“I do not know if my body would hold up on tour” - Memphis Golf sensation Rachel Heck announces news that she won’t turn professional

Memphis' Rachel Heck, the player who assumed the lead on the Stanford University women's golf team once Rose Zhang began her professional career, has decided not to play professionally.

"I do not know if my body would hold up on tour," Heck said.

The player is in her senior year at Stanford and could graduate next spring. This Monday, March 25, she published an essay stating that she no longer "dream of the U.S. Open trophies and the Hall of Fame." The essay was released on the 'No Laying Up' website.

This was part of what Rachel Heck wrote:

"I was strongly considering attributing my decision to my injuries. It is true that even if I wanted to, I do not know if my body would hold up on tour. But frankly, after a couple of years of painful deliberation, I have come to realize that I do not want to play professional golf. I do not want a life on the road and in the public eye. I no longer dream of the U.S. Open trophies and the Hall of Fame."

"And I realize now that these dreams were never what my dad intended when he first put a club in my hand. He pushed me when I was young so that I could find myself in the position I am right now: Stepping into the future equipped with the skills to tackle any challenge and the courage to pave my own path."

Rachel Heck is studying Political Science, and according to her essay, she will start an internship in private equity in the summer.

In parallel, Heck has been part of the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (Air Force ROTC) for several years. In the summer of 2024, she will be promoted to lieutenant.

A look into Rachel Heck's golf career

Rachel Heck was a golf prodigy almost from the moment she stepped foot on the course for the first time. As a junior, she won four tournaments and had several strong performances at the US Women's Amateur, Junior Solheim Cup and other events.

In 2021, she joined the Stanford University Cardinal and continued a meteoric rise in golf. In her freshman season, she won six tournaments (school record), including the NCAA individual title, the first Stanford player to do so.

The following season was also good, with two victories, but she began to have back problems, a consequence of an injury suffered during her senior year in high school. In her junior year at Stanford, she barely played 10 rounds in official tournaments, and this season, she has only been able to play six.