Junior Michelle Xie, who has been playing golf for seven years, is a co-captain of the girls’ varsity golf team. After losing to Henry M. Gunn High School in the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League Tournament by two strokes, Xie led her team to a CCS championship and a birth in the state tournament. Xie shot a 69 at the CCS tournament, the lowest out of all golfers in the tournament and finished fourth in the state.
Michelle Xie: Hi my name is Michelle Xie and I am on the Paly girls’ golf team. I was co-captain this year with Annie Chen and we made it to states for the first time.
TC: So what’s your favorite color?
MX: Pink. [laughs]
TC: When did you start playing golf?
MX: I started playing golf when I was eight. I went to my first golf camp with Annie in the good old days of ‘06.
TC: Would you say you’re better at: real golf or mini golf?
MX: Real golf. I’ve never been mini golfing before.
TC: How about Wii golfing?
MX: That depends. Sometimes the sensor does not like me.
TC: What was the moment that you decided golfing was for you?
MX: When I decided that I hated running. Golf was the first thing where it’s more stationary and more slow paced. Not as much fast reaction, but more technique.
TC: Do you have some type of inspirational figure? Like Michelle Wie?
MX: I’m probably more of an Annika Sorenstam fan because she’s more business woman-y and she was number one in the world for a good couple of years.
TC: Have you ever won a tournament?
MX: I’m NorCal Champion and CCS Champion.
TC: What do you feel like after you win a tournament?
MX: I am proud of my team for placing first at CCS this year. First time coming out, we beat Gunn.
TC: You guys beat Gunn?
MX: Yes, they didn’t even make it to States.
TC: So can we draw from this evidence that Paly is better than Gunn?
MX: Probably not because they beat us in a match and they beat us in leagues by two strokes.
TC: Have you competed in any golf tournaments outside of Paly’s CCS?
MX: Yeah, I just came back from Florida a week ago at the Polo Golf Classic. That one I got into because of my grades. I was named an HP Scholastic All-American, 12th in the nation, so I got my invitation.
TC: Good job.
MX: Thanks. This summer, I went to D.C. in another invitational called the PGA Junior Championship at Trump National.
TC: PGA? That’s like a huge thing.
MX: Yeah the course I played on in Florida was PGA National.
TC: Is there anything else about golf that you find makes it interesting or enjoyable?
MX: It’s like super mental and it’s more slow paced. It’s not your stereotypical fast sport. I guess a lot of people don’t even say it’s a sport. I almost a little bit agree with them. It takes a lot more skill than you’d expect it to and I guess that’s good for me because I’m not the stereotypical athlete.
Note: Michelle Xie is a junior, not a senior as previously stated in the print newspaper and online article. This version has been corrected. We are sorry for any inconvenience.
