University of North Carolina Athletics
Freshman Ava Bergner
Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati
GoHeels Exclusive: Bergner Has 'It'
November 3, 2017 | Women's Golf, Featured Writers
by Pat James
Before each tournament, North Carolina women's golf coach Jan Mann asks her players the same question: What are you capable of shooting?
She doesn't do this to pressure them. Instead, she asks to ensure the golfers have a score in mind that serves as a constant reminder of what they can achieve, no matter how a round might unfold.
When Mann posed this question to the team before the Ruth's Chris Tar Heel Invitational, held Oct. 13-15 at UNC Finley Golf Course, freshman Ava Bergner answered first.
"I'm going to shoot a 64," she said.
Through two rounds, Bergner was tied for 10th after carding a 70 both days. Still, she knew she could play better. Then on the final day, she shot a 66. The score tied all-time UNC individual records for best round and lowest score to par (-6). But she fell two shots shy of her goal.
"She was disappointed she didn't shoot the 64 in the end," Mann said. "Of course, she was happy she shot a 66. But could she have shot a 64? Heck, yeah."
Bergner's historic performance came in just her third collegiate tournament. But it's the confidence she's displayed since arriving at UNC three months ago from Germany that has allowed her to experience instant success.
Growing up in Ketsch, Germany, Bergner, 18, said she didn't swing a golf club until she was 10. Instead, she played tennis and basketball – which her father, Dirk, played professionally in Germany.
But he and the rest of the family also played golf. Bergner joined them and later became involved with the youth program at her local course. She steadily improved. And when she switched her swing coach to Ted Long, the PGA of Germany's Teacher of the Year in 2014, her development accelerated.
She continued playing basketball and golf for a few years. But because she often missed practices or competitions for one sport or the other, Bergner said she was forced to choose between them.
"It was a hard time deciding that," she said. "In the end, my parents made the decision. And I was not very happy with it at first, so I would cry for a long time."
But the decision proved fruitful.
A member of the German National Golf Team, she won the German Ladies team championship twice and the German Girls' Under-16 team championship in 2015. She also finished runner-up at the 2015 Doral-Publix Junior Golf Classic, one of the world's largest junior golf tournaments and where Mann said she first saw Bergner play.
Multiple college coaches contacted Bergner after Doral, she said. She then chose her five favorite schools and visited them in one week with her father. Four offered her a scholarship. UNC, the school she knew she wanted to attend, originally didn't.
Bergner said Mann wasn't sure if she'd give a scholarship to her or another player. But Mann ultimately chose her.
"I was on the golf course in Ireland, and it was raining and windy and so cold," Bergner said. "And I called her and she said, 'Yeah, I'm going to give you the scholarship.' That round I was playing was really annoying and we were all freezing. But after that, it was just so good."
And entering their final tournament of the fall season, this weekend's Battle at the Beach in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico, the Tar Heels have already benefitted from her presence.
With a team-best 70.89 stroke average through three tournaments, Bergner sits at No. 30 in Golfweek's women's collegiate individual rankings. Only two other freshmen – UCLA's Patty Tavatanakit (No. 3) and Wake Forest's Emilia Migliaccio (No. 12) – are ahead of her.
Bergner's succeeded because of her lack of mistakes. Of 162 holes played, she's finished only 21 over par. But perhaps even more important is her ability to rebound from her rare miscues.
In the final round of her first tournament, the Ocean Course Invitational, Bergner carded a triple bogey on her sixth hole. But she shot 3-under across her final 12 holes to finish tied for 10th. During the Tar Heel Invitational, her bogey on the 11th hole dropped her to even par in the final round. She subsequently shot 6-under on her final 10 holes to tie for third.
"That's her mentality," Mann said. "It's something that as coaches –and with my volunteer assistant (Dr. Bill Moore), who is our sports psychologist – we're always trying to teach the girls. But she has it.
"She's not afraid on the golf course. She's not afraid of not doing well. She always expects to do well, and if she has a bad hole, it's, 'Oh, well, I'm going to make it up.'"
Off the course, Bergner said she continues adjusting in some areas. She speaks English without much of a German accent. But she struggles ordering at restaurants, where sometimes she asks for an item without knowing what she'll receive.
Her teammates and coaches have assisted her, though, and she said her experiences traveling with the national team have limited homesickness.
Bergner's confidence also helps. And after building even more over the past three months, she said she anxiously awaits the start of the spring season.
