It’s not every day a teenager gets to meet her role model, much less at Augusta National Golf Club.
That’s exactly what happened to Mackenzie McRee.
The 14-year-old Tucsonan took part in the Drive, Chip and Putt Championship Finals on April 1 at Augusta National, home of the Masters. McRee ended up tying for seventh place.
“It was really exciting because I had been trying to go for the last five years and this was the first year I was able to go,” Mackenzie said.
While there, McRee met professional golfer Stacy Lewis. Lewis invited the Our Mother of Sorrows eighth-grader to an awards dinner. McRee has something in common with Lewis, a Ben Hogan Award-winner: Both have scoliosis.
Lewis underwent surgery to correct her scoliosis after high school, and went on to star at the University of Arkansas and play professionally. McRee wears a back brace as a means to help her condition and avoid surgery.
Lewis was an “amazing role model and everything,” said MJ McRee, Mackenzie’s mom. “She spent time talking to Mackenzie and it was just awesome.”
McRee wears her brace for 90 minutes a day. Before October, her commitment was an astounding 21 hours a day. She only took the brace off for P.E. class and to golf, MJ McRee said.
McRee started playing golf when she was 3. She grew up watching the Masters with her dad Jim, who describes the week-long tournament as the adult Disneyland. She said playing Augusta National was both a privilege and a learning experience. McRee figured out how to block out the cameras and crowd.
Now, “I can just focus on my golf game,” she said.
The McRees spent Monday watching Masters competitors play their practice rounds. They met big names like pro golfers Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas, and former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, one of Augusta’s first female members.
McRee has another doctor’s appointment later this month to determine if she has to continue using her back brace on a daily basis. Either way, she hopes to continue to play golf in high school and college.
“Just the whole experience was really fun and exciting, and I hope to get to go again next year,” she said.
