Golfer Bria Jansen picks Canadian Tour pro
Many teenagers don’t know what they want to do after high school, but Bria Jansen never had much doubt.
After winning many junior golf tournaments across North America, Jansen knew she was going to tackle the road to collegiate golf head-on.
To help her meet that goal, Jansen met Canadian Tour vet, Kent Fukushima, in a spring training camp for Team Alberta in 2014.
At 5’1”, Jansen’s unorthodox but powerful swing propelled her to collegiate ranks, and she says Fukushima was one of the first coaches who avoided morphing her swing into something that “wasn’t her.”
“He didn’t want to change what I already had built, so he worked off the foundation I have,” says the Calgarian in a phone interview from Alabama where she plays for Troy University.
“He’s never too overly technical and he goes after my weaknesses by building off my strengths.”
Facing the pressure of playing on scholarship money and balancing a full course load, Jansen says Fukushima has been much more than just a swing coach.
“Kent actually knows what college life is like and we like to chat about the things that we can and can’t control,” says Jansen. “I used to always let my surroundings get the best of me, and I think avoiding that is one of the best things he’s taught me.”’
bstasiewich@cjournal.ca
The editor responsible for this piece is Natalie Holland and can be reached at nholland@cjournal.ca