Cleveland golfer Kyra Ly, sophomore, was named Oregon Junior Golf Player of the Year by the Oregon Golf Association. The award is the OGA’s top honor and is given to one boy and one girl every year. When she first found out, it’s safe to say Ly was taken aback. “The rest of the girls were about two or three years older than me, so winning this was kind of surprising,” she said. 

“I am so proud of Kyra and can’t think of a better person to receive this award,” said Cleveland golf coach, Lauri Hausafus. 

Ly has placed high in multiple tournaments throughout the year and maintains a +1 handicap.

 “Watching Kyra play you realize she is something special. She is a serious competitor, yet she always looks like she is enjoying her time on the course with her opponents. Other players respect her,” said Hausafus.

Other adult players respect her too, as she has garnered attention from professional golfers watching her. With all the buzz surrounding her, one would assume there’s an added pressure when she plays. 

“Once you start getting better people expect you to start doing better, and playing better, and being at the top of the leaderboard, so maybe there is a little bit,” Ly said. 

Ly maintains her status by sticking to a weekly training schedule. She has lessons once a week, and does workout training with a trainer once a week as well. She also practices on her own as much as possible (every day after school, if she can) and goes to the gym three times a week. All this hard work paid off, as she has first place finishes in multiple prestigious tournaments this year, such as the 2019 Adidas Junior All-Star event, the 2019 Oregon Junior Stroke Play event, and the 89th Bob Norquist Oregon Jr. Am.

Ly aspires to continue golf after high school and wants her career to be golf related, whether that means going pro or otherwise. 

“If Kyra can maintain her work ethic, motivation and continue growth in the game, I see her playing in college and even going all the way to the LPGA. I believe great things lie ahead for this young lady,” Hausafus said.