BENTONVILLE — Brooke Rodney has enough golf experience to know there’s a constant love-hate relationship with the sport.
The love for golf made the Bentonville senior want to continue playing, and Southwest Baptist gave her a last-minute offer she couldn’t refuse. Rodney then made the most of her opportunity by signing with the NCAA Division II school Wednesday afternoon at the Tiger Athletic Complex.
“It’s a great experience,” Rodney said. “I’m so excited about it. I would love to be up there right now, but I have to finish up high school.
“I’m ready to be up there. It’s nice to be able to do something I enjoy and I love.”
Rodney was a four-year player for the Lady Tigers and the lone senior on a young team last fall. She was a regular fixture on Bentonville’s varsity roster, rotating between the No. 2 and the No. 3 spot in the lineup throughout the season.
She had strongly considered going to Oklahoma Baptist before Southwest Baptist entered the picture.
“What Brooke brought to our table was a strong work ethic,” Bentonville coach Lindsey Davis said. “She was always the first one to the course and probably the last one to leave because she was always concentrating on making herself better.
“It’s going to be a big loss to our team, but we’re excited Brooke is getting the chance to continue playing.”
Rodney becomes part of a Bearcats team that just completed its inaugural golf season last week with an 11th-place finish in the Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association golf championships last week in Smithville, Mo. She is expected to contribute once she joins the team in the fall, and she plans to continue working on her game before she heads to campus.
“I’ll be working on my course management,” Rodney said. “I go to Back Nine Golf Academy, and the instructor has completely reworked my swing and worked out all the little problems I have. So I’m down to course management and getting out to playing.”