Naperville teen golfer representing Illinois in Masters competition
During the early stages of Easter brunch Sunday at Naperville Country Club, all TVs will be tuned to the Golf Channel to watch a local kid compete for a championship.
Country club member Andrew Lim, 13, of Naperville is one of 80 finalists nationwide and 10 in his age group in the fifth annual Drive, Chip & Putt championship sponsored by the Masters Tournament, the United States Golf Association and the PGA of America.
At Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia - one day before the pros in the Masters begin practice on the storied course - Andrew will aim for victory in front of his siblings, parents, grandparents and a live TV audience.
Andrew is the only finalist from Illinois out of more than 1,000 who started the Drive, Chip & Putt competition by attending one of 10 qualifiers in the state last year, said Palmer Moody, senior director of communications and foundation development for the Illinois PGA Section.
Each of the 41 PGA sections hosted qualifiers, meaning Andrew is already among the top young golfers in what could be a field of more than 40,000 participants, Moody said.
In the finals Sunday, boys and girls ages 7 to 15 will compete in four age groups starting at 7 a.m. Andrew's division for 12- or 13-year-old boys is scheduled to begin about 9:15 a.m.
"The main part of the program is to create fun competition around the three main skills of golf," Moody said. "It's a great player-development program."
Andrew's golfing has developed as he's competed in local, subregional and regional competitions of Drive, Chip & Putt for the past three years.
His mother, Jinny Lim, said the sport runs in the family, and Andrew, her middle child, took it up at age 7.
Andrew attended a golfing camp at Cantigny in Wheaton as a 7-year-old and began working with a coach at age 9. He said he likes that every course and every round offers a fresh chance to wipe away past mistakes and play better.
"It's a fun sport and the conditions are always different," he said.
Even before joining his first Drive, Chip & Putt, Andrew would get competitive with his older sister, Naperville Central High School golfer Emma Lim, and his younger brother, 10-year-old Matthew Lim.
Brian Brown, head golf professional at Naperville Country Club, said the Lims hit the links almost daily last summer.
"They're usually closing up shop like I am," Brown said.
Lately, Andrew said he's been splitting his golf time into thirds, practicing each type of shot equally at White Pines Golf Dome in Bensenville.
His strategy for the drive, which is scored on length, and must land within a 40-yard-wide fairway, is to go for accuracy on his first shot, then for maximum distance.
"You need to be able to hit it in bounds," he said.
On the chip, Andrew says he will "just read the green, see where I want to land it."
And on the putt, Andrew's plan is to aim, concentrate and hope for the best.
His goal is to score within the top four in his age group. Later golf goals include scoring under 70 on 18 holes (his personal best is a 73 so far) and playing for his school's team when he goes to college.
No matter Andrew's performance on Sunday, his trip to Augusta will wrap up with tickets to watch the practice rounds Monday with his family.
"It'll be really cool," he said, "to watch how the pros practice."