You might say Lee University’s Hannah Nall was born with a golf club in her hand. To be honest she says her golf began when she was two years old and living in Cleveland, Miss. Her dad would take her out to the range after he got off work.
Jason Nall worked at Delta State during that period time. The twosome would go out to the Delta State University Golf Course, a small nine-hole course. “That got my love for the game going,” she said. “My dad was a big part of it. I loved how it was something for us to bond over.”
By the time Hannah was five or six, she was ready for tournament play.
“I traveled,” she recalled. “I was a 3x US Kids Birmingham Local Tour Player of the Year. I played in seven US Kids World Championships by the time I was 13 and my best finish was 3rd place.”
The talented young golfer can still remember a Mississippi victory. “My biggest win was probably the Future Tour Championship in Greenville, Miss. I was around seven and what was so great about this tournament and how I still remember it to this day is because this was the first time I shot a (1-under 71) in the final round.”
Hannah made it plain and simple! “My family and I moved to Cleveland (Tenn.) because the golf was so much better than in Mississippi. Tournaments were more competitive, the courses were nicer, and the location of Cleveland is way more appealing than Starkville.”
She added, “The adjustment from Mississippi to Cleveland was pretty smooth because I already had a good group of friends in this area from junior golf. One thing different about Tennessee is they offer middle school golf where Mississippi does not.”
It did not take long for Cleveland Middle, Cleveland High, and Hannah to begin racking up the awards.
CMS - won a regional championship in her 8th grade as a team and individual honor.
CHS – made four straight state playoff appearances every year and Hannah made All-State all four years.
The Lady Raiders were runner-up in state (individual and team) her senior year. She finished her high school career by shooting a 66 on the final day of the state. Hannah won the Chattanooga Best of Preps (shooting a 69).
Despite all the awards and honors Hannah calls the story of her recruiting process for college, “Very lackluster. I was allowed to start speaking with coaches in the summer of 2020, which was peak Covid. All the D1 schools I was speaking to did not allow me to visit due to the NCAA’s regulations during the pandemic. Also, everyone was getting a 5th year, so a lot of schools did not have many spots for my class because of the uncertainty of the pandemic,” she concluded.
It turns out that Lee was the only school Hannah (she was interested in) that knew what they wanted and could give her solid answers. “Once I came on a visit I was blown away by the beauty of Lee’s campus and the head coach at the time.”
She continued, “Coach (John) Maupin is just a great guy with great values and who would not want to play for him? Then I met Coach Geandra Almeida who became the head coach after I signed with Lee. That was the biggest blessing. She is exactly what I did not know I needed for not only my golf game, but also to help me navigate college.”
“Hannah has shown what true strength and leadership looks like,” said Coach Almeida. “Through personal loss and physical adversity, she never stopped showing up for her team—with heart, resilience, and unwavering support. Her courage and character have been an inspiration to us all."
On her long golfing journey, Hannah says she has had her fair share of instructors. However, only two have been a good fit for her. “Tony Luczak was my instructor in Mississippi. He really instilled the fundamentals in me, and I would not be where I am today without him. My swing coach now, Jason Gandy, not only is a great swing coach, but also just a good buddy to my family and me. He is based in the Knoxville area. I go up there every couple of weeks to get a tune up.”
Gratitude is the name of the game for Hannah. “Starting this year my word for myself and my game has been gratitude. My grandmother was battling breast cancer for the last three years and passed away back in October. She was my biggest supporter and always was on my side.
“The last few months were definitely the hardest for her, but you never would have known it. She never missed texting me every morning of a tournament, wishing me luck or calling me in the afternoons to ask how practice was. It blows my mind with everything she was going through, her love for me always shined through. It really put things into perspective for me. This year I am more grateful for everything I have. I am grateful to wake up in the mornings. I am grateful for my health and for being able to walk a golf course. I am grateful for the opportunity to not only use my talents to glorify God, but to also honor my grandmother.”
Hannah continued, “My biggest goal for myself is to just be where my feet are and to be grateful for every opportunity I have coming up in the postseason. I definitely would love to be an All-American and make the GSC First Team. These are some big goals, but I know if I keep my head down and keep working hard and just appreciate every upcoming opportunity then it is possible."
“For the team, I obviously want us to win everything coming up. We have the GSC conference this week and we are all super pumped about it. We are coming off a tournament where we just beat the #1 and #2 ranked team in the country. That was great for our confidence and mindset to enter the postseason. I am really excited about the upcoming weeks.”
Hannah enjoyed the summer events with the ladies. “I play about two or three events in the summer, and my favorite has to be the Tennessee Women’s Open in Crossville, Tenn. We get to play a great course called Stonehenge and the entire community is really involved in the event. Patrons come out and support us.”
She has three top 10 finishes in the Tennessee Women’s Open and had four top 10 placements on Tenn. Women’s Amateur and won the College Tour X Players’ Amateur Championship and was named the 3x CTX Amateur Player of the Year.
She takes her academics seriously and is a Business Administration major. “I have thought about coaching or going into medical device sales. I could help my dad and mother (Misty) with my family’s business. I just really want to soak up the little time I have left of college!”
Her dad gives Misty credit for being the driving force behind the business, Cleveland Nutrition. Hannah has an older brother Ethan and a younger brother Hayden.
The Lady Flames will compete next in the the 2025 Gulf South Conference Golf Championship to be held April 17-19 at the Tunica National Golf Course in Tunica, Miss. The men's and women's tournaments will be a three-round (54-hole) event, with one round each day.
The Lee men finished second and the women placed second in last year’s tournament. Both teams earned a place in the NCAA South/Southeast Regional Championship and each club successfully advanced to the NCAA Nationals.
Lee’s Oliver Lewis-Perkins was named to the GSC All-Tournament Team. Lewis-Perkins was later named a PING All-American. Supuschaya “Yui” Scrichantamit finished her Lady Flames career in style. She won the GSC Player of the Year honors and was named a first team All-American.