Player Profile - Sports

SCC golfer Vachelle Bryon has played golf for 14 years, and currently ranks second on the SCC women's golf team.Vachelle Byron might be one of the few golfers in history to nearly hit a monkey with a golf ball. Florida has its gators. Arizona has its cacti. Every golf course has its hazards. When you grow up playing golf in the Caribbean, monkeys in the fairways happen."My ball was right next to the monkey," Byron said, "It just stood there. I was scared of it and he would not move."Byron tossed a few golf balls its way and it eventually scampered away. Play on. Byron, 21, is a student athlete who ranked second on the Women's Golf team this semester. She was born in the Bronx and moved to the Caribbean when she was still a toddler. Growing up on the islands gave her a lot of free time after she finished with school."It is a small place, you know everyone and there is not much to do every weekend," she said, "So I played golf."She comes from a family who plays the sport.Byron first got into the game when she was seven years old. While living in the Caribbean, she was the only girl who played in any of the junior tournaments."A lot of people are surprised when I tell them that," she said.The 14 years of playing have seemed to pay off as the last tournament she played in she won, a highlight for her season so far, she says."My game has been improving," Byron says, because of her commitment to improvement and her coach."I am really happy with the program here," she said.Byron came to SCC when her uncle was looking for a good college that could offer a golf program. The decision came down to Arizona and Texas."The coach here responded and sounded more interested," she said.In time Byron wants to work towards a full athletic scholarship to Wake Forrest in North Carolina, looking to use her ability on the golf course as a tool to further her future.Outside of golf, Byron's creative side gets her attention."I love being on the computer and creating stuff," Byron said.Though she misses home, she says she is happy with how she gets along with everyone on her team.She is hoping to improve her swing, chipping onto the green and fine-tuning her short game. But that does not mean you will ever catch her playing mini-golf often."Yes I do play," she admits, "but actually, I am terrible at it. People who don't play golf are usually better than me at it."

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Player Profile - Sports