University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Family Serves as Centerpiece of Julie Baker's Career
3/11/2021 5:06:00 PM | Women's Golf
HATTIESBURG, Miss. -- Everyone's experiences from a young age shape their future, and for Southern Miss senior women's golfer Julie Baker, the game, as well as school spirit, have always been in her blood.
"My (paternal) grandpa, dad and that side of the family all played golf," Baker said. "We would go and hang out and I would watch. It started when my dad took my sister and I to the range. I was always involved in sports when I was younger, but when I was 10 I started hitting with them and really enjoyed it. I would go every time he went. I realized I wanted to do that instead of other sports, as well as how there weren't as many girls in golf. I set goals to try to make the middle and high school teams."
Baker, a native of Hoover, Ala., certainly exceeded Division I expectations for those her age, and the recruiting process was a bit of a whirlwind as she learned about it through girls in older classes.
"A lot of them had the idea you had to reach out to as many coaches as soon as possible," she said. "It was around my sophomore year where you could email them, but they couldn't really call you. It had to be September of my junior year. The whole point was to annoy them to the point where they knew who you were, what you've played in and what you've done."
And in her own words, Southern Miss was "always at the top of the list." Baker said the family would always come in for a football game and visit family during the year, including holidays, up to four or five times annually. Included in that were campus stops.
"My mom went here and my grandparents lived in Hattiesburg," she said. "I think they had already signed three for the year, so it was a little late, but I really wanted to go here. I did an unofficial visit when Julie Gallup was the coach here, and I was way younger. I don't think I ever had a visit with (Erika) Brennan, but I already knew so much about the school and that I wanted to be here. When she called me, I was like 'yep, I'm good.' My parents could tell how happy I was here."
Baker earned the distinction of qualifying for her first-career tournament, the Jim West Challenge in San Marcos, Texas, in her freshman debut. While she described it as "terrifying, but really exciting," she finished with a modest 9-over 222 to tie for 44th. Even better, her father and grandpa were able to attend.
In fact, her parents try to come to every tournament within a five-or-so-hour drive, including ones this year at Mercer and in West Point (which helps since Baker's sister attends Mississippi State), and one in New Orleans that served as last year's finale before COVID-19 shut it all down. Overall, they will attend three or four per year.Â
Head coach Lucy Burke, who was hired prior to Baker's sophomore year, has also noted the familial bonds that transcend the course.
"For us not having any native Mississippians, she's as close as they come," Burke said. "We can't go anywhere without someone saying 'do you know Julie Baker? Because we hang out with Grandpa Larry all the time,' so it's that small community of Hattiesburg and Southern Miss in a nutshell. For her growing up with the background, it's huge. She definitely bleeds the Black and Gold and will forever, which is a very cool trait. To see her progress from when I first got here to really grow into her own, it's been huge and a lot of fun to be a part of."
While this past summer was a trying one nationwide, there was a shining light in it all. Baker captured the 88th Alabama Women's State Amateur title on July 9 in Huntsville, while her father caddied for her. When asked about their dynamic, she laughed at how it has evolved.
"Before I went to college, when he caddied for me, he was more of a 'this would be better' type and have more input," Baker said. "Now that I've gone to college and I don't have a caddy, I do everything myself. I know my game inside and out. When I played in that one, I said 'this is what we're gonna do.'
"He's super helpful because he sees things from a different perspective. He has a great memory too. He remembers every shot I've ever hit in detail, and while I have to write it down, he will remember yesterday and the day before. He's my motivator and my cheerleader, and when I hit a bad shot, he says 'you have another one.' He's very consistent and easy-going."
That trophy is one of three significant honors Baker has earned in her career. Two weeks after that aforementioned collegiate debut in Texas, she competed in the William Carey Collegiate as an individual and claimed the title thanks to a school-record 7-under 65 round. Not long after, she finished third at the 40th-annual FIU Pat Bradley Invitational to help the team to the title and a then-program-record 873, collecting C-USA Golfer of the Week honors.
"I remember it vividly; it was the last one of the fall semester," Baker said. "They told us they were gonna cancel the last day because of how bad the weather was supposed to be, so with a possible 36 holes to finish it off, we were kind of freaking out. I remember our coach saying to expect the worst and see what happens. It was the prettiest day ever and we played out of our minds. I still look at those pictures all the time.
Four tournaments remain on this year's schedule, starting with the Allstate Sugar Bowl Intercollegiate in New Orleans (Sunday-Tuesday) and concluding with the C-USA Championships in Fort Myers, Florida, from April 18-21. When it is time to put away the clubs from a competitive standpoint, Baker will seek a career in nursing.
"Originally, I wanted to do labor and delivery or neonatal with moms, but I talked to some people in the field and think I would enjoy being an ER nurse," she said. "It's all-around, you get to see everything, and it's super fast-paced. I have family in the medical field, and everyone tells me I have the personality for a nurse because I'm super positive and I can talk to a wall. I have a caring personality and like to help people. That's the perfect path for me."
Hattiesburg will always be an extra hometown, and her presence will leave an impact no matter where the road takes her.