"It's always great to have a bit (of time) off and enjoy the offseason," she said. "And when we go back to practicing, it's like the best. You can really grind and work hard, and when you play out and see how you improve, that's an awesome feeling."
Before each tournament, North Carolina women's golf coach Jan Mann asks her players the same question: What are you capable of shooting?
She doesn't do this to pressure them. Instead, she asks to ensure the golfers have a score in mind that serves as a constant reminder of what they can achieve, no matter how a round might unfold.
When Mann posed this question to the team before the Ruth's Chris Tar Heel Invitational, held Oct. 13-15 at UNC Finley Golf Course, freshman Ava Bergner answered first.
"I'm going to shoot a 64," she said.
Through two rounds, Bergner was tied for 10th after carding a 70 both days. Still, she knew she could play better. Then on the final day, she shot a 66. The score tied all-time UNC individual records for best round and lowest score to par (-6). But she fell two shots shy of her goal.
"She was disappointed she didn't shoot the 64 in the end," Mann said. "Of course, she was happy she shot a 66. But could she have shot a 64? Heck, yeah."
Bergner's historic performance came in just her third collegiate tournament. But it's the confidence she's displayed since arriving at UNC three months ago from Germany that has allowed her to experience instant success.
Growing up in Ketsch, Germany, Bergner, 18, said she didn't swing a golf club until she was 10. Instead, she played tennis and basketball – which her father, Dirk, played professionally in Germany.
But he and the rest of the family also played golf. Bergner joined them and later became involved with the youth program at her local course. She steadily improved. And when she switched her swing coach to Ted Long, the PGA of Germany's Teacher of the Year in 2014, her development accelerated.
She continued playing basketball and golf for a few years. But because she often missed practices or competitions for one sport or the other, Bergner said she was forced to choose between them.
"It was a hard time deciding that," she said. "In the end, my parents made the decision. And I was not very happy with it at first, so I would cry for a long time."
But the decision proved fruitful.
A member of the German National Golf Team, she won the German Ladies team championship twice and the German Girls' Under-16 team championship in 2015. She also finished runner-up at the 2015 Doral-Publix Junior Golf Classic, one of the world's largest junior golf tournaments and where Mann said she first saw Bergner play.
Multiple college coaches contacted Bergner after Doral, she said. She then chose her five favorite schools and visited them in one week with her father. Four offered her a scholarship. UNC, the school she knew she wanted to attend, originally didn't.
Bergner said Mann wasn't sure if she'd give a scholarship to her or another player. But Mann ultimately chose her.
"I was on the golf course in Ireland, and it was raining and windy and so cold," Bergner said. "And I called her and she said, 'Yeah, I'm going to give you the scholarship.' That round I was playing was really annoying and we were all freezing. But after that, it was just so good."
And entering their final tournament of the fall season, this weekend's Battle at the Beach in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico, the Tar Heels have already benefitted from her presence.
With a team-best 70.89 stroke average through three tournaments, Bergner sits at No. 30 in Golfweek's women's collegiate individual rankings. Only two other freshmen – UCLA's Patty Tavatanakit (No. 3) and Wake Forest's Emilia Migliaccio (No. 12) – are ahead of her.
Bergner's succeeded because of her lack of mistakes. Of 162 holes played, she's finished only 21 over par. But perhaps even more important is her ability to rebound from her rare miscues.
In the final round of her first tournament, the Ocean Course Invitational, Bergner carded a triple bogey on her sixth hole. But she shot 3-under across her final 12 holes to finish tied for 10th. During the Tar Heel Invitational, her bogey on the 11th hole dropped her to even par in the final round. She subsequently shot 6-under on her final 10 holes to tie for third.
"That's her mentality," Mann said. "It's something that as coaches –and with my volunteer assistant (Dr. Bill Moore), who is our sports psychologist – we're always trying to teach the girls. But she has it.
"She's not afraid on the golf course. She's not afraid of not doing well. She always expects to do well, and if she has a bad hole, it's, 'Oh, well, I'm going to make it up.'"
Off the course, Bergner said she continues adjusting in some areas. She speaks English without much of a German accent. But she struggles ordering at restaurants, where sometimes she asks for an item without knowing what she'll receive.
Her teammates and coaches have assisted her, though, and she said her experiences traveling with the national team have limited homesickness.
Bergner's confidence also helps. And after building even more over the past three months, she said she anxiously awaits the start of the spring season.
"It's always great to have a bit (of time) off and enjoy the offseason," she said. "And when we go back to practicing, it's like the best. You can really grind and work hard, and when you play out and see how you improve, that's an awesome feeling."
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