Welcome to the Base Takeoff Podcast. I'm Sean Melia. I have the 2026 New England Women's Am Champion on the other line, Lillian Galsarian. Lillian, thanks for joining. Yeah, thank you so much for having me.
Looking forward to, uh, chatting a little bit about the win, Penn State golf, maybe a little junior stuff. But I gotta ask first thing, it is- we're doing this on July 2nd, it is a trillion degrees out.
[laughs] Do you like playing in the heat? Is this, like, weather you'd wanna play a tournament in, or are you, are you fine just staying at home today?
You know, if I had to go out and play a tournament, it wouldn't be the worst thing, but yeah, I'm definitely not gonna choose to go practice at, at this time right now.
[laughs] 10 o'clock, it's already, like- Yeah [laughs]... the surface of the sun. Would you rather play in, like, rainy weather or weather like this? I would take this all day. Yeah. I think I'm the same. Yeah.
Just, like, give me a little bit of heat. Pack a couple gloves. Exactly. [laughs] So before we get into your, before we get into your win, can you kinda give people a sense of, like, what your golf game is like?
Someone who's maybe never seen you play, how would you describe yourself as a, as a golfer? Okay. Um, I would say I'm a pretty level-headed golfer for the most part.
I will not show a ton of emotion, at least I try not to. I'm on the golf course, you know, kinda steady the whole time. Um, in terms of my game, I'd say a strong suit is my ball striking.
I would also say I hit it pretty far, which, yeah, I take a lot of pride in that. And then, yeah, good at approach shots. Been working on my putting.
That's my, I would say that's my, what needs to be improved right now, but- Yeah... yeah, that's what I would say. How do you, what kind of things do you do to work on your putting?
A lot of mechanics, just to get the basics down. I do a lot of right hand, left hand stuff. And then lately, trying to do a lot of speed work.
You know, my lag putting, I would say needs the most work right now, so, you know, different drills with that. Um, and just playing around with that out on the course. Yeah.
That's, I find, I play a lot of, like, I just go around and play a lot of different golf courses.
You know, you got club golfers who play the same course every day, and they, you know, have a pretty good sense of what their greens are like, or- Yep... what different putts are slow and fast.
So, like, while you're getting ready for the New England Women's Am, or even, like, the Women's Mass Am, um, you know, next month now, how, like, lag putting is one of those things.
Do you, do you work on it as fo- h- like, how do you work on lag putting? Yeah. I would, I go out on my home course. I feel like their greens are pretty similar to most tournaments that I play.
But really, during the practice rounds before these events, just take as many putts as I can, you know, before the round, during the practice round, just trying to get a feel for, you know, how they might be different than mine, what I'm used to practicing on.
Do you pace them off? Are you a pacer? In my practice, I do- Yeah... just to get a feel. I, I wouldn't say I do it as much, you know, in the tournament, but yeah, just trying to get a feel. Yeah, more of a feel putter.
Yep. So, there's so many people who are kind of, like, very mechanical. It's, you know, 15 paces, this is my stroke- Right... versus up and down. Um, let's, all right, let's talk about your win, the fun stuff. Okay.
So you won at Concord Country Club up in New Hampshire. Of course, I don't really know anything about. Uh, looking at the, the, the back nine on- [laughs]... in the final round, a lot of swings.
You said you're a pretty level-headed player. Let's go to that back nine first. Like, what was, what was it like?
I think you were down four with, with six holes left, and then Karis Fennessy on four, you know, made a bogey and maybe a quadruple or a triple bogey and- Mm-hmm. You were in her group.
Like, so what was just that last two hours like playing down the stretch to, to try to catch her, and then catch her, and then beat her? Yeah. It was pretty intense. You know, I felt good the whole day.
I hadn't made a ton of birdies, but I felt like I was right there, so, you know, in those back nine, just try to keep the pressure on. Yeah, she made a really good eagle, I think it was on 12.
Uh, but like I said, I was playing good. I knew I could, you know, get something going. And then, yeah, really college golf has taught me that you're never really out of it- Mm-hmm...
and every shot matters, so I just try to remember that. Kinda focus on my own game and just, yeah, see what would happen in the end.
