When Logan Hale and her family moved to Vail from Colorado Springs in 2017, becoming a competitive skier seemed to be the logical choice. 

Hale, who was 11 when her family moved, competed in track, soccer and lacrosse but skiing was the main sport on her mind, especially moving to a town where Lindsey Vonn and Mikaela Shiffrin built legendary careers. 

“Ski racing was my main sport and what I wanted to do,” Hale told The Denver Gazette. “While living in Vail I just started practicing golf. When I was 13, I realized I was pretty good at golf.”

And she is proving the switch to golf was the right call.

“We were good with whatever sport she picked,” Logan’s father John Hale said. “We ski as a family, and we golf as a family.”

The soon-to-be Erie High senior won the Class 4A individual state title and led the Tigers to their second straight team title at the end of May. Her family moved to Erie from Vail in the summer of 2021.

In June, Logan competed as the youngest player in the field at the Inspirato Colorado Women’s Open at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club where she made the cut and finished in a tie for 39th. The tournament allows amateurs to compete against professionals and college players. 

Later in June, she went back to Country Club of Colorado in Colorado Springs and qualified for the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship. She fired the only under-par round in the qualifier. The U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship will take place July 17-22 at Eisenhower Golf Club. 

“It would be cool to get it done,” Logan said of winning on her home turf. “Especially with being from the Springs.”

And her parents are excited to watch their daughter compete at home for a prestigious title. 

“We are thrilled,” John said. “To see Logan do what she did at the qualifier and not only make it to the U.S. Junior, but to win against that level competition was really inspiring.”

“We’re super proud of her,” Logan’s mother Jen said.

Logan’s love of golf didn’t start right away. It took time to grow. She spent time with her sister, Taylor, at the golf course, but the game didn’t click with Logan.

“It was boring, and I really wanted nothing to do with it,” she said. “But as I matured and branched out from ski racing, I started to pick it up.”

Colin Prater, the Colorado Springs resident and Colorado Golf Hall of Fame Person of the Year, is Logan’s caddie in the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship. Prater, who coaches boys and girls golf at Cheyenne Mountain, met the Hale family many years ago. He worked with Logan during her qualifying round at Country Club of Colorado, where Prater holds the course record.

“Her poise is one of her biggest strengths,” Prater said. “She is going to stay composed and stay in the right mindset.”

Once Logan chose golf as her path, working on her game while living in Vail was no easy task. The weather in the Colorado mountains limited her practice and playing time. 

“You can’t golf at all in the winter up here,” Logan said. “Once I started taking golf seriously, we put a simulator in our basement, and I got my work in that way.”

She had plenty of success during her time in Vail. When she was a freshman at Vail Mountain School, Logan fired a 68 at Eagle Ranch in her first high school tournament. That score was good enough to be the women’s course record. 

Logan is not leaving Colorado anytime soon. In January, she committed to the University of Denver to continue her golf career.

“I am staying on my home turf,” Logan said. “I am close with my family and wanted to stay close to home.”

A look at the U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship

The USGA event comes to Eisenhower Golf Club in Colorado Springs. This will be the first USGA event held on a military base and will be the longest course in the history of the event.

Course: Par 72; 6,778 yards. 

Schedule of play

July 17 (Monday): First round, stroke play

July 18 (Tuesday): Second round, stroke play, field reduced to 64 players for match play

July 19 (Wednesday): Round of 64, match play

July 20 (Thursday): Round of 32/Round of 16, match play

July 21 (Friday): Quarterfinals/semifinals, match play

July 22 (Saturday): 36-hole championship final, match play

Broadcast schedule

July 21: 3-5 p.m. (Peacock); 6-8 p.m. (Golf Channel tape delay)

July 22: 3-5 p.m. (Peacock); 6-8 p.m. (Golf Channel tape delay)

The Ascendant presented by Blue begins Thursday

The Korn Ferry Tour goes to Berthoud with first-round play beginning Thursday. There are plenty of Colorado connections in the tournament.

Play begins at 6:30 a.m. with tee times set for the first two days.

This week in golf

EUROPEAN TOUR AND PGA TOUR

GENESIS SCOTTISH OPEN

Course: The Renaissance Club – Gullane, Scotland

Purse: $8 million

Television: Thursday-Friday, 6:30-11:30 a.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 8-10 a.m. (Golf Channel), 10 a.m.-1 p.m. (CBS).

Defending champion: Xander Schauffele

PGA TOUR 

BARBASOL CHAMPIONSHIP

Course: Trace GC (Champions) – Nicholasville, Kentucky

Purse: $3.8 million

Television: Thursday-Sunday, 2-5 p.m. (Golf Channel).

Defending champ: Trey Mullinax

LPGA TOUR

DANA OPEN

Course: Highland Meadows GC. – Sylvania, Ohio

Purse: $1.75 million

Television: Thursday-Friday, 5:30-7:30 p.m. (Golf Channel-tape delay), Saturday, 6-8 p.m. (Golf Channel-tape delay).

Defending champ: Gaby Lopez

PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS

KAULIG COMPANIES CHAMPIONSHIP

Course: Firestone CC (South) – Akron, Ohio

Purse: $3.5 million

Television: Thursday-Friday, 11:30 a.m-2 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

Defending champ: Jerry Kelly

KORN FERRY TOUR

THE ASCENDANT

Course: TPC Colorado – Berthoud

Purse: $1 million

Television: None.

Defending champ: Marty Dou

Skins game

Odds to win Scottish Open

Scottie Scheffler +650

Rory McIlroy +900

Patrick Cantlay +1400

Xander Schauffele +1400

Tyrell Hatton +1800

Viktor Hovland +1800

—Odds from SuperBook Colorado

World golf rankings

Player, points

1. Scottie Scheffler, 11.99

2. Jon Rahm, 9.84

3. Rory McIlroy, 9.28

4. Patrick Cantlay, 7.28

5. Viktor Hovland 6.45

6. Xander Schauffele, 6.25

7. Cameron Smith, 5.34

8. Max Homa, 5.27

9. Matt Fitzpatrick, 5.15

10. Jordan Spieth, 4.74

Ryder Cup standings

United States

Captain: Zach Johnson

Player, points

1. Scottie Scheffler, 25,091.035

2. Wyndham Clark, 13,166.353

3. Brooks Koepka, 9,362.608

4. Xander Schauffele, 8,353.879

5. Patrick Cantlay, 8,328.581

6. Max Homa, 7,650.872

7. Keegan Bradley, 7,422.341

8. Jordan Spieth, 7,299.796

9. Collin Morikawa, 7,116.813

10. Cameron Young, 6,856.248

11. Sam Burns, 6,727.053

12. Rickie Fowler, 6,673.586

Note: The U.S. team will be made up from the top six eligible players in the points rankings with six captain’s picks.

Europe

Captain: Luke Donald

European points

1. Jon Rahm, 3,017.98

2. Rory McIlroy, 3,003.5

3. Yannik Paul, 1,607.0

4. Adrian Meronk, 1,555.71

5. Rasmus Hojgaard, 1,516.86

6. Victor Perez, 1,456.55

World points

1. Jon Rahm, 350.07

2. Rory McIlroy, 283.33

3. Viktor Hovland, 252.98

4. Tyrell Hatton, 178.67

5. Matt Fitzpatrick, 149.78

6. Tommy Fleetwood, 135.0

Note: The European team will be made up from the top three eligible players from the European points list, the top three eligible players from the World Points list and six captain’s picks.