FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (March 15, 2022) – Elle Kocourkova started her collegiate golf career at Northern Arizona University in 2018. Coming from the Czech Republic, Kocourkova was looking forward to new experiences and a change of scenery at Northern Arizona. Throughout the past four years, Kocourkova developed into an exceptional student-athlete both on the course and in the classroom.
Kocourkova's career scoring average is 75.93 and she has six top 20 individual tournament finishes and two top 10 finishes throughout the past four years. She is a three-time Big Sky Conference honoree with honorable mentions in 2019 and 2020, and third team in 2021. Additionally, Kocourkova has also received academic awards for her dedication in the classroom.
In the first three years of her career, she has been awarded Golden Eagle Scholar-Athlete, Big Sky All-Academic and WGCA All-American Scholar. Looking ahead, if she were to earn WGCA All-American Scholar at the conclusion of this season, she would be just the third golfer in school history joining Ali Carter and Stephanie Kim with four awards.
When discussing her growth throughout her collegiate career, Kocourkova feels as though she has a very different mindset about the game now than when she was a freshman.
"These four years gave me a lot. I can see the change through the priorities and goals I set for myself and how I communicate with my coach and teammates," said Kocourkova, who is currently second on the team this season in scoring average (75.53) as well as second in birdies (37).
Kococoukova owes her golf career to her parents, who sparked her interest in sports at a young age. Her father played golf when she was younger and encouraged her to try it. Quickly, she received her own golf clubs and found herself competing in tournaments and practicing alongside her dad.
"My dad is definitely my inspiration. He gave me a lot of his time and was there for every practice and game," Kocourkova mentioned.
Coming to the United States in 2018, Kocourkova was looking forward to meeting new people and getting an education while doing what she loved. Being a part of a team made the transition into college easier for her. Kocourkova instantly connected with new friends as teammates and found a great mentor in head coach
Brad Bedortha.
Her older teammates helped her get acclimated to Flagstaff and motivated her to be better through the tough competition. She is grateful for Bedortha and describes how she feels that they grew together through the years.
"He pushes his players to play at the highest level and he knows what we can do," Kocourkova said. "It's been great being with him throughout the years and having someone like him to go to for anything."
Kocourkova is also grateful for the services NAU has provided to help her grow since 2018. Beyond the coaching staff, the athletic trainers and workouts offered helped her thrive both mentally and physically, and she appreciates the opportunities student-athletes are given at NAU.
On the course, her favorite memory was her hole-in-one at the Golfweek Red Sky Classic last September. In that tournament, she recorded her lowest career round, 4-under par 68, and had her hole-in-one on hole 17 – the first hole-in-one by an NAU golfer since 2017. She described that the tournament itself was amazing and she enjoys getting to travel to beautiful places with her teammates.
Outside of the course, Kocourkova mentioned that her favorite memory with the team was their trip to Lake Powell. They were awarded a break from the course and enjoyed time bonding with the entire team.
Kocourkova will graduate from NAU this spring with a degree in hotel and restaurant management. Following graduation, she plans on going back to the Czech Republic to coach golf and continue her education by pursuing a master's degree. She is excited to be reunited with her family but will cherish the friends and memories she's made at NAU. One thing Kocourkova will miss most is the van rides to and from Sedona with her classmates
Ashley Croft and
Aleksandra Chekalina.
"Ashley, Aleks and I are very close. We have been together since freshman year and know everything about each other. It is always fun bringing up old memories between ourselves and Coach Bedortha," Kocourkova said.
While maintaining a 3.86 GPA, Kocourkova is etching her name among the great golfers in school history. Currently sixth in career scoring average (75.93) and 11th in career birdies (166), Kocourkova's best career individual finish was tying for eighth at New Mexico State Aggie Invitational in fall 2019 as a sophomore. With her success both on and off the course, it is clear that Kocourkova has made a lasting impression on Northern Arizona University's golf program.
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