Sasse-Kildow: A ?Grinder? Who Defied the Odds

Women's GolfAugust 28, 2015

Sasse-Kildow: A ?Grinder? Who Defied the Odds

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In her 29th season as Nebraska’s head women’s golf coach, Robin Krapfl continues to emphasize the principles of achieving excellence on and off the course. Coaching a program that leads the nation with 67 Women’s Golf Coaches Association Scholastic All-America honors, Krapfl knows excellence when she sees it. She also knows the fire that burns most in a player’s heart, and she’s never seen a collegiate student-athlete with more amazing passion than Sarah Sasse-Kildow, one of 22 members of the University of Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame inaugural class

The only Nebraska women’s golfer to earn first-team All-America honors, Sasse-Kildow received the 2003 Big 12 Conference Golfer of the Year after winning a school-record four tournament titles as a senior, including the Big 12 Championship. The Lincoln native, who grew up using the Jim Ager Golf Course as a “baby-sitter” while her blue-collar parents worked, had an innate and inspirational rise to the peak of NCAA women’s competition.

“The word that comes immediately to mind to describe Sarah is grind,” Krapfl said. “She really had to work hard for everything she accomplished. About 90 percent of the collegiate golfers I see come in as products of a country club. Sarah came up the hard way…the public course way. She’s the best grinder I’ve ever seen. She wasn’t a long hitter, but she’d make every putt that counted. She was just an exceptional competitor who had that inner force.”

With Five Daughters, Sarah Was the Little Boy Her Dad Never Had

That inner force reflected her mom, who was a nurse, and her dad, who was a machine operator for a mill company. Sarah was the middle child among five daughters of Jim and Teresa Sasse. “I was my dad’s little boy he never had,” Sasse-Kildow told me. “He was only 5-7, but played every sport you can think of. He had great hand-to-eye coordination and incredible skill sets. He had a great work ethic and was one of those rare individuals who just loved to practice.”

Krapfl heard stories from men’s golfers who marveled at Sasse-Kildow’s short game. “When she got older, she’d compete against the guys on the local courses,” Krapfl said. “Her uncle, Rennie Sasse, gave her a lot of great advice. He just ran away from everyone in the Lincoln Senior Men's City Golf Tournament, so he knows what he’s talking about.”

Sasse-Kildow developed her own city-wide reputation that featured an assortment of shots. “She practiced every day almost all the time,” Krapl said. “She’d put on a show because she could get up-and-down from almost anywhere on the golf course. I’ve never coached a player with her kind of short game. She’s the best women’s player in school history and didn’t come from privilege. She came up the old-fashioned way, through hard work and complete dedication. She deserves to be the first one inducted into the Hall of Fame, and we’re all proud of her selection.”

Sasse-Kildow: Being a Mom Trumps Anything She’s Accomplished

The only bummer is Sasse-Kildow’s late father’s absence from next Friday’s official Hall-of-Fame induction and next Saturday’s halftime recognition at the Nebraska-BYU season-opening football game in front of another sold-out Memorial Stadium crowd. “He was my biggest fan,” Sasse-Kildow said. “He watched every tournament he could, and I tried to be the hardest worker out there every time I competed. I got that from him.”

Sasse-Kildow’s professional career has taken various directions. “My most important experience surrounds my family (pictured above),” she said of her husband, Kris, and their two children, Carson, 8, and Lila, now 5. “It always sounds a bit cheesy when you hear others say, 'My kids are the most important thing I've ever done,’ and when you have your own, you can understand how true that is. To sum up everything, my career as a mom trumps anything that I’ve ever done in golf...it’s also twice as humbling.”

Everything Sasse-Kildow does, as a mother, wife and staff member for the Nebraska Schools Activities Association, reflects her father's mindset – grind it out, be the best you can be, refine everything you can. “I liked what I learned from my parents,” she said. “They worked hard in everything they did, and that was key to everything I’ve accomplished. They worked hard, and I’ve set my goals and worked as hard as I can to achieve them.”

Hall-of-Fame Golfer Now Directing Tournaments Instead of Competing

In her third year as assistant director for the NSAA, Sasse-Kildow (pictured above with Krapfl) is the statewide organization's director of marketing and media. She oversees all publications and serves as the administrator for the Nebraska Boys and Girls State Golf Tournaments

On Friday, Sasse-Kildow drove to North Platte, Neb., to finalize state tournament logistics, which include supervising nearly 50 volunteers who help stage the statewide competitions. Her husband is in management for Burlington Northern Railroad.

Before choosing the path she's now on, Sasse-Kildow worked in pharmaceuticals and dabbled in real estate. When she saw a job posting for the NSAA, she was more than interested. She was intrigued, and the experience has been positive for a sports-minded leader who's also a dedicated wife and mother.

Sasse-Kildow is a State High School Leader with a Spirit of Humility

Since Sasse-Kildow holds an important job related to state high school competition, I ask about her own prep career. She tells me it was "okay" and leaves it as that. A quick check of her bio shows she won two high school state championships at Lincoln High and also won three Nebraska Girls Match Play titles.

She has a way of using humor to downplay achievements. "My eight-year-old little boy (Carson) thinks that his mom is pretty cool because I'm now going into a Hall of Fame," she said. "Evidently, I wasn't very cool before this honor came my way. I'm truly flattered and humbled to accept such a great honor. Nebraska has such a rich tradition. Just to be in the conversation with all of these great athlets is a surreal concept for me."

As a native Nebraskan, she's grown to appreciate the state's culture on a daily basis. "I always felt the entire athletic department was dedicated to my personal excellence, so I could succeed as a student and as an athlete. As an adult, the Nebraska community has provided me with wonderful opportunities to continue my growth as a professional. There's no other place I would choose to raise my family."

Looking Back, Being Part of a Team Was Best Part of College Experience

Competing in her final Big 12 Conference Championship was one of Sasse-Kildow's favorite highlights as a Husker. "As a competitor, I was confident in how I prepared for the event and how I played in it," she said. "It was also a time when I looked back and truly felt that I was part of a team, so I really took the time to enjoy that aspect of the experience."

In line with her humility, Sasse-Kildow isn't sure that others would want to follow her path. "We each have our own sources of motivation and quirks around how we compete," she said. "Since I was very young, I always had a competitive soul, and I still do. Playing collegiate golf at Nebraska just allowed me to compete at a higher level. Nebraska provided me with all the tools needed to maximize my competitive spirit."

After college, Sasse-Kildow traveled and lived in various places. "Now I live in Lincoln again," she said. "This place and this culture, even outside of the University, offers opportunity. The school system, the people, the programs, the community…it's a just a great place for a family!"

Father Knows Best, Helping Daughter Learn to Think for Herself

We end this Hall-of-Fame profile at the same place we began. "The best advice I’ve ever been given is to think for myself," Sasse-Kildow said. "Growing up, my dad always expressed the importance of decision-making. Mainly, it surrounded golf because he was my coach. It ended up applying to a lot of other areas in my life and definitely promoted my level of stubbornness."

The advice she would offer follows the same lines as thinking for yourself. "You, as an individual, get to decide what you are going to pursue," she said. "‘You decide what goals and limits you have. You also decide how you're going to treat others and how you choose to interact with others." As a professional, wife and mother, "I'm constantly learning new life lessons," Sasse-Kildow said. "So far, what I've learned is that you never stop learning. And the older I get, the more I find out what I don’t know."

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