Hunter and Jake Chen’s brotherly banter dates back at least a decade.
The twin brothers and Mica Mountain High School seniors can go back and forth on just about everything — especially one topic: golf.
Funnily enough, it was one of those moments of “brothers being brothers” that led to both playing golf in the first place.
As kids, Hunter started playing golf first after being introduced to the sport by their dad. And even several years later, he can still recall when he came home with a new set of Titleist AP clubs.
That’s when Jake felt a twinge of jealousy.
“It’s almost like a brotherly thing, I saw Hunter doing it, and I was like, ‘You know what? I want to do this now. I want a new shiny thing,’” Jake said. “I was like, ‘He’s getting new clubs. I want new clubs. I might as well play.’”
The two have played golf for almost 10 years now.
“It blossomed from there into more of the individual competitive side of golf,” Hunter said. “And then once (we) got to high school, it was kind of a no-brainer to play golf.”
Hunter Chen, left, watches his twin brother Jake take some swings on the practice range at Fred Enke Golf Course, Sept. 13, in Tucson.
The 17-year-olds are completing their last year as Thunderbolts, which they both describe as “bittersweet.”
Some of their notable scores this season include Hunter’s 37 (+1) for 3358 yards on nine holes in an Aug. 26 match against Catalina Foothills, Rincon/University and Salpointe Catholic high schools. Followed by Jake’s 35 (-1) for 3266 yards on nine holes against Sahuaro High School on Aug. 28.
Matt Johnson, Mica Mountain’s head boys golf coach, says the brothers can “mash the golf ball” and could be some of the longest hitters in the state. As a team, the twins say Mica Mountain found itself struggling a little bit at the beginning of the season.
Since then, the team has buckled down and earned the No. 9 ranking in Arizona.
“I’ve been very fortunate to be around not only these two, but we’ve got a lot of seniors,” Johnson said. “They all came in together as freshmen, and just to watch them grow over the last four years, it has been a lot of fun. They keep me on my toes, but, for four years, I’ve been very lucky to have this many seniors and we spent a lot of good quality time together.”
The Thunderbolts have five more matches until the regular season wraps up on Oct. 21 against Cienega High School.
“This is probably our best season that we’ve had so far, just in terms of, I think there are a majority of seniors on our team, and we’ve been playing all four years together, I think we’ve really meshed,” Hunter said. “I honestly think this hopefully can be our best finish yet. I think we’re doing pretty good right now.”
But what’s it really like being on a team with your brother?
“It’s probably the best and worst thing you can possibly do,” Jake joked. “Because we’ve been competing with each other since we first started playing golf. And maybe it’s a sibling thing to want to be better than your other sibling. So, we get pretty heated at each other. I’d say there’s been times where there’s a lot of, like, smack talk going on, and I think it’s super competitive. But then also, it kind of brings you both up in a way, it makes us both want to be better, especially than the other person. You know each other’s tendencies and so on. … I know why he does certain things. So, if I’ve noticed something’s wrong, or I think he’s doing something wrong, then I can correct him. It makes it a lot easier to fix each other as we go.”
Jake Chen gets in some work on the practice tees at Fred Enke Golf Course, Sept. 13, in Tucson.
The two branched out from Thunderbolts Golf this past weekend after they were selected to compete in the PURE Insurance Championship (First Tee Boys division) in Pebble Beach, California.
They were two of just five Tucson youth golfers picked to compete in the championship. Only 80 youth golfers were selected in total.
Jake shot 67 in the first round and 70 in the second round, leading to a total of -7. Hunter shot 73 in round one and 72 in round two for a total of +1.
Both were cut from the competition after the second round.
Ahead of the championship, the brothers were feeling excited about the opportunity to learn from professionals and play at Pebble Beach, which is rated the No. 1 public course in the U.S.
“Well, originally it was just supposed to be me. I’m kind of a little butthurt about him getting in, but that’s the sibling side,” Hunter joked. “But I’m really excited for just the experience in general. I feel like meeting all sorts of different kids from pretty much across the world is just really cool. … I think it’s a great learning experience to just build connections.”
Hunter Chen gets in some work on the practice tees at Fred Enke Golf Course, Sept. 13. Hunter and his twin brother Jake competed in the PURE Insurance Championship at Pebble Beach.
Swinging for success
Golf plays a big role in each of their lives, but it’s not the only extracurricular activity they’re a part of.
Hunter is involved in the school’s welding, student leadership and AP clubs, along with the National Honor Society.
Jake participates in many of the same activities as his brother, with the addition of Mica Mountain’s culinary and Family, Career and Community Leaders of America programs.
Unsurprisingly, the two even share the exact same GPA: 5.02.
While the brothers admit it can be challenging at times to balance golf, extracurriculars and school, they say prioritizing is the key to success.
“We try and take the same classes, so both of us being in there, it’s like, ‘Oh, we forgot this. Oh, we’re doing this in another class,’” Jake said. “So, I think that also helps being able to have another person there and then just having that main academic focus — especially that — that’s what we’ve been taught all of our life, just a huge emphasis on academics.”
Jake, left, and Hunter Chen, pose for a photo on the practice green at Fred Enke Golf Course, Sept. 13. The two are seniors at Mica Mountain High School.
But make no mistake, the twins are still teenagers who like to do “regular dude stuff” in their spare time, they say. Whether that’s eating Wingstop and watching a UFC fight or playing pickleball or golf with friends.
At the moment, they’re unsure if they’ll pursue collegiate golf after high school. Instead, they hope to focus on their studies and become engineers.
However, that doesn’t mean they won’t continue golf recreationally. Golf will always be a mainstay in their lives, especially in their free time.
“(I like) the challenge because, to be honest, golf is really hard,” Hunter said. “But even looking through the storm, I feel like the ability to test yourself physically and mentally, it’s pretty cool. I don’t think very many sports can do that as often as golf, because golf changes every day.”
Fast Five with Hunter and Jake
Who are your top three favorite golfers?
H: Bryson DeChambeau, Rory McIlroy and Michael La Sasso
J: Justin Thomas, Scottie Scheffler and J.J. Spaun
(Hunter’s response to his brother’s choices? “[Scottie Scheffler] wins all the time, like he hits in the fairway. I need someone who hits it in the rough a couple of times, you know, hits it in the trees every once in a while, someone who’s like me. It’s got to be relatable.”)
What is your favorite golf club?
H: My driver, man. The big dog.
J: I think I’ll go putter right now.
What is your favorite golf course?
H: Fred Enke. We spent our whole lives playing Fred Enke; it’s kind of like the bread and butter. It’s hard not to put it up in my favorite golf courses. It’s just nostalgic.
J: Fred Enke. I think I’ve played that course thousands of times. I could play it every day and I’d still never get tired.
If you could golf anywhere in the world, where would you like to golf?
H: I want to be more exotic. I want to go to Australia. Like, Down Under, go and see a kangaroo when I play, it’ll be cool. Just somewhere different, a change of scenery. I think that’d be awesome. Anywhere outside the U.S. would probably be super fun to play.
J: Anywhere in California. I think their golf is just out of this world.
What is your current favorite class?
H: I know it’s a hard class, but my calculus class. I think it’s the teacher. He does a good job at teaching. I just have a bunch of fun in this class. I think it’s a hard topic, but he makes it relatable. And the ability to relate math to the real world, in my opinion, is just kind of interesting.
J: Our engineering (class) that we’re in. It’s awesome. The teacher’s awesome. We just get to build a bunch of stuff.
