WEATHERFORD —  

As often as Keegan Moore’s name comes up in a frame of reference having to do with area golfers, it is almost hard to believe the Weatherford High School student-athlete is just entering her junior year. But that is also a great thing, as the Roos’ head golf coach, Mike Dunsworth would likely agree. Moore has been the ace of the Weatherford girl’s golf team for the past two years, and with the play of her WHS teammates, the girls have carded top finishes with good frequency. They trounced the competition in District 3-5A play last Spring, earning a trip to the regional tourney at Texas Tech.

With the summer comes the Junior PGA events, and Keegan has spent most of her summer honing her skills while capturing more accolades on the local tour. She won the Weatherford Optimist Club Junior Tournament, following up with a first-place finish in the North Texas Optimist World Championship Qualifier, which earned her a berth at The Optimist International Junior Championships in Florida.

Unfortunately, Moore had to decline the invitation to the tournament, which concludes Sunday in Florida, due to prior commitments, but is resolved to earn a return reservation to the tourney, next summer. Weatherford was represented this year, as Moore’s WHS teammate, Jaquelin “Jake” Strickland, made the trip to the PGA National Resort in Palm Beach Gardens.

Keegan’s accomplishments come with a heavy workload, a necessary ingredient for consistent success.

“I practice every day, usually two to four hours,” she said. “My practice [sessions] are not always the same. I always try to work on everything, but if I’m having a problem area, I will usually concentrate on that part of my game.

“Like right now, I’m working more on putting because that’s what needs the most improvement. I feel like my irons are solid, and my chipping is pretty good, but I’m hitting too many putts. If I could reduce those, I think I could start shooting rounds in the 60’s and low 70’s. 

And Keegan’s best club?

“That’s a really tough question,” she said, when asked about her preferred club when standing over the ball. “But I guess the pitching wedge is what I have the most confidence in.”

Moore’s workout regimen consists of more than just swinging a club. Common to most athletes who specialize in one sport, she has to take care of the whole vehicle. 

“I usually work out for about an hour in the mornings before I practice golf,” Moore said. “I had a trainer set up a specific work out for me. It involves working with weights and doing some cardio[vascular] exercises, as well. The weights are more for muscle toning so I can maintain my flexibility.”

Considering the relatively short time Moore has been playing the game, the goal of sub-par rounds looks to be within her grasp as her skills improve. First picking up a club at around eight-years old, she really only considered embracing golf as her sport about three years ago. Her final summer competitive effort, earning a first-place finish concluded with a round of 76.

To help tweak her swing, Moore gets a professional opinion on a consistent basis.

“About once a week, sometimes every other week I work with Charlie Mack, in Fort Worth,” she said. “I’ve been working with him for about two years now. I’ve actually known him a lot longer than that though. He used to work with my sister, who also plays golf.”

Aside from the Optimist tourneys, some of Keegan’s other accomplishments this summer include an overall eighth-place finish in the championship flight of the Fort Worth City Junior Girls Championship. Her stiffest competition of the summer came at the Texas-Oklahoma Junior Open, held in Wichita Falls. In a large, talented field playing four rounds of golf, Moore competed well, finishing in the top 25. At least four past winners in the tournament, opened to a girls division in 1984, are now members of the LPGA. 

“That was a really good experience for me,” Moore said. “It’s not that often I am in a tournament where there are so many golfers, and all of them are so good. It was fun to play with girls that had accomplished so many things already, and just had a really good game. 

“One of the reasons I enjoyed it so much, I knew going in the competition was going to be tough. It’s good to play with that kind pressure because in other tournaments, you don’t feel it as much when you know the players aren’t going to be as good.”

With few exceptions, Keegan has played in tournaments weekly since the summer began, most in the PGA Junior circuit. Though she has done notably well in many other tourneys during the span, including a high finish in Abilene, a touch of modesty has prevented her from sharing all her successes. She won three North Texas Junior PGA events.

With the close of summer competition, Moore will soon turn her attentions back to high school contention, as part of the Lady Roos golf team. She looks forward to the season, which includes playing a new set of teams in a revamped district. The Weatherford junior looks for the team’s return to regionals, with an eye on the state tourney.  

“I’m really looking forward to the coming year, and hope we can repeat as the district champions,” she said. “We will be going up against some different teams. I probably have played against some of the girls from the schools in our [new] district, but don’t really know for sure.”

No matter. Concentrating on their respective games will be the watch-word for the team. The team itself gives Keegan plenty to look forward to, unchanged since last Spring.

“Our team will be the same as it was last year,” she said. “Jaquelin, Maggie (Edison) and Hannah (Ransear) will be seniors this year, and Katy (Swan) and I will be playing together for another year. 

“We all get along really well and are pretty close. We hang out together and it’s really nice to have friends like that to play golf with.”

Spending time on the golf course with friends is a good thing — always. And picking up a trophy, with a few medals, to boot, just makes it all the better.