Washington College of Law student Hilary Dengel, 21, of Chatham, Ontario, will have something to hang next to her anticipated law degree when she graduates - a personal letter and award from the most revered golfer of all time, Jack Nicklaus.
Earlier this month, Dengel earned the Jack Nicklaus Award for Academic Excellence by the Royal Canadian Golf Association Foundation. The award is given annually to a member of the foundation who excels on the links and in the classroom.
"It's a big accomplishment - I know a lot of kids up for the award that have great academic and golf records as well," said Dengel, who led Northwood University in West Palm Beach, Fla., to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics women's golf championship in two of her four years.
Her love for the game helped make her a top junior golfer in Ontario. The RCGA took notice of her accomplishments and potential as a golfer and a student by awarding her major scholarships to continue playing the game in college.
"Golf has been a huge influence on my life - it's kind of all I've known," she said. "But it's not a bad deal. They said they'd pay for much school as long as I agreed to play golf five times a week."
But obviously she knows much more than how to read greens and hit balls onto the fairway. Last May she graduated as her class valedictorian. Combined with her dedicated efforts in the classroom, Dengel became a clear choice for the Nicklaus award, which is announced every year at the Canadian Open on a course that the Golden Bear himself designed.
Now, however, Dengel is committed to earning her law degree at AU's Washington College of Law. While she still tries to find time for golf - last week she played at Potomac Park - she admitted that her favorite game will be taking a backseat for the next few years.
"I've been trying to balance golf and school for a long time," she said, "but the first two weeks of law school have been crazy"
