Quechee
It’s been a long road.
The Learys, who were adopted from the same Kazakhstan orphanage in 2003 by Chris and Kathi Leary, of Windsor, started playing golf with their father, Chris, around the time they began home schooling. Brother and sister developed a passion for the game during the decade that followed and began competing at the high school level earlier this year.
MVCS coach Kent Dahlberg was leading the Eagles in a rebuilding effort when the Learys showed up to join the team in the spring as freshmen. They continued to represent the Quechee school as the sport moved to a fall schedule less than two months ago.
“A few years ago, we built for state championships,” Dahlberg said. “Now, other than Nick and Allie, we don’t even think about it.”
Nick’s season ended last Wednesday at the VPA Division III qualifier at Stowe Country Club when he came up short of qualifying for states. Allie’s campaign continues today at the girls VPA D-II state tournament at Proctor-Pittsford Country Club; because of relatively small participation numbers, the VPA doesn’t require girls to go through qualifying to reach their state tournament. Her brother plans to be there for support.
Allie Leary can make next June’s New England tournament by placing in the top 12 golfers at PPCC and breaking 100 over 18 holes.
“Last year I shot a 103, and I wasn’t playing my best,” Allie said. “So I’m pretty sure I have a shot at it.”
An Early Start
Chris Leary was in his early 40s and just learning to play golf when Nick and Allie were young children. He often brought them along to play in between their home-school lessons. Both children attended a junior golf clinic at West Lebanon’s Fore-U Golf Center as soon as they met the minimum age requirement. Nick’s early technique was deemed impressive.
“Somebody told us at (age) 5 when he did his first (clinic), ‘He has the same swing as Tiger Woods,’ ” Kathi Leary said. “We didn’t pursue that because were not trying to make a super-kid. (Nick and Allie) wanted it to be fun. … They’re competitive, but they also love the game and they want it to always be fun, so that’s their big thing about it.”
The siblings practiced at the driving range until they were skilled enough to play on an actual course. They made frequent trips to Springfield’s Crown Point Country Club, where they played with their dad and received lessons from Dan Russell, one of the teaching pros at the time. The Leary siblings have trained more recently with Justin Bonnett at Lake Morey Country Club, as well as with Dahlberg and co-coach John Bishop at MVCS.
Brother and sister decided together that 2017 was right for joining the Eagles.
“I really wanted to find a team or tournaments or something like that to play in, because I was getting bored of just going out on the course and playing with Allie and Dad,” Nick said, cracking a smile mirrored by his sister.
Joining a high school team has been a welcome addition to the Learys’ routine, one that was already bustling with an array of extracurricular activities.
“I loved it from the beginning,” said Allie, 15. “Everything — kid time, golf, matches, competition.”
A Tight Bond
Nick and Allie, who are not biologically related, were adopted at the ages of 20 and 11 months, respectively. After their parents united with their children in their native Kazakhstan, they made sure to bring back a few items symbolic of the culture.
“Last year, as part of their education, I said, ‘You’re going to learn about where you’re from,’ so I made that as part of a history course,” said Kathi during a recent interview at the Quechee Club, where MVCS practices and plays its matches. “You need to know at least where your heritage is from; you need to know a basic background about it.”
The Learys make sure to visit every few years with a Pennsylvania family that adopted children from the same orphanage.
“I think it’s very vital for them to have a connection to their past,” Kathi noted, “because it’s not something we are trying to erase, and they can embrace it in whichever way they want.”
The Leary children have created a strong bond with each other as well. Allie considers Nick to be her twin for three months each year, because that’s how long they share the same age before his birthday comes around.
“Sometimes we watch a lot of the same stuff, do a lot of the same things,” Allie said. “We’ll be with friends and we’ll joke about being able to guess what the other person is thinking because he’ll say a thought and I can just finish it, and it’s always right because we know each other so well.”
A Home Away From Home
The Learys spent the night before Nick’s qualifier last week at their grandparents’ house in South Burlington. Before turning in for the night, the siblings took advantage of the backyard amenity that is Vermont National Country Club’s 14th hole.
“It’s cool,” said Allie, who’s been training in classical piano as long as she’s been playing golf. “When no one’s coming, we’ll just walk out off the porch, go to the green and practice until someone comes.”
Nick’s last-minute preparation may not have paid off in Stowe, where he carded an uncharacteristically high 110 (he’s broken 50 over nine holes on multiple occasions), but the event was still successful in other ways, according to his mom.
“Nicholas loves the game, and that’s his mindset: ‘I want to have fun,’ ” Kathi said. “And part of his fun is talking to the people as he’s going and playing. … He enjoyed (Wednesday). He had a rough day in the golf sense, but he enjoyed it because the kids he played with were great kids. … It was just a nice atmosphere.”
Allie steps into that competitive atmosphere today. Proctor-Pittsford’s a little over an hour from Windsor.
The Leary siblings have come a lot farther to get to where they are now.