This feature originally appeared in the 2023-24 Winter edition of the Cal Sports Quarterly. The Cal Athletics flagship magazine features long-form sports journalism at its finest and provides in-depth coverage of the scholar-athlete experience in Berkeley. Printed copies are mailed four times a year to Bear Backers who give annually at the Bear Club level (currently $600 or more). For more information on how you can receive a printed version of the Cal Sports Quarterly at home, send an email to CalAthleticsFund@berkeley.edu or call (510) 642-2427.
As California women’s golf associate head coach Bev Terry was making her final rounds at the University of Denver Golf Club this past October, she was withholding some pretty exciting news from her team.
After the Golden Bears began the last round of the Ron Moore Intercollegiate 13 strokes out of first place, their focus wasn’t necessarily on getting an improbable comeback win. Rather, their game plan for the final 18 holes was a simple one: stay calm, stick to their strengths, and take the opportunities that were in front of them.
Like many other programs, the Bears have a no-phone policy during tournaments, meaning they aren’t allowed to get score updates while they are competing. But when Terry found freshman Constance Fouillet and sophomore Adora Liu fresh off their final putts of the day, the cat quickly jumped out of the bag.
“They’re seeing the last scores come in on their phones and rushing over. They’re so excited,'” Terry said. “We were coming back all throughout the day, so after seeing that they had won, Constance was freaking out in the parking lot.”
Fouillet’s jubilation in that moment was well-deserved. In just her fourth competition as a Bear, she helped lead the team to its third straight victory, something Cal had never done before.
Having skipped a year of grade school at the age of 5 – the same year she was introduced to golf by her parents, Gilles and Florence – the Rennes, France, native is the youngest player Terry has coached with the Bears. Fouillet is still only 17 and won’t turn 18 until January 9.
“There are some tendencies or reactions that can make her feel young, and we have to coach ourselves to remember that she’s only 17,” Terry said. “But it’s because she has so much golf experience that it makes it feel as though she’s mature beyond her years.”
From Fouillet’s perspective, the difference in age throughout her 12-year…
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