"It'll break my heart when I graduate," she said. "But I've always wanted to keep up with these people forever, following them on social media and their scores when they're still here. One of my teammates when I first got here is now engaged. Being with them for four years has been amazing. I only knew two people coming here, not including my team. Those friendships are a big deal."
"My (paternal) grandpa, dad and that side of the family all played golf," Baker said. "We would go and hang out and I would watch. It started when my dad took my sister and I to the range. I was always involved in sports when I was younger, but when I was 10 I started hitting with them and really enjoyed it. I would go every time he went. I realized I wanted to do that instead of other sports, as well as how there weren't as many girls in golf. I set goals to try to make the middle and high school teams."
Baker, a native of Hoover, Ala., certainly exceeded Division I expectations for those her age, and the recruiting process was a bit of a whirlwind as she learned about it through girls in older classes.
"A lot of them had the idea you had to reach out to as many coaches as soon as possible," she said. "It was around my sophomore year where you could email them, but they couldn't really call you. It had to be September of my junior year. The whole point was to annoy them to the point where they knew who you were, what you've played in and what you've done."
And in her own words, Southern Miss was "always at the top of the list." Baker said the family would always come in for a football game and visit family during the year, including holidays, up to four or five times annually. Included in that were campus stops.
"My mom went here and my grandparents lived in Hattiesburg," she said. "I think they had already signed three for the year, so it was a little late, but I really wanted to go here. I did an unofficial visit when Julie Gallup was the coach here, and I was way younger. I don't think I ever had a visit with (Erika) Brennan, but I already knew so much about the school and that I wanted to be here. When she called me, I was like 'yep, I'm good.' My parents could tell how happy I was here."
Baker earned the distinction of qualifying for her first-career tournament, the Jim West Challenge in San Marcos, Texas, in her freshman debut. While she described it as "terrifying, but really exciting," she finished with a modest 9-over 222 to tie for 44th. Even better, her father and grandpa were able to attend.
In fact, her parents try to come to every tournament within a five-or-so-hour drive, including ones this year at Mercer and in West Point (which helps since Baker's sister attends Mississippi State), and one in New Orleans that served as last year's finale before COVID-19 shut it all down. Overall, they will attend three or four per year.Â
Head coach Lucy Burke, who was hired prior to Baker's sophomore year, has also noted the familial bonds that transcend the course.
"For us not having any native Mississippians, she's as close as they come," Burke said. "We can't go anywhere without someone saying 'do you know Julie Baker? Because we hang out with Grandpa Larry all the time,' so it's that small community of Hattiesburg and Southern Miss in a nutshell. For her growing up with the background, it's huge. She definitely bleeds the Black and Gold and will forever, which is a very cool trait. To see her progress from when I first got here to really grow into her own, it's been huge and a lot of fun to be a part of."
While this past summer was a trying one nationwide, there was a shining light in it all. Baker captured the 88th Alabama Women's State Amateur title on July 9 in Huntsville, while her father caddied for her. When asked about their dynamic, she laughed at how it has evolved.
"Before I went to college, when he caddied for me, he was more of a 'this would be better' type and have more input," Baker said. "Now that I've gone to college and I don't have a caddy, I do everything myself. I know my game inside and out. When I played in that one, I said 'this is what we're gonna do.'
"He's super helpful because he sees things from a different perspective. He has a great memory too. He remembers every shot I've ever hit in detail, and while I have to write it down, he will remember yesterday and the day before. He's my motivator and my cheerleader, and when I hit a bad shot, he says 'you have another one.' He's very consistent and easy-going."
That trophy is one of three significant honors Baker has earned in her career. Two weeks after that aforementioned collegiate debut in Texas, she competed in the William Carey Collegiate as an individual and claimed the title thanks to a school-record 7-under 65 round. Not long after, she finished third at the 40th-annual FIU Pat Bradley Invitational to help the team to the title and a then-program-record 873, collecting C-USA Golfer of the Week honors.
"I remember it vividly; it was the last one of the fall semester," Baker said. "They told us they were gonna cancel the last day because of how bad the weather was supposed to be, so with a possible 36 holes to finish it off, we were kind of freaking out. I remember our coach saying to expect the worst and see what happens. It was the prettiest day ever and we played out of our minds. I still look at those pictures all the time.
Four tournaments remain on this year's schedule, starting with the Allstate Sugar Bowl Intercollegiate in New Orleans (Sunday-Tuesday) and concluding with the C-USA Championships in Fort Myers, Florida, from April 18-21. When it is time to put away the clubs from a competitive standpoint, Baker will seek a career in nursing.
"Originally, I wanted to do labor and delivery or neonatal with moms, but I talked to some people in the field and think I would enjoy being an ER nurse," she said. "It's all-around, you get to see everything, and it's super fast-paced. I have family in the medical field, and everyone tells me I have the personality for a nurse because I'm super positive and I can talk to a wall. I have a caring personality and like to help people. That's the perfect path for me."
Hattiesburg will always be an extra hometown, and her presence will leave an impact no matter where the road takes her.
"It'll break my heart when I graduate," she said. "But I've always wanted to keep up with these people forever, following them on social media and their scores when they're still here. One of my teammates when I first got here is now engaged. Being with them for four years has been amazing. I only knew two people coming here, not including my team. Those friendships are a big deal."
Players Mentioned
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