Jupiter High’s girls golf team began their season with a record of five wins and two losses.

Corbin Christoffers, sophomore, has been a volleyball player her whole life and just began playing golf. She feels the game is more mental than physical. 

“I like how you’re not competing with other people,” Christoffers said. “You are playing more against the course.”

Emily Valentine, head coach, began her golf career as a player for JHS when she was in high school.  She then played for Palm Beach Atlantic University.  She believes her greatest success, though, is coaching for the school. 

“My greatest achievement as a coach has been creating a safe, enjoyable, and competitive environment for my players,” Valentine says. “Yes, we have had five wins, with many more to come,  but having the girls enjoy each other with no drama has been a blessing.”

One thing Jupiter does best is creating a special team atmosphere, especially in an independent sport. 

“Emma Sawtell, our captain, has done a great job creating team comradery and making each player feel like they are a part of one team rather than playing individually,” Valentine said. 

Sawtell, senior, has been on the team for all four years of high school and she believes the hardest part of the sport is mastering the short aspects of the game. 

“It’s all about putting,” Sawtell says. “That’s how you’re going to get most of your strokes back.”

Helena Dlabik, freshman, decided to start playing golf after she moved to Jupiter. Seeing the popularity of the sport in this town convinced her to join the golf team.

“Seeing [the prominence] of the sport and seeing kids work hard on it inspired me to join the team,” Dlabik said.

The team’s biggest competitor is Palm Beach Gardens High School, whom they lost to by two strokes this season.

“Gardens has a couple of very competitive golfers on their team, but they are not unbeatable,” Zoe Shamy, freshman, says. “We can beat [Gardens] by continuing to improve our short game and understanding how rules can benefit us in tournaments.”