Yeah, I mean, she, looking at the, looking at your cards, Fennessy made 11 straight pars to start the round and then made that eagle, and you made a birdie and two bogeys before birdieing 13.
So it was, like, a pretty steady, pretty steady golf overall. Are there any moments from the week?
Sometimes, like, once you're this far away from a tournament now, you almost realize there's something that might have happened in the first round that, like, kept the, just kept the momentum going with some, maybe you hit a big par putt or got a little break, you know, bounce or something.
Is there anything from the week now that you look back that you think, like, "Oh man, that was a very fortunate thing to happen," or, "Man, I hit a really good shot there to just keep things rolling"? Yeah.
Like I said, my lag putting was, you know, a little iffy going into it, and I definitely saw that. But I did make a lot of, you know, those six-foot par putts the first round.
And, and like you said, looking back, I can tell that made a big difference with how the scores turned out.
I would say also, probably the second day, I did chip in on the last hole for birdie and, you know, that give, gave me a lot of confidence going into that final round for sure. That get you into the final group too?
Was that one of those- I'm pretty sure it did... that might have gotten you- I think so... into the last group? Yep. So you mentioned just college golf and how that kind of prepared you.
You just finished your freshman year at Penn State. What was the year at Penn State like? You said you, I think I've, I've heard you say you absolutely loved it, you had a great time.
Like, just a general sense of playing college golf and that, and what the season was like. Yeah. Our season was, it went really well. We had a really young team this year, but you know, a lot of depth.
It was really strong the entire season. We just missed regionals by one, but you know, I'm looking forward to the fall. I think we can do really great things this year. Yeah, it was a little different playing for a team.
Like you probably have heard before, you know, every shot matters. You're playing s- for something bigger than yourself, which, you know, takes a little bit to get used to.
But like I said, I absolutely loved it and can't wait for this season. What was the, uh, the team aspect? I mean, I know you played high school, college golf, and there's even a, like, that's a team aspect too.
What, what is, what was the, what was that jump like when you're playing, like, team college golf and that, that experience? Yeah. I would say, you know- There's a lot more depth on the team.
Everyone has the opportunity to go out and, you know, shoot a low round, beat you that day. So nothing's really guaranteed. You're not guaranteed to go travel and play one week.
So that definitely, you know, keeps the pressure on the entire season.
And yeah, you're just a lot more motivated 'cause, you know, if you, if you start giving up one day or you're not putting your all in, there's someone right behind you that's gonna take your spot, so. Yeah.
You felt pretty safe at Westwood with your spot? I would say so. [laughs] Yeah. Yeah. Yep. Yeah, you knew you were playing every week, every match. Yeah. Mm-hmm. What, what is, what is qualifying like at Penn State?
How do you, how does your coach handle it? Or is it- Mm-hmm... you know, I know some coaches, if you finish in the top two the week before, you're kind of exempt, and then the last three spots are fought for.
How, how does it, how does it work at Penn State? Yeah. So to start the year, we had, uh, I think it was, like, four rounds of qualifying.
And then lucky enough, we had an individual for just about every tournament this year, so we could travel with six, which was really nice.
And then we did win two events this past year, so our coach kinda kept the lineup the same for, you know, a lot of the events. And then going into Big Tens was probably our most qualifying.
We had six rounds going before that. Whoa. Yeah, so the winner of that automatically qualified. We had one of our, on the team who played well the following, or the week before, so she was in.
And then coaches pick for the Final Four, so. Okay. Yeah. So s- six... Are you playing, like, six straight days, or is it three days of 36 holes, like, or is it spread out even longer than that? It's pretty spread out.
That one was- 'Cause you have to go to school and stuff. Yeah. Yeah, I can't forget about that, school. Um- [laughs]... we had, it was, like, two weeks that we had before Big Tens, and we had six rounds- Yeah...
in there, so not too bad. Are you, are you all going to the course and playing at the same time those six rounds? Yeah. Yeah, so everyone, it's very, it's formal that way- Yes... as well.
