Nigerian teenage golfer, Essien chases her dream at Taft

Essien

It wasn’t exactly love at first sight for Iyene Essien, but her initial curiosity and excitement developed into a passion so strong that at age 15 she traveled nearly 6,000 miles to follow her heart.

Essien is still trying to figure things out, but she’s invested and grounded enough to chase her dream of becoming a professional golfer with the support of her family.

The No. 1-ranked junior girls golfer in Nigeria, Essien enrolled at Taft School this year as a sophomore in hopes of using it as a stepping stone to a college golf scholarship.

Essien’s father, Eyo, played golf for fun at his home course in Nigeria, the IBB International Golf & Country Club in Abuja, Nigeria. She began asking questions about the sport, so he took her one day to watch it.

“The day my dad took me for a walk at the country club when I was five years old, I saw a white boy about my age playing golf, and I was really curious and excited to try it,” Essien said.

“She wanted to go practice with the boy right there and then,” her father said. “I told her she couldn’t because she didn’t have any clubs yet, but I promised her I would buy her a set of clubs and hire her the same golf coach the little boy had. She started playing that year and has not looked back since.”

She won her first club tournament at five. By 11, she was representing Nigeria in international golf tournaments, starting with the Africa Junior Golf Championship.

When her game advanced to the point her local coach and dad needed help teaching her, he sent her to Johannesburg, South Africa, to work with a PGA-certified professional coach, John Dickson, to rid her of a slice and improve her putting.

She also outgrew the local competition, so her parents started sending her each summer to