Ever since her parents enrolled her in a children’s golf program in her hometown of Honolulu, Hawai’i, Rose Huang’s life has revolved almost entirely around the sport. When she came to BYU, Huang was forced to balance her time between her social life, a more rigorous academic load and more intense competition on the course. The years of dedication to her sport and increased maturity have allowed Huang to develop into an elite talent and set her on a course to possibly go down one as of the best golfers in BYU history.
Though not members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Huang’s parents attended BYU-Hawaii and were somewhat familiar with the church and its members. They enrolled Huang in a golf program for children at an early age hoping she would one day be good enough to earn an athletic scholarship to attend college. Huang excelled on the course, earning recognition on the state, national and world stage with both her high school and Hawai’i state teams. She caught the eye of BYU head coach Carrie Roberts when a family friend and professor at BYU first made her known to the staff.
“I recruited her quite young,” Roberts said. “I was pregnant when we heard about her so my assistant coach went out to see her. There was a year when she kind of struggled but we hung with her.”
Huang herself acknowledged the rough season she had her junior year of high school and said she didn’t expect to receive any offers from schools. According to Huang, the amateur golf competition is fierce in the state of Hawai’i, especially among women. Many of her competitors received offers from high-profile programs such as USC and UCLA, forcing Huang to doubt her own chance of landing an offer from one of her top choices.
“Somehow BYU saw potential in me and they invited me to come for a visit that fall,” Huang said. “I came to visit in November and I loved it here. I loved the girls on the team, I loved Coach Roberts, the campus, everything about it.”
Huang’s place on BYU’s team and among college competition has never been questioned, but that doesn’t mean her transition to being a Division I student-athlete has been easy.
“It was kind of hard to have to dedicate so much time to golf,” Huang said. “The balance between school and golf had still been more school-centric for me in high school. Ever since coming to BYU, because of all the traveling during the season and having to schedule classes around these kinds of things, it’s made golf a bigger part of my life.”
Though Huang said she had to sacrifice some of her time previously spent on social interaction, her teammates and relationships within the program have helped make up for it.
“They bring me ice cream when I’m down,” Huang laughingly said. “They’re the best teammates ever. I’m sure people always say that, but because our team is so small and compact we are really close. They’re honestly the best friends I could ask for.”
As far as the academic side of things, Huang has taken on a full load and maintains a high standard for herself. She is a three-time All-American Scholar and member of the WCC Commissioner’s Honor Roll with a current GPA of 3.66. Huang is pursuing a double major in food science and global supply chain after being admitted into the Marriott School of Business over the summer.
“I would love to work in the food industry,” Huang said. “Food science is more like food production and research and development, like making new ice cream flavors and formulating a protein shake. With the supply chain major I would like to do the managing part of the food industry.”
Huang plans to stay an extra year after her golf eligibility runs out to focus solely on academics and then wants to try her hand in the pros for a little bit because, as she said, “Why not?”
Playing professionally might have seemed like a tougher prospect prior to last season, but after an appearance at NCAA Championships and setting several BYU records, the sky is the limit.
She broke the school record for the best individual season scoring average with a 71.43 last season, including three under-par performances and three top-five finishes. Huang took first place at the WCC Tournament before finishing fourth at NCAA Regionals and 21st at nationals. Her 2017-18 scoring average and career average of 72.82 both sit among the Top 50 in NCAA women’s golf history.
“I’m not at all surprised by what she’s accomplished at BYU,” Roberts said. “She is a great player and she came in good. She is just so aware and has so much knowledge of herself and her game. She knows what to do and what to fix.”
Roberts explained that while Huang has a very kind and gentle demeanor in everyday social interactions, she is able to flip the switch when it comes to golf and can outcompete anybody on the course.
“When she wants something she goes and gets it,” Roberts said. “There’s just no stopping her. If she doesn’t want you to beat her she won’t let you beat her.”
A desire visit new places and continue playing golf at a higher level led Huang to Provo, a place she has grown to love and embrace, though it took some time for her to adjust to playing golf at a higher altitude and during the winter.
“We have to layer a lot when we play in the winter,” Huang said. “I’ve played with three pairs of pants and three upper layers on and it gets really weird to swing in that.”
There are also some benefits to playing in Utah, however, like being able to hit the ball 10 percent further because the air is dryer and thinner at 4,500 feet than at the sea-level conditions she was used to. Huang noted the team has to make the conversion and then adjust their swings when they go to places like California because the ball travels differently.
Huang has used her time at BYU to not only adapt to the changes in climate and golf conditions but also to thrive and take full advantage of her surroundings. One of her hobbies is driving her car into the mountains and nature.
“My favorite place to drive through is Provo Canyon,” Huang said. “You never get sick of the view no matter the season.”
Huang’s go-to artist to listen to on her scenic drives and daily commutes is Drake, a rapper who recently came out with a new album, Scorpion.
“I’ve listened to the new album 12 times, it’s just on repeat all the time when I’m driving,” Huang said. “I like listening to “Nonstop.” There are so many good ones though. There are probably five I could listen to on repeat.”
Despite her affinity for the mountains and scenic drives through nature, Provo is just a temporary stop for Huang, as she intends to move back home or closer to the coast after her BYU career.
“Being able to move back to Hawai’i would be the ultimate end goal,” Huang said. “I feel like that’s just paradise and my parents don’t ever want to move away from there.”
Huang’s parents are the first ones to promote her golf career, however, and know that wherever she can have the best opportunities on the course and in life is the best place for their daughter to be. Right now that place is BYU – and Huang is making the most of it.