My Carolina Experience: Bryana Nguyen
February 24, 2016 | Women's Golf
My Carolina Experience: Bryana Nguyen
By Zoya Johnson, GoHeels.com
Bryana Nguyen hit her first golf ball when she was eight years old.
“At the time I was more into swimming and Tae Kwan Do, but that day I was so bored in the house that I figured anything would be better than staying home,” she says. “So I went with my father to the old, run-down golf range by my house. According to him I hit that first ball like I'd been doing it for years and that was all the proof he needed that this was it for me.
“He wasted no time and enrolled me in the local First Tee program shortly thereafter, and I began balancing golf with traveling for Tae Kwan Do tournaments. At the age of 12, after earning my black belt, I decided to ease my parent's constant worries about me injuring myself doing Tae Kwan Do and focus on golf.”
By Nguyen's freshman year in high school she was one of Maryland's top golfers, placing second at states that year and the following year, then taking the title in her junior and senior years. Nguyen was also named female golfer of the year at Atholton High School as well as by the Baltimore Sun all four years of high school, and she was a three-time qualifier and medalist at the U.S. Junior Golf Championship in 2010, 2011, and 2012.
Additionally Nguyen became very involved with her First Tee program and remains a mentor to children going through its ranks to this day. As Nguyen accrued media attention through top finishes and her domination of tournaments, her mindset was to be recruited by a golf program that would not only help her continue to grow as an athlete, but as a student.
Nguyen was in the eighth grade when her parents decided they would take her to visit UNC for the first time. She had played a tournament in Pinehurst and though they did not plan the visit, Coach Jan Mann the Tar Heels' head coach, welcomed them and took time to show the family around. That spur of the moment trip was her first college visit, and as she continued to excel in the sport and garner attention from other programs it stuck with her.
“I visited Carolina a total of three times before making a verbal commitment in my junior year, but it was that first visit that stuck in my mind and made me 100 percent sure about UNC. I literally had a sense of home when I stepped in the middle of the pit. I fell for the campus and the team that felt like family. I fell for the opportunity to be coached by Coach Mann, and I fell in love with everything that came with the ability to be able to say 'I am a Tar Heel.”
As Nguyen prepares for the second half of her sophomore season at UNC, her goals have not changed. She still hopes to be able to play in every tournament for the Heels, secure All-America honors, and help her second family bring home a national trophy for Coach Mann.
In the meantime, Nguyen is in pursuit of completing her broadcast journalism degree. “It was actually a First Tee tournament featured on the Golf Channel in which I was also featured that sparked my interest in the broadcast journalism major at Carolina,” she says. “My goal is to become a professional golfer, but UNC has really opened my eyes to other opportunities post college. As a broadcast journalism major I would love to work for the Golf Channel and I feel like all the things I'm learning outside of my major are preparing me for wherever that journey might take me.
“UNC also has such a strong alumni program that has allowed me to make great connections for after school, which I think could potentially allow me to able to work in the golf and journalism worlds simultaneously. My long term goal is to start my own golf academy for kids in Vietnam where my family is from, and I think having connections like these will be a huge help in making that happen.”
Reflecting on that, Nguyen feels as though one of the biggest things she will take away from her Carolina Experience is the camaraderie she feels on campus. “It is because we all know that we are doing it for one another that we are all more willing to push not only ourselves but each other to give our best.” As such, Nguyen's advice for incoming freshmen is, “Be prepared to work hard, and stay focused on the honor and privilege that comes with being a Tar Heel.
“I really want to emphasize that not everyone has the opportunity to play a sport they love at a great school they love. It is the greatest honor to wear Carolina Blue at tournaments and to be a Tar Heel, so enjoying the experience is just as important as being mindful of what it means to have it, and I am looking forward to embracing that for the next two and a half years.”Players Mentioned
