At the age of 7, Marlton resident Morgan Hambrecht was learning simply how to hold a golf club.
Seven years later, she has become one of the best female golfers who has yet to start high school.
Hambrecht, 14, spent the summer of 2014 winning tournament after tournament on the South Jersey Junior Tour. She won so many tournaments, she was asked to move up to the high school level in 2015 and compete with girls as many as four years older than her.
“I had to move up to high school because I kept getting first place every single time,” Hambrecht said.
Even the move up to high school has not slowed Hambrecht this season. She finished in second place in her division at the Old York Classic in Chesterfield on July 7, finishing just five strokes behind Giselle Castro, a rising senior from Westampton. Her solid performances this season have her battling Castro and rising junior Megan Duman for the season’s points lead.
Competing with and outscoring experienced high school golfers has been the latest triumph in Hambrecht’s young golf career. She started playing as a youngster at The Links in Medford after her dad got her interested in the sport.
“I started watching him and I just took some lessons,” Hambrecht said. “Learning how to hold the club and stuff like that. Now it’s something I play normally.”
It took a few years for Hambrecht to become fully comfortable with the sport. There were a number of elements she struggled to pick up at first.
“It’s a really hard game to play because it takes a lot of skill and a lot of mind,” Hambrecht said. “You can hit really bad or hit really well. It’s just different every time and it’s hard to keep track.”
About four years ago, Hambrecht brought Brad Hare of the South Jersey Junior Tour on board as her coach and began competing in tournaments. She credits this change as the turning point in her game.
“When I started playing on South Jersey Junior Tour, Brad really helped me,” Hambrecht said. “Brad’s the best coach I’ve had because he knows how to have a fun time but at the same time he knows the game a lot.”
The biggest improvement Hambrecht made in the last few years has been with getting off the tee. For a long time, many of Hambrecht’s iron shots would head right. She said Hare helped to rectify this problem.
“He helped me with the irons and getting off the tee,” she said. “I always hit them really right and I had no idea why. He figured that out for me and it’s helped my swing a lot.”
Hambrecht is continuing to work on different facets of her game. Right now, she dedicates a lot of time to chipping and putting. She can be found practicing her short game regularly on the practice green at Indian Spring Country Club.
Hambrecht is continuing to improve her game as she moves into high school in the fall. Her goal is to join Cherokee’s golf team next spring. Competing with high school players on the South Jersey Junior Tour has been very beneficial.
“I’ve been known as the upcoming freshman,” she said. “It’s not overwhelming, though. I’ve been able to keep up with (the older players). I’m only a couple strokes behind the seniors, and I’ve been working really hard to get better and better this summer.”
Playing for the Chiefs is the next step in what Hambrecht hopes is a lifelong relationship with the sport of golf.
“I d like to play in college and I’d like to do it as a career,” she said. “Any type of thing, even if I could just be a clubhouse instructor and teach other girls.”
