KAYLA BAKKER | Reporter 

Last season, Dakota Limkemann, junior on the women’s golf team, finished first at the MIAA conference tournament and is favored to win again this season. This season Limkemann has played 16 rounds and has an average of 79.06. Learn more about Limkemann and watch as she demonstrates how to swing a golf club.

Sport: Women’s Golf

Birthplace: West Point, Illinois

Year in school: Junior

Major: Accounting

Q: How long have you been playing golf?

A: “I started playing competitively my freshman year of high school.”

Q: How did you get started in golf?

A: “I didn’t want to run track when I was in eighth grade, so my parents told me I needed to do something, and I started taking golf lessons.”

Q: Why did you choose to play golf for Lindenwood?

A: “I really liked the program and how coach Weber encouraged not just the athletics, but also the academic side. Lindenwood has a beautiful campus and the small class size was great for me because I came from a tiny high school. And I connected well with the other players.”

Q: What are your thoughts on the upcoming MIAA tournament?

A: “Well right now I feel like it’s important to focus on the tournaments that are coming this weekend. I think it’s just as important as the conference tournament and just taking each day at a time because the conditions up to this point haven’t been great that we have been playing in, so it’s been kind of hard to get a good feel. We haven’t been able to get a lot of practice outside, so definitely anticipating it, but taking it one day at a time.”

Q: Last season you finished first in the tournament, how do you plan on continuing that success?

A: “I think like I just said, taking it one day at a time, not really thinking about it and not going in with that expectation. Just going in playing one hole, one shot at a time and trying not to think about what happened last year. I think I’d rather go in and win as a team whether that means someone else is stepping it up and winning it. I think it would be great to win as a team.”

Q: What do you love most about golf?

A: “There are a lot of things I enjoy about golf. I think it has definitely taken me to a lot of cool places and I got to meet a lot of cool people through it. The beauty of the different courses and the creation, that’s pretty amazing. Just the fact that with our competition, it’s different than any other sport. You are on the golf course with people for five hours in one day, so you get pretty close relationships.”

Q: What has been the most memorable moment of your sports career?

A: “I feel like I have had a lot of memorable moments. Obviously winning conference was cool, but to be completely honest, whenever I think back on my career, it’s kind of one that’s forgotten about. I think some of the cool moments that we have had last year coming into conference on the third round we had the best round of the whole tournament of all the teams and came back from being in third or fourth I believe. Last year, opening tournament, watching Natalie shoot 66 was super cool. Breaking a team record my freshman year. We’ve done a lot of cool things here. Having the highest GPA of all the women’s golf teams in the country.”

Q: Do you have any game day routines or superstitions?

A: “Not really. Just trying to stay calm and be in prayer.”

Q: What advice would you give younger players?

A: “My advice would be to keep pursuing it if it’s what you are loving. It’s not always going to be easy, just like life, but it is definitely rewarding.”

The women’s golf team competes in the UMSL Triton Invitational on April 8 and 9 before traveling to Kansas City, Missouri, for the MIAA Conference Tournament April 23 through April 25.