Golfer Amy Bockerstette to Make History as She Competes for National Collegiate Title

Eric Todisco
·2 min read
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Tracy Wilcox/PGA TOUR via Getty Amy Bockerstette

Amy Bockerstette is making history once again.

The 22-year-old Special Olympian will become the first athlete with Down syndrome to compete in a national collegiate athletic championship this month, according to ESPN and Golfweek.

Next week, Bockerstette, a sophomore at Paradise Valley Community College in Phoenix, Arizona, will play with her teammates at the NJCAA national championship at Plantation Bay Golf & Country Club in Ormond Beach, Florida. The tournament takes place from May 10 to May 13.

"So excited to compete with my @PVCC_Official@PVCCPumas teammates @NJCAA Nationals next week! #InclusionRevolution," Bockerstette wrote on Twitter Monday.

RELATED: Special Olympian Pars Notoriously Difficult Golf Course Hole — and the Crowd Goes Wild: Watch

Bockerstette signed with Paradise Valley Community College in 2018, becoming the first person with Down syndrome to receive a college athletics scholarship at the time.

She previously made history in 2017 when she was a junior at Sandra Day O'Connor High School as the first Arizona student with Down syndrome to play in the state high school playoffs.

Tracy Wilcox/PGA TOUR via Getty Amy Bockerstettte

But Bockerstette's big break came in 2019 when she went viral on social media for making par on the notoriously challenging 16th hole at TPC Scottsdale during the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

"I got this," Bockerstette told 2018 Phoenix Open champ Gary Woodland before sinking a shot on the course. The line went on to become her catchphrase.

Bockerstette reveled in victory at the time and waved and blew the spectators two kisses. "You're an inspiration, you're our hero," Woodland gushed to the athlete.

Amy Bockerstette

PGA TOUR/Twitter Amy Bockerstette

Bockerstette's father, Joe, went into detail about the play to local outlet, AZCentral.com.

"She's a gamer," he said at the time. "She doesn't get nervous. She gets excited."

Bockerstette's mother, Jenny, told the outlet that she felt "overwhelmed" watching her daughter play. "It was so exciting," she said. "What an experience."