Czech Olympian and UT Alum Sára Kousková on Her Time Deep in the Heart of Czech Texas

UT alum Sára Kousková is about to compete in the Olympics (courtesy of UT Atheltics)

The Czech Stop is a staple of any road trip that involves a drive up I-35 through West, Texas. It is a sort of mecca for Texas kolache lovers with an extraordinary array of Czech baked goods. But Sára Kousková was confused when she entered the shop. Did anyone speak Czech here? As she tried to communicate in her native tongue, she quickly learned that the workers had been so firmly established in Texas that they no longer spoke Czech.

Originally from Carlsbad in the Czech Republic, Kousková had come to the University of Texas at Austin, right in the heart of Czech Texas, to compete on the golf team in 2018. She excelled, making the Golfweek All-American third team twice. She now competes professionally and qualified for the Olympics on June 23 with her family there to celebrate. Kousková will represent the Czech Republic (she said she prefers Czech Republic to the country’s recently shortened name of Czechia) in the Olympic golf tournament that runs August 7-10 at Le Golf National.

But how did a Czech golfer wind up at UT? Kousková said she “made the first move,” reaching out to UT and was eventually recruited without the coaches ever seeing her play in person.

Kate Golden, currently a special assistant on the golf team’s coaching staff, remembered sitting outside at a table on a beautiful day in Austin when Kousková committed to UT with tears in her eyes. Golden, who became Kousková’s “American maminka,” said that level of emotion translated to the golf course. “She has one of the best fist pumps of anybody I’ve ever seen,” she said.

Kousková’s approach to the sport is unique. A quick Google search brings up her personal website with a headline that reads: “Golf | Art | Environment” – not exactly a typical trio of passions in the golf world. She sees the three as connected, particularly considering that her sport is played outside. “I do think we are part of nature, and since the current situation is not so promising for the future, I think we should do something about it,” Kousková said.

Golden noted that Kousková, who was First-Team Academic All-Big 12 three times, is the only art major the team has had during her tenure on the staff.

Outside of the classroom, Kousková looks back fondly on the bond she forged with teammates, enjoying the campus architecture, and playing golf at courses like Bee Cave’s Spanish Oaks Golf Club and the University of Texas Golf Club. She also fell in love with the city’s food scene, developing a particular affinity for Tex-Mex. The kolaches, however, were a little surprising. Back home they were sweet, but in Austin they seemed more savory, filled with sausages and eggs. “They got a little far away, but I guess it still resembles the real thing,” she said.

In Austin, Kousková sought out reminders of home. That included helping students learn her language. UT Professor Christian Hilchey hosts conversation hours for his students, which benefit from native Czech speakers like Kousková. “I admire the people who really tried and I tried to try with them. And I was concentrating so hard so they could come up with the words,” she said. “It was super stressful. I was sweating at the end of the session.”

As Kousková studied art and acquainted herself with the capital of Texas, she also felt the weight of the university’s extraordinary athletic tradition. The golf program has seen some impressive players in recent years, like Jordan Spieth and Scottie Scheffler. She credits their legacies with pushing her to the heights that she has reached in her career.

“We had a workout room at the UT stadium, and on one of the walls, it was like an Olympic wall,” she said. “They would have big posters of the Olympians from the previous Olympics, and that was probably one of the most motivating pieces of the whole weight room. I would stare at it all the time, and imagine myself to be there one day.”