By Ben Carpine, Sports Editor
October 25, 2023
ROCKLAND- Rockland High has a wonderful and storied tradition in athletics, but one professional athlete credits her time at Rockland High for shaping her career.
That’s the sense I got from my interview with recent first-time LPGA Tour winner, four-time amateur victor, and Rockland alumnus, Megan Khang. It truly was an honor to meet her, as it was my first interview for a news story, and being able to do it with someone as famous and talented as Khang was no simple old interview.
Khang, who graduated from RHS only eight years ago in 2015, told me about her time as an amateur golfer bound for the pros and a high school student, and more specifically how to balance such.
“That for me was actually huge on my relationship with the teachers,” Khang said. “Perfect example is that there [were] a lot of times where in the winter time, I would have to go down to Florida and play in a few events, and by December you have all your midterms and everything going on.”
Khang said she had to work and cooperate with her teachers very much to make school work along with golf.
“That was huge on both my teachers being able to give me the extra time that I needed after school, but also me taking the initiative to try to keep my grades up. Because at the end of the day, if you’re going to college, you still need to keep your grades up,” further reminding you that no matter how good you might be at a sport or other talent, “you still [have] to have the grades to back you up.”
Khang very nearly committed to Wake Forest University in North Carolina, but decided instead to get her LPGA card and begin her professional golf career. But going right from high school to the pros was not a quick decision for Khang.
“I guess that's always the question, right? College vs. turning pro. And for me, funnily enough, Ms. [Kristen] Walsh was always like, ‘You never know’... but at the same time, I didn't even know if golf was going to pan out the way it has for me ... but I was in such a good place in golf at seventeen/eighteen years old that for me, I was saying If I go try to get my LPGA card, there's two things that can happen: I can either make it and turn pro, or I can just take a gap year and go as a 2016 freshman somewhere.”
She went into greater detail about her experience with Wake Forest in the recruiting process.
“[Assistant coach Kevin Diaz] said, ‘As much as I'd love to see you come here, I honestly think that your level of golf right now is good enough to be on the LPGA tour ...’ And so I took that to heart, because the head coach gave him a nasty glare, like ‘what are you doing’ type of situation, and it meant a lot to me because he did not have to say all that. He did not have to be truthful with me ... in the sense that he thought I was good enough.”
She also reminded me that college wasn’t entirely off the table yet, either.
“Knowing that I had a backup plan definitely helped but because I was playing so well at the time. I took a chance on me and I bet on myself, and thankfully it all worked out. Looking back I would've loved to go to school, but at the end of the day you can always go back to school, so it's not out of the picture for me.”
Hailing from Rockland, Khang told me that being a Rockland native had an effect on her career.
“Honestly, there’s a ton of Bulldog Pride and, I think, especially growing up here and going to the sporting events and having friends that were on the sports teams, you could really see that we all bled blue out there. That kind of helped me motivate myself to be better for myself in my own sport.”
Khang also had words for those from Rockland who want to succeed as she has.
“I’ve never thought... about being the most famous person out of Rockland, but if that’s the case I don’t expect to be the last,” claimed Khang on how to succeed for future Rocklanders. “It’s a very small high school in a sense...I think because it’s such a tight-knit school, you can push each other; and we’ve had kids go to Stanford and Texas and every other big-name school, and I think just trying to make yourself proud and Rockland proud is just something to motivate yourself,” said said.
By the way, for someone who has played golf around the globe for all the glory and fame the LPGA can offer, I think it’s incredibly humble that Khang’s favorite course is right here on the South Shore, at Boston Golf Club in Hingham, just a few minutes northeast of Rockland.
As a professional female golfer, Khang understands that while golf is a predominantly men’s sport. Forbes Magazine claims that as much as 77% of all golfers, pro and amateur, are men, but the sport is becoming increasingly accessible for women.
“I will say golf is a predominantly men’s sport, but at the same time I think as the generations have gone on, the women’s game has grown ... and I think that’s what you kind of look for,” Khang said about the growth of the game for women.
“And so although we’re still slightly behind the men percentage-wise, it’s pretty cool to see that each year, you see the entries of women’s golf from the juniors to the seniors… It’s incredible to see how many people in general are playing golf.”
Khang also touched on how golf is becoming more accessible to the greater population in general.
“I think golf itself was just kind of labeled as an upper-class sport when it first came out, but nowadays there's so many programs that are making it more accessible and more fun for people to just try to get into golf instead of not being given the opportunity.”
Some teachers also had a few things to add to Khang’s legacy at Rockland High. On her return to her alma mater, Khang visited some of her old teachers to reconnect and met with members of the RHS golf team to offer some advice.
“I remember her in my psychology class and she was fun, she was energetic... She was nice, friendly, outgoing, and very respectful in my class,” said Ms. Sandy Lombardi, who was one of Khang’s teachers at RHS.
She also made a point to visit another teacher she had during her time as a student, and after hearing what he had to say about Khang, it’s no wonder she was so eager to see him again.
“I really liked Megan as a student. I thought that she always had a smile on her face, she had a real dry wit, so she was actually very funny... She was very level-headed for someone who was really kind of paving her way in the world of golf. She did not have an ego, she was not strutting around the hallways. She enjoyed being just like every other student, and I thought she was very humble for someone who was doing such great things at such a young age,” Mr. Richard MacAllister, History Department Chair said.
To see the full interview and to check out the “Bulldog Breakdown” on YouTube, or tune into WRPS TV, click here or check with your local cable listings.