And, like, how does, how does that, how does that translate to you feeling like you're playing better golf or improv- Like, how does, how does that experience of, like, qualifiers and fighting for a spot just make you a better player?
Yeah. Um, it definitely makes you appreciate being at the tournaments more. Yeah. Knowing that, like, you earned your spot to be playing for Penn State, yeah, it means a lot.
And then from my perspective, I think whenever you can be playing under pressure, it's always gonna make you a better player. So I...
You know, it can be a lot sometimes qualifying, you know, after a busy day at school and you gotta go qualify, but I think it just, it makes you a better player overall, so. Yeah.
H- How, how do you feel like you respond to that pressure? Like, what things do you lean on while you're on the golf course when you're... I mean, everyone gets nervous playing golf, like the guys and- For sure...
the women playing majors. Like they, and they, I feel like they've talked about it more in the last five years about just how it feels to be on the last hole trying to win a tournament. So what things do you lean on?
Are there shots that you hit, things you say to yourself, like inner dialogue that you have, mon- i-inner thoughts that you have as you, as you're kinda grinding to try to finish a good round or win a tournament? Yeah.
I just lean on, like, the preparation I had beforehand. Yeah. Just look at, like, look back at all the hours I spent on the range, on the putting green, you know, around the greens.
Just know I'm gonna be nervous in the moment. Like, like you said, everyone's gonna feel that at some point, but just trust that I've played so much golf in my life.
I have a lot of experience, and just, yeah, that brings me a lot of confidence. So try to lean on that. Do you have a shot shape you like to hit?
Yeah, I, I play the draw, so it works out for most tournaments [laughs] I would say. Yeah.
So just, yeah, leaning on that, leaning on, I'd say, my driver is one of my strong suits, so if I can get up and smash a driver, I'd feel pretty good, [laughs] so. Are you a leaderboard watcher? I always love to ask. No.
No, not at all. I have some teammates that will have their phone out throughout the round and be watching, but I, I just can't do it. [laughs] Yeah. What, how come?
It just, you know, I'm always trying to put the best round in possible when I'm out there playing, so, you know, watching the leaderboard, what other people are doing, I don't think it's brings me...
It doesn't do anything for me. It's not gonna make me play any better. Have you, did you learn that the hard way? Is that something that you kind of did in the past and figured like, "This does not help me compete"? Yep.
I remember one tournament specifically. I think it was a qualifier for something, and it was, like, the 16th hole, and I'm like, "I have no idea where I stand." I pulled out my phone and I looked. I was only one back.
And then probably not the smartest move, I, it was a par five. I tried to go for it in two, ended up, like, doubling it or something. And it's just like, there's no need to, you know, put that much pressure on yourself.
Yeah. I can make a birdie without, you know, going for too much. So I learned from that, and it's just like, play your best game. You don't need to watch a leaderboard to make you play any better, so. Yeah. Yeah.
That's a good... I, it's, it's just funny how so many people are different. Some people- Yep...
want to know or, like, feel like they can conjure up birdies if they, if they know they need them, and some people are just like, "I'm just gonna go play as well as I can and hit every shot.
Like, I, I need to hit a good shot." And that, and then sign the card at the end of the day.
As far as, like, I, so I remember sitting next to you on the back of the seventh green at Concord Country Club in Concord last year. Yep. You had, I think you had just maybe lost in the round of 16 or the quarterfinals.
And you were, you were very excited to, like, get to Penn State, like, play college golf, and come back this summer with, with a little bit more, like, under your belt, more experience.
I think we were watching Isabelle Bourzina and, and, like, she had just had that same experience. She went to Xavier, came back, and has been, like, I mean, kinda gangbusters last year and won the Mass Am.
So what, what at, what else at Penn State kind of helped you get ready, or, and is there anything you're doing this summer to also get ready for, like, your fall season that is also kind of just making you feel like you're sharp, you just won, you got the Women's Am, you've probably got the Wilmette coming up, too, in a couple weeks.
So that's a long-winded question, but I'm just thinking back to that. Like, last August and now c- up to this point, like, what, how have you improved as a golfer? Yeah.
