By Jess Westendorf
For the Iowa women’s golf team this season, experience is obvious throughout the roster. Head coach Megan Menzel has recruited golfers who can succeed on the course and off. One name in particular that stands out is Jessie Sindlinger.
The Charles City native was introduced to golf by her parents and grandparents at the age of 6. After getting her first hole-in-one, her grandmother helped her get lessons. Sindlinger soon started competing in Iowa tournaments, and her love for the game grew.
“My grandparents play golf a lot and my parents play on the weekends,” Sindlinger said. “I got a hole-in-one when I was 9, and I started getting lessons and then played in Iowa tournaments.”
Golf was not the only sport Sindlinger was involved in. During her high-school career at Charles City High, she lettered in golf, volleyball, and basketball. Her senior year, she led the volleyball team to a state championship and earned first team honors for all-state and all-conference selections.
Her highschool golf career ultimately helped her make the decision to play in college. Sindlinger won four-straight individual state titles while at Charles City High. She became the second player in state history to win four-straight titles and the first in 50 years.
The National High School Coaches Association named Sindlinger the Senior Girls Golf Athlete of the Year in 2013, which featured her in the July 29, 2013, issue of Sports Illustrated. She started qualifying for the PGA Junior Championships in the summer of 2012. In 2013, she shot a 36-hole score of 147 to finish first in the section Championship to qualify for the PGA Junior Championship for a second-straight year.
Heading into college, she had high hopes and expectations, and she met them. As a freshman, Sindlinger competed in every tournament and led the team in four tournaments. Since then, she has competed in every tournament every year in both the fall and spring. She recorded her career best finish at the 2015 Diane Thomason Invitational; she placed fourth with a final score of 223 (7-over).
This season she has continued to grow and impress on the greens, but her role off the greens have become just as vital.
She has molded into a leader and role model for the players around her. Junior Morgan Kukla remembers during her freshman year Sindlinger stepped up and helped get women to and from practice.
“Jessie is one of my best friends; my freshman year, she was in charge of giving rides, and then we had a couple classes together,” said Kukla. “She is a great leader, and she is someone I’m looking forward to knowing for life.”
Sindlinger has grown into a person that the players can go and talk to or just hang out with. She leads the team and always tries to give the best advice for the women coming in.
“She was the person who took care of all of us,” said junior Jessica Ip. “She is always reliable and there for everyone.”
The Hawkeyes recorded one of their best seasons last spring, and they want to continue to improve. Sindlinger has become an essential part of the Hawkeye lineup. This season she has been consistent, and has worked hard to improve for the team. Menzel is proud of the golfer and person Sindlinger has become.
“Jessie is a great person, it’s been fun to see her over the last four years,” Menzel said. “We are excited to see what she can do; she has a lot of good golf ahead of her, and she’ll go onto to do great things after Iowa.”