Patricie Mack has thrived by zigging when the world zags.

When most kids in her native Czech Republic were playing tennis and hockey, she got into golf.

As a member of the University of Maryland’s golf team in a community that has not displayed much of an interest in the environment, she stepped up to try to change things. Looking to do even more, Mack decided to zig her way to the EcoAthletes Champions roster. 

“Golf requires both intense focus and calmness at the same time,” noted Lew Blaustein, EcoAthletes’ founder and CEO. “Patricie brings both to her environmental work and the #ClimateComeback. We are lucky to have her as part of the Champions team.”

While Mack’s brothers played hockey growing up in Prague, Patricie’s grandfather had other ideas for her.

“He had played a lot of golf over the years and got me started when I was seven,” she recalled. “I was pretty good — golf takes patience and calm and I was blessed with both. Grandpa had time to take me to youth tournaments almost right away. I went to a local golf academy and got into a US Kids Golf program in Prague when I was 11. By that time, I was beating 14- and 15-year-old-boys. And I went to Scotland with US Kids Golf that same year. My first year there, I shot 45 for nine holds. Not good. The next year I finished second in my age group!”

As Mack progressed into high school, her life settled into a school-chores-golf rhythm. And progress certainly was an apt watchword to describe her work on the course.

“I was in the top three girls in Czech Republic in the <14s, under 16s and under 18s,” she noted. “I played in the European Team Championships, Austrian Championships and the British Amateur for my age group.”

Scouts for American college golf programs began to take notice of Mack.

“When I was 15, 16, coaches from several schools let me know that I was good enough to get a free ride to a good school,” she said. “My parents didn’t think I was serious, but I thought it was an incredible opportunity.”

In the end, it came down to Kent State in Ohio and the University of Maryland. For Mack, the choice was clear: “I went with Maryland for four reasons: the academics are strong, it’s close to Washington, D.C., the golf team was excellent and had a strong international flavor, which was great. Oh yeah, the weather was decent.”

Mack’s first year at College Park was challenging because of COVID but things began to click for her in the 2021-22 season. A new coach helped, as did playing well early. So too did facing up to the parts of her game that needed real work.

“My biggest weakness is turning things around after a bad start; those often snowball on me,” Mack said. “To find ‘neutral’, I’ve worked with a sports psychologist, journal and read. I made 1st team All-Big Ten last season, was Top 35 in the country, and got to the nationals, where I did OK.”

Mack’s and the Terps’* fall 2022 season went well and the outlook for the spring 2023 campaign is upbeat.

“I won my first tournament at Yale in September, shooting -8 over three rounds,” the junior biochemistry major reported. “In the spring, I believe we will be in the mix to win the Big Ten, along with Michigan, Michigan State and Nebraska. Yes, this can be a winning season.”

Mack wants to use her platform as a golfer in the US and in Europe (“I’m going to try to go pro there after I graduate.”) to win on climate but she knows it won’t be easy.

“Growing up in Prague, my parents were into the environment, we studied environment and climate through high school,” she remembered. “It just seemed like everyone cared about the environment in Europe.”

She expected more of the same from an environmental consciousness perspective when she arrived at Maryland but sadly, that wasn’t the case.

“You would think that Maryland as a blue state would be an environmental leader,” Mack mused. “You would think that students at a campus like the University of Maryland would be at the forefront environmental and climate action. But that’s not always the case. When I tell people that I’m an environmentalist and that we need to act on climate, I get crazy looks. At first, I’d hesitate to talk to my teammates about the environment. But I started to realize that, as with golf, I need to find ‘neutral’ and visualize success. Now I’m more confident in talking about climate.

Mack sees becoming an EcoAthletes Champion as an important next step in building her climate confidence even further.

“When EcoAthletes Champion, NC State golfer and my friend Inja Fric told me about the organization, I wanted to hear more,” she enthused. “Once I did; I was excited to become a Champion. This way, I’ll find other athletes, including other student-athletes, who are plowing through similar challenges when trying to lead on climate. We won’t be alone! I can’t wait to share ideas with fellow Champions and to work together to find our collective climate voice!”

* Terps is short for Terrapins, a variety of turtle and the Maryland mascot

You can follow Patricie on Instagram