When Mathile Walker approached the 12th hole at Sevierville Golf Club on the first day of the TSSAA golf state championships, she wasn’t playing up to her standard. She was 5-over-par through the first 11 holes, a quality score for the average golfer but not her.
Walker, a self-proclaimed perfectionist, has let bad scores get to her in the past. But the junior, in her fourth go-round at the state tournament and in a moment of adversity, leaned on a mindset that's she's learned through her second passion ... baking.
“It’s just really been a good outlet for me. It’s relaxing to have another outlet besides golf,” Walker said. “I’ve learned that baking is very similar to golf. I have a recipe; I follow it, and I adjust when I need to.”
On the 12th
hole, Walker adjusted. She shot 1-under-par through the final seven holes of the first day to shoot a 74. On the second and final day of the tournament, she shot 73, finishing first on the Division II-A girl’s leaderboard to win her first state title.
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Her performances propelled Evangelical Christian School to a state runner-up finish, and Walker was named The Commercial Appeal’s 2026 All-Metro girls’ golfer of the year.
“I knew this year I definitely had more of an opportunity,” Walker said. “I think the past year’s have prepared me and helped me how to get my game ready for the state tournament.”
Walker dove into golf and baking during the COVID-19 pandemic. A former multisport athlete, Walker “can’t sit still.” She needed to be out and active. Golf became the only outlet and then it became her obsession.
"My favorite part about golf is that you can always be better," Walker said. "I shot a 74, and 73 at the tournament and there were still things that I need to work on to improve before I go out and play in these competitive tournaments. It's just a sport that always keeps giving to you."
Similarly to baking, when Walker saw a video on social media of someone making sourdough bread, she knew she wanted to try. In it, she is equally steadfast in perfecting every detail.
"My parents love my chocolate chip cookies, and it probably took me like two months to adjust the recipe," Walker said. "I make a batch and then I'd be like 'okay, I need something else.' I find that similar to my golf game. I play a round and see 'okay my putting I need to fix that' so I go out and work on it."
Beyond her year-round devotion to golf, she also has her own online baking business, Lena's Loaves, with a social media account through which customers can place orders. If being a state champion wasn’t enough, Walker is also an entrepreneur.
“I don’t really have time for a job with golf, and I really had no way to make money,” Walker said. “I don’t want to get burnt out, so baking is just something I have on the side I do to take my mind off things.”
During the state tournament, Walker wasn’t the only ECS golfer who needed to step back from the game. Her freshman teammate Sophie Kay Butora struggled in her state championship debut, shooting a 31-over-par on the first day.
With a team of just two golfers, ECS didn’t have any margin for error as both golfers’ scores counted toward the team’s total.
ECS coach Beth Miller doesn’t see that numbers disadvantage as a hindrance.
“I think the two of them have learned to think through every shot and never give up,” Miller said. “As a team of two, you don’t have that opportunity. So, I think it’s been a lesson that they’ve taken away, and it’ll help them in the long term.”
Instead of sulking over a rough day, Walker made sure the two of them had fun. At the rental house in the East Tennessee mountains, they played arcade games, watched a movie and took their minds off golf.
The next day, Butora shaved 14 strokes off her score to shoot 87. ECS posted the lowest team score of any school on the second day, and the Eagles jumped two spots to finish as state runners-up,
“I’ve been in her position. I know how it feels to be the underclassman and a little nervous getting into it,” Walker said. “But I think she handled it really well, and it was fun.”
Walker is set to graduate in 2028 and hopes to play golf in college, where she'll potentially pick a major that allows her to own a Brick-and-Mortar bakery. Right now her shop sells a variety of goods including macarons, cookies and her favorite, Sourdough bread.
“She’s learned from [golf] the ability to overcome adversity,” Mathile’s mother, Kaitlen, said. “I think if she quit tomorrow, she’s gained so many life lessons I would not regret any minute we’ve spent on a golf course or traveling to tournaments or anything else.”
Reach The Commercial Appeal's high school writer, Ryan Myers at ryan.myers@commercialappeal.com and on the X platform @RyanMyers_23.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Mathile Walker isn't just a state champion golfer, she also runs a business
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