Sheamus Dalton
Sports Editor
In a school known for its academics as well as its athletics, there may be no greater honor than receiving an All-American Scholar Award at The College of Wooster. To win such an honor means that an individual is equally dedicated to both the rigorous academics found here at the College and to the competitive nature of NCAA athletics. Sharmeen Chinoy ’16 has recently been recognized to have such dedication on and off the field after being named an All-American Scholar by the Women’s Golf Coaches Association.
Chinoy, born in Calcutta, India, has been playing golf for much of her life. She began playing when she was a young child, but it wasn’t until the end of her time in middle school that she began to take her game to a higher level.
“I always had a passion for the game but eighth grade was when I first started travelling,” Chinoy said. She further explained that in India she would travel across the nation and compete in tournaments in various cities. Her love for the game was what inspired her to look for education abroad as she approached the end of her high school years.
“In India you either play golf or you go to school,” said Chinoy. Determined to obtain a higher education that would also allow her to play competitive golf, she looked to the U.S. for her undergraduate degree and it wasn’t until President Cornwell paid a visit to her high school in India that she decided on Wooster.
“I heard about [Wooster] from a friend at my high school,” said Chinoy. “The president visited my school and that’s when I knew.”
“The rest is history” would be the appropriate cliché to use, but the history Chinoy has made while playing golf for the Scots has been rather remarkable. In her first season, Chinoy led the Scots in nearly every tournament and averaged just over 88 strokes a round for 16 rounds. She was also named NCAC Player of the Week in April following her performance at the Mohican Classic where she shot a 179 (87-92) over the course of 36 holes.
In June, the Women’s Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) named Chinoy as an All-American Scholar selection. This prestigious award is given to select golfers who meet strict criteria determined by the WGCA. In receiving the award, Chinoy was one of only eight other student athletes in the NCAC to be honored with the selection.
“A friend posted the link on my Facebook page. I didn’t know what it was but I was really honored,” said Chinoy.
This year, Chinoy returns for the Scots to begin the program’s fourth season. Chinoy, along with the rest of the team, began this season with a bang finishing seventh in the Denison Fall Invitational and fourth in a record-setting performance at the Ohio Wesleyan University Fall Invitational.
At the OWU Invite, the Scots set two school records by scoring record-lows 338 and 334 on Saturday and Sunday respectively. Individually, Chinoy set a school record by shooting a 77 over 18 holes of golf en route to a 155 overall and fourth place finish in a field of 61 golfers.
Chinoy’s final comments about the team for the upcoming season were anything but negative. She expressed a huge sense of excitement and confidence in the team’s ability to improve and compete against a difficult group of teams in the NCAC. With the results they have had thus far in the season, it is safe to say that Chinoy and the rest of the team are on pace to have their best season in program history.