I think just playing on, you know, a bigger stage in college against some of the best in the country and around the world gives you a lot of confidence, just knowing you can compete at that level.
And then how I improved as a golfer, I would say, um, I definitely came, became more resilient.
Like I said, every shot matters in college golf, so just try to take that experience into, you know, this summer, playing around here. I traveled a little bit earlier in the summer.
I was down south for, um, the Southern Am, which I did all right in.
So just playing against some great players, yeah, just gave me a lot of confidence going into this summer, and I feel like I can do a lot of good things, especially going into, you know, like you said, the Wilmette and the Women's Mass Am Yeah, they come pretty quickly back to back too.
They do. You can get some- Yep... get some momentum going. Mm-hmm. Any, have you, have you taken anything from, like, traveling and, and watching other very good college amateur women play?
Is there anything you kinda watch and you're like, "Oh, that's a, that player's very good.
I'm envious and I wanna try to see if I can, uh, kinda steal this little tidbit that they, that they do on the golf course, or around the practice green or the range"?
Yeah, I would say between watching, like you said, other high-level golfers, and also what my coach said. Something she always said was to control the controllables, which I really like.
Um, basically means, like, don't get caught up in stuff you can't change, both on and off the golf course.
So watching other golfers, and I really focused on, like, their preparation, their mindset going into these events, and I think that made me a more consistent player.
And yeah, I'm gonna try to take that into the fall as well. So... How do you balance, like, rest, school, and golf? 'Cause you play, it's, like, the college season is long. It's two seasons.
So you get, like, you get your winter, but then you're into the summer season.
So how are you balancing practicing, getting better, staying sharp, but also, like, resting when it's a million degrees out and, you know, and then when you're in school, like, your studies? Yeah.
Um, so coming to, luckily at Penn State, they have, like, an amazing recovery center for all their athletes, and that was n- I had never really done recovery after, you know, tournaments and practices.
So I definitely saw a lot of value in that, and I try to take that into the summer.
Like, you're gonna go out and you're gonna play, like I said, a tough round in 100-degree heat, it's not the worst thing in the world to take a break the next day.
Maybe just, you know, focus on my putting, a more relaxed practice, and just, yeah, giving myself time to rest. 'Cause I know, you know, going into the fall is gonna be really busy as well, coming off- Yeah...
a busy summer. I gotta ask about the recovery. What, what, what- Mm-hmm... uh, what does Penn... [laughs] I mean, Penn State is a huge Division I program.
Obviously, the football team drives a lot of probably what you get to experience out there as far as, like, the, the building and getting those guys ready to play, to play football [laughs].
And so you get to reap those benefits, which is amazing. Exactly. So what, are, are we talking, like, compression boots and- Oh, yeah... sauna? Sauna. I love the sauna. The cold tubs. You got the float beds.
Stuff I've never seen before. Um- Yeah... just really crazy. But yeah, I'm just lucky enough to be able to have all that at Penn State. That's amazing. So sauna's your favorite.
Do you do, like, the back and forth between sauna and, uh, and, like, a cold blast of- And cold tub. Yep. Yeah. Yep.
Uh, especially in the off-season, I did a lot of that, just trying to get ready for the, you know, spring.
We travel to some pretty warm places, so, you know, the sauna helps you adjust to being in those warmer temps if you're not used to it, especially coming from New England and Penn State. So yeah, it was really fun.
[laughs] Long winters. Long winters out there- Exactly... in, in Happy Valley. What made you pick Penn State? Yeah. Uh, first off, you know, golf program. The two coaches there are amazing.
Uh, and the teammates, I love all of them. It's such a, I would say it's a very close team. And then, yeah, the academically, it's amazing. Exactly what I was looking for in a school.
And not too close to home for me, but, you know, still gives the right distance, so. Yeah, yeah. You wanted to feel like you're still kind of up in the northeast and close enough to home.
Do you have any advice for, I mean, you're just, you kind of just went through it, for high schoolers who wanna play college golf?
Like, what things from the process did you feel like maybe you would wanna do differently?
Or what things would you just tell people, like, this is a, you're a junior in high school right now or a sophomore, here are some steps you should absolutely take if you wanna, you know, get on a coach's radar? Yeah.
