Year One: Beck Burnette
All photos courtesy of Lee Flames
Even as a new addition to the program, freshman communications major Beck Burnette has already made a huge impact on the Lee men’s golf team.
As a top-5 ranked golfer in the state of Georgia, Burnette caught the attention of several colleges before graduating high school. However, he had his heart set on a small Christian school in the southeast. Ultimately, he chose Lee University as his next home.
“I wanted to find a happy medium in a school, and Lee University was that for me because it is not that far from home,” said Burnette.
Burnette’s dad—who enjoyed playing golf for fun—introduced him to the game at age six and taught him how to play.
“I was always that really quiet kid and I think golf just matched my personality,” said Burnette.
Burnette played a little bit when he was younger but seriously picked up on the sport around age 12. During high school, he played high-level junior golf, which helped propel him to continue his career in college.
During freshman year of high school, he started nowhere near the top 50 in the state. But through hard work and dedication, Burnette progressed until he was ranked in the top 20 by his sophomore year. After continuous improvement, Burnette then ranked within the top 10 by his junior year and the top five in the state by his senior year.
Burnette had never stepped foot into a classroom until almost two months ago when the semester started at Lee University. He was home-schooled his entire childhood, from first grade until he graduated high school. He said being home-schooled helped shape him into the person and athlete he is today.
“What’s cool about being home-schooled is if you are not self-motivated, you are going to fail,” said Burnette. “At the end of the day, you really have to want it to succeed.”
Being home-schooled helped him focus more on golf because it allowed him to take time away from school work whenever he needed it to travel for tournaments.
“Him being home-schooled was a non-factor because in golf most of the student-athletes play very competitive tournament schedules outside of any kind of school association,” said coach John Maupin.
The transition between home schooling and college has been easy for Burnette. He is learning to balance his time between classes, homework, sports and a social life outside of school.
“The transition in general—I have just loved every minute of it here at Lee University,” said Burnette.
“I think he showed up with a lot of maturity that you do not necessarily see with freshman—especially in golf. He has embraced his role here and has been a great addition to the team,” said Evan Spence, a senior teammate majoring in marketing management.
Since the start of golf season, Burnette has been trying to stay focused more on the game instead of outside distractions with school and his social life.
“I think Beck has a strong mental game; he does a good job of staying positive and focused out there, and that is not always easy to do,” said Maupin.
Maupin went on to say that any player that can do those two things is going to have a positive impact on the team this season.
“He manages his game so well out on the course, and I feel like I am learning just as much from him as he is probably learning from me,” said Spence.
Burnette is off to a strong start this season, recording three rounds under par and two top-20 finishes in his first two collegiate tournaments. He was also named the GSC freshman of the month for September.
To keep up with Burnette and the men’s golf team, you can follow them here.
