The Auburn University women’s golf program didn’t have to worry about losing a prized recruit in Kate Barber, a senior at Savannah Country Day.
Barber made her official visit during her junior year in September 2023 and verbally committed while in Auburn, Alabama. She couldn’t officially sign a letter of intent until the first opportunity on Wednesday, Nov. 13, and she didn’t waver over the 14 months.
PHOTO: Courtsey Savannah Country Day Social Media pages
“It was the right decision for me,” Barber, 17, said Wednesday a few minutes ahead of the signing ceremony on the Savannah Country Day campus. “I love the (Auburn) coaches. I love the facilities. I love the place. It’s the perfect distance from home. It’s just everything.”
Her father, Andrew Barber, said his daughter talked to a lot of college coaches and listened to what they had to say. But it didn’t matter.
PHOTO: Nathan Dominitz for the Prep Sports Report
“She never really had another choice that she wanted to pursue,” he said. “If she could go to Auburn, that’s where she wanted to go.”
If the pipeline between Savannah Country Day and Auburn sounds familiar, perhaps it’s because former standout Hornets golfer Reed Lotter, 20, competes for the Tigers’ men’s team that captured Southeastern Conference and NCAA national championships in 2024. Barber said her good friend raved to her about Auburn and was helpful in supporting her decision, but it was her decision.
Barber has a pretty good track record of knowing what she wants and doing what it takes to get there. Well before her name regularly appeared on leaderboards at junior tournaments across the region, state and eventually the country, Barber took the first step in her golf career at age 6.
The initial reasons were proximity and opportunity. The Barbers live at The Landings, a community with six golf courses. Her father is a golfer and his daughter tagged along.
“That kind of was the whole reason it started,” Kate recalled. “We went out there one day. He was like, ‘Do what you want to do with that.’ I ended up really loving it.”
She enjoys the social side of the sport and its peaceful side.
“I think the friendships that you make and the people that you meet along the way are one of the greatest aspects of it,” Barber said. “As well as being out there. It’s super calming. It’s a place that I love to be.”
PHOTO: Nathan Doominitz for the Prep Sports Report
Her father said that Kate was a youth soccer player but “she didn’t like relying on other kids to score goals and things. She liked the idea of relying on herself to compete.”
That self-reliance is appealing, and the amount of time and work required aren’t deterrents to her.
“I think that’s one of the best things about it,” she said of golf as an individual sport. “You take responsibility for your actions. You only get to reward yourself when you do good.”
Barber has done good, competing in more than 500 tournaments since age 6, according to Savannah Country Day director of athletics James Franklin in his opening comments at the ceremony that packed Andrews Assembly Room.
He counted six amateur junior world championship events. Barber competed in the 2022 USGA Women’s Amateur at Chambers Bay, and perhaps her biggest victory was the 2020 Doral Publix Junior Golf Classic in the Girls 12-13 Division.
Barber rose through local, sub-regional and regional qualifiers to play in the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals in April 2019. A sixth-grader at Hancock Day School, Barber finished third in the Girls 12-13 Division at Augusta National Golf Club on the Sunday going into Masters week.
More recently, Barber was second at the GHSA Class 3A state tournament in 2023 and fourth last spring.
As she pointed out, along with highlights come disappointments, as is the nature of the sport.
“Golf is not a game of winning,” Barber said. “You lose a lot more than you win. It happens to everyone. Mental battles – you struggle through that. You’ve just got to get out of it at some point.”
This mindset has served her well, her father said.
“She has a lot of grit and extreme amount of perseverance,” Andrew Barber said. “The ups and downs, she just gets through it.”
Kate plans to study physical therapy at Auburn after dealing with “a couple of minor shoulder problems” and learning about treatments.
Christine Hefner said she doesn’t know much about sports, but the ceramics teacher knows Kate Barber as her student and through her role as coordinator of the Service Learning program at Savannah Country Day.
“(Barber) is a very enthusiastic, positive student,” Hefner said. “She never gets over-stressed. She’s always willing to put in as much work at it takes to find success, which is really an admirable quality because some students will just peter out, give up and it’ll make them mad. Kate just doesn’t have that.
“Obviously, that comes from her many years playing golf, but to see it be able to translate so smoothly into any aspect of her life is really impressive.”
Barber is involved in the community service program, as well as secretary of the Class of 2025 and a member of the Christian-led Young Life student organization.
She is looking forward to being part of a team at Auburn, having enjoyed playing for the volleyball squad at Hancock Day.
Years ago, she set goals of playing golf in college and professionally. Her parents Andrew and Ellen, her brother Heath, a SCD ninth-grader, and students, faculty and staff were there to see her take the next step on Wednesday.
“It really makes my future,” Barber said. “Today’s the day where it’s actually official. It means so much to have everyone here supporting me.”
Photo Credit: Courtesy Nathan Dominitz, Savannah Country Day School, Auburn University Athletic Department
FOLLOW the Prep Sports Report on Twitter @PrepSav and Instagram savannahsportsreport. If you have any scores, information, or story ideas to share, please email kdemasi@prepsportsreport.com.
