Unsung Hero: Girls Golf's Danielle Freed Puts in Hard Work to Succeed

Golf is more a game of self than anything else. Individual play combines with self-esteem, thinking to oneself and the all-important: self improvement. Spring-Ford junior Danielle Freed is a prime example of taking self improvement to the max to improve her golf game.

This past summer, Freed's parents got her a junior membership to a local golf club. According to Freed and her head coach Patty Lebow, she used it almost every day and the improvements are showing.

"The reason I joined was because I love golf," said Freed, who started playing when she was in eighth grade under the inspiration of her father. "I went there pretty much every day, used it a lot. I became better than I was before I joined, so it helped me improve a lot."

So far this season, Freed has shot two 48s and a 51, along with her season-best 47. Her 2010-2011 scores were consistently in the 50s according to Lebow and her stroke has improved by at least five this year.

"I think she’s going to be a very good player this season and as she goes on into next year, because she’s putting an effort into becoming a better player," Lebow said. "It takes an effort to get better. I see her dedication to the sport is really good. She really wants to play, she loves golf and she wants to become a better player. And I think she has the skill to get there. She’s a good, all-around kid. I can count on her for anything."

Freed takes the game of golf in stride and enjoys the little things, like building relationships with her opponents.

"I love meeting new people, because you always get to play with other people from other teams," said Freed. "I think it’s really fun, getting to know somebody you’ve never met before, learning how they joined golf and got into it."

Overall, she said her big goal is to do better this year in the postseason than last year and is excited to experience that opportunity with the rest of her team.

"I love everybody on my team and getting the chance to play with them," Freed said.