BUIES CREEK - Campbell golf coach John Crooks thought he was wasting his time.
In Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with a day to spare before the start of a cruise vacation with his wife, he decided to check out a local junior tournament.
Crooks didn't expect to see any players worth recruiting, but he discovered
Kaylin Yost, a skilled golfer with an inspiring background.
Doctors believed Yost, who was born with dislocated hips, would never walk. Her hips formed properly thanks to two surgeries and considerable time in a body cast, but the cause for celebration occurred before Yost's parents learned that their daughter was hearing impaired.
Yost considers that a blessing, one example of her positive and faith-driven outlook. A senior who has twice been named the Big South Conference's top player, she will help lead the Camels into the NCAA East Regional that begins today in Tallahassee, Florida.
"My family is so optimistic," Yost said. "With everything we've been through, there's always days that could be worse, so you just keep on trying. If you work hard and smile, be polite, it will get you far in life."
Crooks has coached both golf programs at Campbell to a combined 120 tournament titles, and the women's team has reached the postseason for the 17th time in 22 years.
Yost, a team captain, leads Campbell with a scoring average of 73.2. She hits the ball long off the tee despite being only 5-foot-4, and she has been working with Crooks to improve her short-iron accuracy.
"If I'm a mechanic, there's no overhaul here," Crooks said. "We're at the point I'm working in the detail shop. I'm just kind of shining it up, not doing anything major."
Yost takes deep breaths and focuses on posture during her pre-shot routine. She often says a prayer, asking for the strength to stay calm or, every once in a while, with a smile, "Can I have a birdie?"
Yost's routine used to be even more complex. She would touch her cross and turn off her hearing aids, allowing her to play with a peaceful silence.
"I know this sounds weird, but I love being hearing impaired," Yost said. "I feel like I have selective hearing I can turn off whenever I want."
When Yost was born in Maryland, her hip sockets didn't form properly. She had her first surgery and was placed in a body cast when she was 3 months old.
At 18 months, Yost was able to crawl with her cast removed, but her hips still had not formed correctly. Another surgery was needed to move the hip bones up to the sockets, like a fist against a flat hand, and the sockets would begin to cup around the bones.
The surgery was successful.
"She's just an angel from God," Yost's mother, Sharon, said.
Sharon also wondered at the time why her daughter wouldn't talk.
When Yost was still in a body cast, Sharon would hold her daughter and speak to her, but she wouldn't respond. Doctors told Sharon not to worry, but her brother finally raised the possibility that Yost couldn't hear people addressing her.
Taken to an audiologist, Yost tested profoundly deaf, but that was misleading because fluid was in her ears. Once antibiotics eliminated the fluid, Yost had poor hearing that could be improved by aids.
"When she put those hearing aids on at 2 years old, she never took them off or abused them," Sharon said. "She loved hearing."
Taught to embrace a characteristic that made her different, Yost would turn off her hearing aids while she studied. If she started catching grief from her mother, Yost would look up, turn them off and ignore the lecture.
Sharon jokes that her daughter has something in common with men - she only hears what she wants.
Being hearing impaired is a source of pride for her.
"I tell everyone," Yost said. "That's my story."
It's easy to understand, given what Yost has overcome, why she enjoys walking a golf course. She started playing at age 9, and Campbell appealed to her because of the school's small class sizes and Christian principles. She also has a strong connection with Crooks, developing that after the coach showed tough love to a frustrated Yost during her first semester on campus.
It's been a fun and eventful journey.
Lee Rouse proposed to Yost on Valentine's Day this year, and she shot a 30 on the first nine holes of the Big South championships while playing in front of her fiance, sister and mother.
Yost will graduate with a degree in communications studies, and she plans to pursue a professional golf career, but performing well at this weekend's regional is a priority.
"She's just one of those athletes," Crooks said, "that has a clear focus and a clear purpose."
