NEW ULM — Even after a rough first day at the state golf meet, New Ulm Cathedral’s Kayla Goblirsch wasn’t about to let her frustration get the best of her.

Goblirsch, a three-time state golf participant, shot a 95 on the opening day of the state tournament. But she used her knowledge of the course and her state tournament experience to her advantage on the second day and shot an 83 on Day 2, an improvement of 12 strokes. She finished tied for 10th overall with a two-day total of 178, putting herself in elite company moving forward with three years left in her career.

Goblirsch’s hard work in the summer last year paid off and that helped her become the Section 2A champion and the 2019 All-Journal Girls’ Golfer of the Year.

“On the first day, I was a little disappointed that some of my putts did not drop, but I knew I had another day to make a comeback,” Goblirsch said. “Every part of my overall game improved Day 2. I gained confidence when I made a long birdie putt early in the round. My coach Caleb [Christensen] kept me calm and focused on my golf game while making it a fun and memorable experience.”

Christensen wanted to make sure that she didn’t overthink her first day and he wanted her to move forward to Day 2.

“I told her coming in that the scores were going to be higher than she would expect,” he said. “Any sort of good round on the second day was going to put her back in the mix and that turned out to be the case. Just staying positive and focused on the goal was the main thing.”

Christensen, who has plenty of experience golfing at Pebble Creek in Becker where the state tournament was held, knew all about Goblirsch coming into the season. The first-year coach noticed that Goblirsch had an incredible work ethic so it wasn’t difficult getting her to make the most of her abilities.

“She works really hard, she has a ton of natural talent and she would be really good if she didn’t put in the work, but she puts in a ton of work,” Christensen said. “We saw that towards the end of the season. She had a few rough outings, but she played well when it mattered.”

Goblirsch hasn’t always played golf. She started playing later in elementary school and she’s improved every year.

“My grandpa got me started with golf in fifth grade,” she said. “My scores have improved each year by practicing pretty much every day during the season and summer. My interest and love for the game has grown each year.

Goblirsch is now a Top 10 golfer in Class A and she has three years left in her career. The possiblities are endless for her, but she’s just focusing on small steps and improving her final position on the leaderboard next year.

“My goal next year is to improve from my 10th place finish this year and medal in the Top 7 at state next year,” she said. “Beyond that I just want to improve my golf game.”