Golf is an intense mental game. Each time a professional golfer approaches the ball, they know they are doing so alone.
At the collegiate level, players have the unique opportunity to share their game with a team. While players can’t help each other swing the club, there is a strength in knowing your team will be there to celebrate with you at the end of the day.
UF sophomore golfer Jessica Guiser and redshirt sophomore Addison Klonowski plan to pass down the lesson of teamwork to a new generation of Gators.
In her first season, Guiser accomplished a feat completed by only one other woman in UF history: winning the Gator Invitational her freshman year.
She didn’t represent the UF team at the tournament, but the team and its fans still rallied around her as an individual participant.
“I still had people supporting me,” Guiser said. “A bunch of Gator fans were still out there, and the team was still there.”
She hopes to give incoming freshmen the same support, she said. Former P.K. Yonge golfer Katelyn Huber is among those Guiser is excited to welcome.
“I love her already, so I’m definitely looking forward to helping her integrate into our team,” Guiser said.
Guiser credits her coach, Emily Glaser, with helping her acclimate in her first year. After 14 years with the Gators, Glaser has her fair share of experience with developing young players, she said.
“There’s a couple of things we do for the freshmen,” Glaser said. “We try to be great communicators that set parameters and guidelines that will help them.”
Her goal is to create an environment where freshmen aren’t scared to fail, she said, which gives them the freedom to succeed and grow.
“One thing that's easier your freshman year is to keep low expectations because everything's new,” she said.
Glaser and her staff began the search for the 2027 recruiting class June 15. During her time at UF, she developed her recruiting style to go beyond the surface-level factors of a potential recruit.
“I think you realize there's a ton more variables that go into it than just someone who shoots low scores,” Glaser said. “Sometimes the person who shoots the lowest scores, they may not be a great teammate, and in college, it’s team golf.”
Addison Klonowski was one player Glaser saw as someone whose character goes beyond the golf course. After spending a year at Indiana University to focus on academics, Klonowski returned to her home state to compete for Florida.
After redshirting in Spring 2024, she prepared for her first collegiate golf season, where she led the team in top-10 finishes and rounds under par. In the Gators’ National Championship appearance, she carded the lowest round by a freshman since 2005.
“I feel like now, as a sophomore, I can definitely share my experiences and some advice to the freshmen as well,” she said.
Redshirt junior Karoline Tuttle, Klonowski’s friend and teammate, aided her transition from student to student-athlete.
The pair met competing in junior tournaments around Florida at 11 years old. They continue to encourage one another on and off the course.
“We definitely support each other,” Klonowski said. “We're always helping each other, making sure that we're getting those good grades in.”
As they move into their second year on the team, Guiser and Klonowski will take on a new status as veterans. While still looking to their older peers as mentors, they will be responsible for guiding younger players as they adjust to college life.
They will also seek to accomplish things beyond their freshman victories. Glaser encourages the women on her team to focus on improving the process by which they compete rather than focusing on specific goals like a certain score or winning a tournament.
In college, Glaser was an All-American, a four-time All-Big Ten and the 1999 Big Ten Freshman of the Year, so she’s familiar with the pressures of the game.
“Sophomore year, you're a little older and wiser,” Glaser said. “I think managing those expectations is really important, not comparing it to what you did the year before and not looking too far ahead.”
Contact Brooke Bastedo at bbastedo@alligator.org. Follow her on X @BrookeBastedo.