I would say, first off, just start early. Uh, you know, I know coaches can't always respond automatically, um, but just get your name out there. Um, play in some tournaments.
Even if you're not playing amazing, just get on their radar.
And also, I would say just be yourself throughout the whole process, 'cause, you know, coaches, they want, they're looking for a person to be on the team just as much as a good player. So just remember that.
And then don't compare yourself with others. I know I did this, especially when, you know, it's, like, June 15th and you have someone committing, number one out of your class.
It can put a lot of pressure on you to, you know, "My friends are already committing. I should, you know, I should be there."
But there's a home for everyone, so just don't compare yourself too much to, you know, what other people in your class are doing. That's the non-leaderboard watcher part of you. [laughs] Right?
Like, just, if, just don't worry about, just do your own thing. I, I... That part you just said about just being your own, being yourself, I think gets lost in a lot.
And coaches say it, but it's so hard as a teenager to not wanna have, like, a program you wanna go to, and then try to fit yourself into the program, versus just who- Mm-hmm...
the person you are, the college you're going to. Like, academically even, do you fit in with the group that's there?
And if you try to fit in and then you get there and you're unhappy, then, like, you're in the portal or you're playing- Yeah...
four years of, like, maybe on a team that you've, you feel like you've changed yourself to try to get into, and then you're not super happy. So that's a, that's a really good point.
And yeah, coaches do not respond to every email 'cause they're getting a ton of them. No. So don't take it personally- No... if they're not responding. Yeah. It, it can be hard.
Um, I probably sent out, like, 40 emails to different schools, and I think I got replies from maybe 15 to 20. Um, so yeah, don't take it personally. It's, for them, it's, it's a job. Um, they're looking.
They know what they want on their team, uh, and if that's not you, I know it's hard to hear, but, you know, there's a lot of options out there. So like I said, don't take it personally. [laughs] Yeah, yeah.
Uh, and don't be afraid to follow up before they respond too. I think I've heard- Yeah... that advice as well.
Like, if you have a good event or if you're playing events, just follow up and say, "Hey, this is my latest, this is my latest event," or whatever your scores were. Um, yeah, it's a, it's a hard process. Absolutely.
And, and golf is also funny 'cause you're doing it on your own. Right. You're not on a team where you're just given your points or your team does well.
Like, you're kind of out there try- [laughs] trying to prove yourself- Yep... with just your golf clubs. I wanna go, I just wanna go back before I let you go.
I'd love to hear a little bit about just, I think you started playing golf at Ponkapoag. Is that where you learned to play? Yep. And now you play at Blue Hill.
Ponkapoag's a fascinating place to me 'cause it gets trashed on a lot and, you know, it's not in great shape. You're not Probably, you're, you're young enough that that's probably what it's always felt like.
It's never probably been in, like, amazing shape.
So can you just tell me about, like, how you got into golf at Ponkapoag and, like, even just a little bit about playing Ponkapoag and what that, what that program was like and how it really kind of stirred your love for the game?
Yeah. So my parents thought we'd have tennis players. They both grew up playing tennis. But [laughs] my brother loves it. It's not my favorite thing.
So I wanna say we were, like, six, me and my brother signed up for, you know, one of the summer, you know, golf camps at Ponkapoag. And it was really fun. They do a, you know, a driving competition every, every week.
So longest ball striker, which I got a few of those. [laughs] Yeah, we did that for a few summers, and it was just really fun. Yeah. Both my brother and I fell in love with the game.
Yeah, they had an amazing program there. There were two instructors.
They just made golf so much fun, which I think is the most important part when you're starting to, you know, take up the game, especially at a young age. And yeah, it was...
It's definitely not in the, like you said, great shape right now, but I remember when I just started there, they were building the new... I forget. They have a few courses there. They were building a new nine- Yeah.
Yep... you know, out in the back. Yep. So there's definitely a lot of potential, which was exciting, but it's definitely unfortunate to see the, you know, condition it's been in right now. Yeah.
