Shelby Evans is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Cactus Shadows High School for AZPreps365.com

Standing outside of a Cactus Shadows classroom, Charlene Lamb was nervous to enter the meeting of the girls varsity golf team she was planning on joining her sophomore year. 

“Seeing everyone look at me, I was just so worried,” Charlene said. “I was like, ‘Oh no, they’re not going to like me,’ just talking myself down.” 

Now a senior in high school, Charlene was born and raised in Taiwan. She is the youngest of three children to her American father, Charlie, and Taiwanese mother, Carrie.

She began playing golf with her dad as a mentor. She began competing seriously and by the time she was 12, junior competitions were taking more of her time and threatening her education at the Taipei American School. 

“For the juniors, it’s [golf competitions] on the weekdays in Taiwan, so you have to take off school," Charlie said. "She had missed too much school and they were going to kick her out.” 

Charlene had the opportunity to play against older girls and even professionals. The golf course she played at was traditional and had an emphasis on respecting coaches and older players.

“I followed many, many rules,” Charlene said. “During that time, I kind of put my personality to the side. It was hard for me to express myself because I was always so worried about how everyone viewed me.”

Her dedication to golf remained. She wanted to play beyond high school. Charlene spoke to her parents about a move to America with the intention of getting a college scholarship in the NCAA. The family agreed a move to her dad’s home state of Arizona was best for her educational and golf aspirations.

“Charlie told me the U.S. would be the better place for Charlene to play golf in high school. I said ‘OK, no problem. I can take her here,’” Carrie said. 

The first golf team meeting Charlene attended in 2023 ended with her having the phone numbers of all the girls on the team and multiple invitations to play golf together before the season started.

“I have no words to explain it,” Charlene said. “It was just such a great transition and I’m so happy to be here.”

In Charlene's first golf season at Cactus Shadows, she shot an average of 35.5 strokes during the 9-hole matches. As a sophomore, she finished No. 16 in the state.

This year, Charlene credits her golf coach, Mark O’Bryan, for encouraging her to be herself.

“My number one goal is to have fun,” O’Bryan said. “I’ve never talked about winning. Just have fun. Play as well as you can. It’s you against the golf course.” 

Last year, Charlene's comfortability in the U.S. did not extend to competition as a junior. She was losing against the golf course. 

“I felt myself holding back,” Charlene said. “I didn’t know why and I couldn’t help myself to hit a single ball, and that really frustrated me.” 

College recruiters for Division I golf programs can begin speaking to prospective students on June 15 after their sophomore year. With her scores falling flat, Charlene shared that fewer recruiters were talking to her as her junior year progressed. 

“It started to feel like it was impossible for me to go to a school, which is the reason I moved here in the first place,” Charlene said. “I just felt really disappointed and really scared.”

Charlene finished junior year ranked No. 17 in the state with an average stroke total of 37.4. Hitting two strokes more per match than she had as a sophomore made a difference for college recruitment. 

“She was talking herself into having problems instead of trusting herself,” Charlie said. 

With her college future unsecured, Charlene continued to participate in the Junior Golf Association of Arizona in the spring and summer of this year. Her dad accompanied her to the tournaments. She credits him for helping her get out of her slump. 

“He was talking about how there are going to be the demons talking but you have to have the angel as well. You just have to believe,” Charlene said. “The next day I shot a 1-under, which I hadn’t done for months.” 

Charlene played her last regular season high school match last Wednesday. It was a quad-match against Horizon, Desert Mountain and Pinnacle.

Cactus Shadows had a rookie roster this season. Charlene was the only senior on the team and became the natural leader. Ahead of last Wednesday’s match, she hit balls at the range and laughed with the girls while trying to convince O’Bryan to bring them to Crumbl Cookies after they finished.

When it came time for the top players to begin, Charlene offered to be the first to tee off in the group. She scored a birdie on the par-4 hole. 

Walking along the fairways, she greeted the parents she knew and chatted with the other players, including her friend from the JGAA tour and opponent from Pinnacle, Kaitlyn Moreland. 

Charlene Lamb (left) poses with Kaitlyn Moreland after her last regular season match with Cactus Shadows high school on Oct. 15. (Shelby Evans photo/AZPreps365)

Charlene not only made friends with the girls on her team after that first meeting her sophomore year, she got to know the girls in her classes – friends that showed up to her Senior Day celebration – and she befriended the girls she competed against across the state.  

Charlene finished Wednesday's match even-par. After sinking her last put, she hugged Moreland before they walked off the green together.

“We are definitely friends before competitors,” Moreland said. “We’re still trying to do our best individually, but we’re always rooting for each other, no matter what.”

Heading into the state tournament, Charlene is third in the state for high school play. She plays an average of 35.4 strokes per match. It’s her best season since she moved to America. 

Colleges have noticed her improvement in form. She has offers from two Division I NCAA schools. The family has toured both schools as she considers which one to choose. 

Charlene plans to have a decision before the start of the Division II state championship on Monday.