Mackinley Baird enjoying final days as high school golfer
Photo by Erin Nelson.
Mackinley Baird, a senior at Chelsea High School and 2021 women’s golf commit to the University of Alabama at Birmingham, puts the ball on hole 1 at Greystone Country Club’s Legacy Course on March 30.
Even Mackinley Baird admits she played over her head that day.
She had only begun playing golf competitively a few months prior, falling in love with the sport after her first lesson in fall 2018.
But Baird, a sophomore at Chelsea High School at the time, fired an 80 at the 2019 Class 6A, Section 2 tournament, triumphing easily and pacing the field by 14 strokes.
“Everyone was like, ‘That’s crazy, you just started a few months ago,’” Baird recalled.
That day served as the launching point for what has been a quick ascent for one of the area’s top female golfers. This spring, Baird will graduate from Chelsea and head to UAB in the fall, fulfilling a dream to play Division I college golf.
Photo by Erin Nelson.
Mackinley Baird only began playing competitive golf a few years ago, but broke through to win her high school section tournament in 2019. This spring, she has her sights set on winning the state tournament.
Finding her way to the course
Growing up, Baird was always into sports. She played volleyball and softball and swam for a time. But some injuries and other setbacks led her to finally relent to a longtime request from her father.
“In the fall of 2018, my dad convinced me to take a golf lesson,” Baird said. “He always wanted me to give golf a shot.”
At the time, she was not a member of a country club and used a set of golf clubs that would be considered far from the top of the line.
But she was hooked and decided to play for the high school team at Chelsea as a sophomore.
“I made it by default, since I was one of two that tried out,” she said.
She remembers her early days of playing, when she would shoot scores well over 100. But she began working obsessively to improve her game and broke through to win the section tournament.
Now, she’s a member of Greystone Golf & Country Club and can be found practicing at the Legacy Course just about any day the club is open (sometimes even twice a day).
Meeting a new friend
After her breakthrough spring, Baird was introduced to a golfer a year older than her. During a lesson, her coach introduced her to Marilyn Steed, a student at Spain Park High School at the time.
The two realized quickly they had a great deal in common. Both started playing golf much later than many of their peers after playing other sports, but they each latched onto the sport and went from novice to exceptional in quick time.
“I knew that our stories were similar,” Steed said. “We began practicing together and hanging out and I noticed that she had completely raw talent.”
Steed had plenty of success on her own at the high school level. She shot a 6-under 65 to win the sub-state tournament in 2018 and won the Hoover March Madness Invitational as an individual in 2019. She also helped Spain Park to the Class 7A state championship as a freshman in 2017.
Shortly after that meeting, the two became inseparable. They spent plenty of time together on the golf course, with Steed passing along all the knowledge she possessed.
“She just took me under her wing and taught me everything. We would spend hours out there. She poured into me so much, and I can’t thank her enough,” Baird said.
A few things quickly stuck out to Steed. For starters, Baird’s natural talent was evident. Steed remembers the days of barely being able to hit the golf ball, but Baird seemed to be a natural.
“Mackinley, she would hit it off the ground and hit it pretty good,” Steed said.
Baird’s work ethic also stood out.
“We would practice twice a day — that was the way she enjoyed spending her days,” Steed said.
The duo became even closer during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, when they spent plenty of time together on and off the golf course. While most athletes were adversely affected by the pandemic, Baird had someone helping push her to continually improve.
Steed said, “We were accountability partners as far as working out, cooking healthy foods and practicing together. That was all we did that developed into a really good relationship.”
Finishing strong
Baird has high hopes for the final stretch of her high school career. She got that taste of success as a sophomore but did not have any opportunities to replicate that as a junior. But for her final spring season at Chelsea, she wants to go out on top.
“I want to win state,” she said. “That’s the big one, right? Winning state as an individual, that would top it off. That’s the ultimate goal. That’s what I have my sights set on.”
After what she hopes is a strong finish to that career, she will head off for a busy summer of competition on the junior golf tour and in the fall will get to be teammates with Steed at UAB.
It was a no-brainer to sign with UAB, Baird said.
“It was so gratifying watching someone’s hard work pay off,” Steed said. “It was so cool and impressive that she got to where she was.”
Baird expressed gratitude to many others beyond Steed for introducing her to golf and guiding her along the way. She currently works with instructor Chip Thomas at Greystone, and she also thanked her parents, grandparents, friends, coaches and Greystone for their support. She has intentions on making them proud.
“I owe it all to the people who have helped me get here,” she said.
