Vivi Nemeth has been crowned as one of the top high school golfers in the state, tying for first in the Class B girls state championship last Friday.
Nemeth, a junior at John Bapst Memorial High School in Bangor, shot a 23-over round of 95 playing 18 holes at Natanis Golf Course in Vassalboro. That tied Kathryn Peterson of Lake Region and secured Nemeth a place as co-state champion.
That’s an impressive accomplishment for any golfer. It’s something that players might work an entire high school career toward achieving, spending years practicing and honing their skills.
But Nemeth has only been playing golf for a few months. And somehow, she’s already a state champion.
Nemeth has long been a standout on the tennis court. And now she’s added golf to her repertoire.
Nemeth explained Monday that her father, a former college golfer, helped get her started playing the game in the last two or three months. She had previously been playing soccer in the fall, but the intense schedule and some injuries had her looking for something else.
“He was always encouraging me to try it out,” Nemeth explained about her dad and the sport of golf. “So I just figured I’d try it out and see, see what happened.”
So she and some friends decided to join the golf team during preseason, and she wound up on the varsity team.
“I don’t really know how,” said Nemeth, who kept working with her dad and felt like some of her tennis experience translated to the course. “I had a lot of fun playing it, so it motivated me to keep working on it. And I’m excited to see what else we can do.”
So is John Bapst golf coach Tom Winston.
“If she ever can take the next step and go to the next level, she’s gonna be incredible,” Winston said. “She really has, I think, no limits right now as to where she can go.”
The coach conceded that tennis is still probably Nemeth’s No. 1 sport given her experience level.
“But, boy, she’s awfully good at this game, too,” Winston added.
Nemeth was one of seven girls to play on the 33-player John Bapst golf team this year, the highest tally of girls players that Winston has seen as a coach.
“They’ve done a lot of work,” Winston said about those John Bapst players. “They’re trying to get better, and Vivi was certainly a great example and a great inspiration — not only during the season, but certainly by what she accomplished,”
Nemeth didn’t know what to expect when she and her friends joined the golf team, but she’s glad that they did.
“It seems like it came about pretty randomly, but obviously I’m so happy that it happened and I’m so glad that I’ve had this opportunity,” she said. “And I love the whole team, so it was great for me to be able to become a part of the golf world.”
She’s planning to play again next year, and is excited to see what the Crusaders can do on the course.
“I think it’s so great. So I’m looking forward to keeping that going throughout the next year,” Nemeth said. “And I think it’s a really great community, and I’m glad that we’ve become a part of it.”
