaga.
"I hope so. I'm trying to get a job in the golf industry. When you grow up playing golf all you ever know is golf. I figure I don't want to sit at a desk job the rest of my life. I might get my PGA card as a professional and maybe work from there; own and operate a golf course. Playing on tour is still a dream. I'm playing a few qualifiers in the summer - all of the USGA events, Public Links. Going to qualifying school I have to work on a lot of things on my game and focus on my injury for now," she said of the immediate future.
She said Gonzaga has altered her work ethic - both in the classroom and on the golf course.
"You have to put in a lot of work to get a lot out of it. High school junior golf you play with the best, but when you come to college it's kind of a rude awakening to see there are so many good players and so many good students. You really have to work hard to stand out and succeed way more than I ever had to in junior golf. Call it ignorance if you will," she said of the life lesson she will take with her from Gonzaga.
As for what she'll miss most about college she didn't hesitate.
"My teammates. There definitely won't be a lot of people cheering me on in the golfing world after school. Gonzaga, great people and I'll miss my friends a lot and how close I am to everything and everyone. Spokane is beautiful, especially on a day like this," she said on the bright, sunny day. "I will definitely come back and visit. But I'll miss my teammates and coach the most."
Hopefully that separation won't come until May 23 when the NCAA finals conclude.