'Cause they ha- they have so much land over there. There's so much potential just not taken care of. Yeah. But it's...
I mean, I, I do think, like you said, as a six, as a s- 10, 6 to 10-year-old or, like, a g- and you can just go and, like, be at a place and have fun and enjoy the game, and if that's what gets you from there to playing golf at Penn State and winning New England Women's Am.
And, like, obviously, there's the space in between there. So you go from, you know, learning as a junior, and then, like, when did you start competing and- Yeah... were you, like, a- Um, it wasn't too long after.
Um, I wanna say I was eight when I f- played my first US Kids tournament. Yeah. Those were always fun. You know, it's over the weekend. You're just traveling to other different parts of New England.
Yeah, and that really was my first taste at competing, and I just... That's probably one of my favorite parts. I'm very competitive, so that was, that was cool. And then, yeah, it's got me to where I am today. Yeah.
Did you play, like, Challenge Cup stuff? Yep. I did US Kids, then Challenge Cup, a few AJGAs, you know, sprinkled in, um, and then, you know, Mass Golf. That's- Yeah... the past few years. Yep...
you know, the rest of the stuff. Yep. And do you have a coach? Do you have someone who you've kind of been working with as far as your, your swing and your game? Yeah.
Actually, she's down in, uh, South Carolina in Hilton Head. Julie Cole down at Sea Pines. I've been working with her for... It's been a while, like five years.
So I try to get down and have a few lessons with her over the winters. During the off-season this year, I was down there. But yeah, she's amazing. Yeah.
I've definitely seen my game i- improve a lot since working with her. Do you do a lot of, like, video stuff with her? Yeah. We... She's a big emphasis on, like, putting and short game. Yeah.
And then, you know, we try to go out on course a lot, work on course management, getting used to, you know, reading greens, different strategies for that. And then, yeah, we do a lot of video stuff too, but yeah.
It's just, I look forward to our lessons every time. So. Yeah.
Um, all right, last, last little thing is you just sparked a, a thought that so, you know, Penn State, you're playing a bunch of different, at l- at least last year, right? You're playing new golf courses all the time.
How do you prepare just for, like, the experience of going to a new golf course, whether that's, like, are you a, are you looking at stuff on Google Earth? Are you, do you have an app before you play a place?
Obviously, you get practice rounds too, but, like, how, how do you manage just learning a golf course? Yeah.
So we always, at Penn State, they always give us TrackMan books beforehand, and the distances, and I usually try to look at those a lot, put a game plan together before I get out there.
And then, yeah, we do our practice round. We usually do it as a whole team. And then our coaches do a really good job at afterwards kind of sitting down with all of us.
Uh, they know my game really well, so they know kind of what my strategy is going into the course versus maybe someone else's on the team.
And then, yeah, I'm, like I said before, I'm a very feel player, so I just try to take advantage of the practice rounds as much as possible, hitting different shots off the tee, you know, around the greens, and just, yeah, whatever I can do to prepare myself.
Are you going around as a group of six in your practice round, or is it, like, two groups of three? It depends. We've done both. And yeah, a group of six for a practice round, it's, it's a lot.
It's a, it's a five-hour [laughs] round at least. Yeah. But yeah, that's, that's something I had to get used to going to college, 'cause- Yeah...
you know, around here it's, you go out one day, just do a practice round by yourself, and then you get there and you've got 15 teams with groups of six going off. [laughs] It's a lot. A lot of snacks.
You gotta pack- Oh, yeah... pack some water. For sure. Well, Lillian, thanks. So, I, I, bef- uh, what's your, what's your schedule look like? You've got the Womet. You've got the Women's Am.
Is there anything else, or is that it, and then you're back to college? That's about it. Yeah. In the blink of an eye. Yeah.
We start pretty early this year, um, at Penn State, so just I'll finish up the Mass Am and go straight to Happy Valley after that. So. Holy cow. Awesome. Yeah.
Well, we'll be following along here, and, uh, and good luck at the, in the Womet and getting prepped, and, uh, stay cool while the, while this- I'll try... weather is m- making us all melt. Thanks, Lillian. This was fun.
Yeah. Thank you so much.