Las Vegas, Nev. (Feb. 23, 2015)—It seems like it was just yesterday that Mackenzie Mack was toiling in the fairways of Las Vegas golf courses as a high school student. Flash forward some 10 years and the transformation from a student looking for a path to follow to a woman leading others down a path to success is impressive. She is now an author and has started organizations that help youth get into the game just the way she did. –By Bill Bowman
“I really never saw the full picture of what I would be doing, but I knew golf would be part of that picture,” she said. “I knew golf was something I wanted to stay with and I wanted to make a difference like The First Tee made a difference in my life. I get to do what I love to do.”
Mack’s early days in golf were impressive. She competed in the Girl's America Cup team from southern Nevada for four straight years. “That’s when I thought golf was for me,” she said. “I was 12 or 13 and most of the girls were 15-year-olds.” She also represented the First Tee of Southern Nevada in the First Tee Open at Pebble Beach in back-to-back events.
After high school graduation, Mack went on to compete at Indiana State University. A 2010 graduate, she majored in marketing and added in a couple of minors–finance and Spanish. Oh, and then there’s the whole magna cum laude honors as well. But, she wasn’t finished. Not by a longshot. She went on to receive her master’s in Business Administration. As if that wasn’t enough, she also found time to spend a season as an assistant golf coach and also co-founded a non-profit called Tee It Up which focuses on underserved communities.
Now, the 27-year-old (“My kids I work with really think I’m old”) is currently the program director at The First Tee of Tampa Bay as well as the coach at Blake High School in Tampa. She’s had both of these jobs since 2012.
She turned pro in 2012 and has spent time on the Symetra Tour. She is an LPGA-certified instructor and is also the author of two books: ‘Women’s Golf College Directory’ and ‘Men’s Golf College Directory’ which help kids find college that their needs and goals.
“The First Tee has given me a story to tell,” she said. “And I just want to share that story with others. There are so many opportunities in this great game and I want to help spread the word.”