Senior golfer Brooke Beeler has been swinging a golf club for most of her life, living and breathing the game of golf.

“My life is built around golf,” Beeler said. “So I really have no idea where I would be at or what I would be doing [without it].”

The Butler, Ill. native picked up a golf club when she was five years old and entered her first tournament at the age of eight, finishing first in her flight. Beeler said her older brother first inspired her to pick up the sport that became her life.

“I’d seen him do it,” Beeler said. “I did whatever he did. That’s what drove me to do this. I’ve loved it ever since.”

When Beeler was in junior high, she said golf became something that she wanted to pursue beyond the amateur level.

“I was in a lot of sports during junior high and when high school came around, I just got more and more into it,” she said. “Junior year I won a state championship, and that’s when I knew I wanted to try to make it a career.”

Beeler’s golf career has taken her to many places outside of university competition. Last summer, she competed in the LPGA State Farm Classic in Springfield, Ill. and the World University Games in Shenzhen, China.

In China, Beeler said Americans were extremely popular. People would walk up and ask to take her photo, claiming to have never seen an American before.

Beeler’s efforts at the World University Games earned her eleventh place overall and helped the U.S. team walk away with the bronze medal.

When Beeler is not playing golf, she said she liked to watch baseball, one of her favorite sports, or just spend time with friends.

Beeler will finish out her tenure at the university in May. She said her ultimate goal for the season was to win a national championship and be the best golfer possible.