Trailblazing junior Mia McKaig made history Saturday by becoming the first Lady Panther golfer to reach the IHSAA state finals.
McKaig shot an 8-over par 80 to advance Saturday at the Lake Central Regional at Sandy Pines Golf Club.
She placed fourth overall regional among all individuals and second among non-advanced team golfers to qualify for state.
“I’m just excited. I’m still in shock,” McKaig said. “I started playing golf a little over two years ago and I never really imagined this would be possible. This is now the case. I’m just really excited about the opportunity to go and see what I can do.
McKaig just started his first season of golf for the Panthers.
“I started playing because my cousin Ashlynn Brooke was playing and I needed something to do,” she said. “I wanted to play another sport and I didn’t really want to play volleyball anymore, so I decided to try it just for fun. I never really imagined I would be here.
McKaig is a quick learner in sports, but that’s not necessarily a surprise given that she seems to be a quick learner in all subjects.
His older brother Drew was Pioneer’s valedictorian last school year. Mia said she had similar or better grades in class than her brother.
She has a 4.194 GPA on an unweighted scale, which is not easy to do.
“I just have a lot of A-pluses and I’ve never really had an A-minus,” she said. “I’m working really hard on this. That’s always my goal when entering a class, is to get an A-plus.
She also posted a perfect score of 1600 on her SAT.
Like her brother, Mia might end up studying pre-med in college. Drew is now a student at Taylor University, which could be a destination for Mia in the future.
With her recent rise in golf, she could also become a college golfer.
“I want to go to a small college anyway, so if I could also play golf, that would be great,” she said.
McKaig comes from a basketball family, but made the choice to pursue a college golf career during the offseason.
“Last summer I chose to play golf tournaments instead of playing AAU basketball, and that’s when I really made the decision,” said she declared.
She also traveled to Hamilton County at least once a week in the summer to work with swing coach Mike Abbott at the Bridgewater Club in Carmel.
McKaig won’t be one of the state’s biggest hitters at Prairie View Golf Club in Carmel. She said she hits her drives “about 200 yards with a good swing.”
“Keep it straight. And my short game is pretty good,” she said. “I would say my putting and my ability to get up and down really saved me on those long holes.”
She hopes to add distance to her game as she gains experience in the sport.
“I have a swing coach and our first goal was to get me to hit more consistently, but I think now he can probably help me add some yardage to my swing and I think that would just help me to take it to the next level,” she said. .
McKaig got off to a good start at the regional and managed to advance with three shots to go.
“I would just say I’ve been consistent,” she said. “My first six holes were really good. I was 1 under through my first six holes. I had a chip-in birdie and another birdie, and after that I kind of survived until the end of the round. I was tired after the first six holes, but I kept going, kept hitting the greens. My putting was really good. I think I only three-putted once. And then my drives were all so good. I hit every fairway except one. I never really played off the cuff. I think that really helped me gain some shots over the rest of the girls. I think I was just being consistent.
She also did a good job of sailing in the wind.
“I was prepared because I knew it was going to be windy and I tended to just stick with all my shots and make sure I hit it far enough, really paying attention to the wind. I think that helped me too,” she said.
She hopes to have a strong showing in her first state final with one more full year of high school golf left.
“I just want to not be close to the last one. I want to prove that I belong there and get a good score so I can feel confident,” she said. “I don’t want to feel like an impostor, like I’m not supposed to be there because I had a great round and made it. So I just want to show that I belong there.
McKaig tees off on the front nine with the first group at 8:30 a.m. Friday in Carmel. The first round will take place on Friday and the second round will take place on Saturday. All golfers play both rounds.
