It started with Fiona Watson, and the end is not in sight today.

Watson, who attended Iowa State from 1993-1997, was the first Scottish player to join the Cyclone women’s golf team. After her time as a student, she became an assistant under head coach Julie Manning.

It was during that time that the Cyclones went back to Watson’s hometown of Dumfries to recruit Laura Wells, a talented golfer who had faired well in multiple national tournaments.

Wells had never visited America before coming to Iowa State in August of 1999.

“It was a big culture shock,” she said. “Scotland is very old-fashioned and traditional. Everything is bigger, better and more modern over here.”

Even with the change in lifestyle outside of golf, the biggest surprise for Wells was provided by the game she plays.

“The thing that shocked me the most was the size of the athletics over here,” she said. “You have to do everything more individually in Scotland. Over here, you’re suddenly playing for a team. You’re put into a role.”

Today, Wells leads the ISU team while a third player from Scotland is starting her ISU career.

Freshman Louise Kenney has come in and performed well for the Cyclones, traveling to all five tournaments and tying for ninth at the Pioneer Invitational in Denver.

The success has been balanced out with some drawbacks, both physically and emotionally.

“Louise has been plagued by Murphy’s Law,” Manning said. “Every time we got ready to go on the road, something plagued her.”

Problems with root canals, fever blisters and homesickness didn’t stop Kenney from performing on the course.

“When I first got here, it was really hard, [but] I didn’t have much time to think about it,” she said.

Though Wells is older and more experienced than Kenney, one thing that both had in common was the experience of living life in central Iowa. Junior Leanne Owens is one of the few people still at Iowa State that helped introduce Wells to this area.

“It took us a while to get used to understanding her accent and her sense of humor,” Owens said. “It took us [all] a while to get adjusted [to each other].”

Kenney’s accent causes a little bit more confusion these days. It’s thicker than Wells’ accent was and contains much more slang.

“We probably look at each other a little bit more when Louise is talking,” Manning said.

Sophomore Lisa Meshke has a different perspective. She came to the Cyclones after Wells had a year of life in America under her belt. Now, she’s helping Kenney get used to the lifestyle over here.

“When I came here, Laura was sort of Americanized,” Meshke said. “You have to lead Louise, [but] I think she has made the adjustment.”

Coming from Scotland, both Wells and Kenney have similar mindsets to attacking a golf course.

“What we bring across is our experience of playing target golf,” Wells said. “Back home, you’re faced with so many different types of shots.”

A reason for the variety of shots the two have developed is due to the harsh weather that is accustomed to links-style golf courses.

While both players have several similarities on the course, their personalities seem to differ completely.

“They’re both very neat young ladies,” Manning said. “They take care of each other. Laura is a woman of few words, but they are quality. Louise is a little more bubbly and quick-witted.”

Manning described Wells as a grinder on the course, which was part of the reason that more of a leadership role was placed on the junior.

While both say that Kenney has helped that transition with her arrival, Wells sees her role expanding beyond golf.

“It’s important to me as a friend to know that I can help out with anything [Louise] needs,” she said.

Manning has helped more and more players become comfortable in their new home, while trying to improve the quality of the squad. She says that was her focus when she recruited Watson eight years ago.

“The state of Iowa just doesn’t have enough [quality] junior players for us to build a successful program,” she said. “So we started doing what other schools from the Big 12 did and went [abroad] to find their best players.”

These days, Manning is still recruiting overseas.

However, she feels that a balance of home-grown and foreign-born talent is important.

“It’s really more about the individuals,” she said. “If I come across a lady that isn’t a good fit, that’s where my red flag goes up. You can have an international mix that’s too great.”

The mix on this team ha brought a chemistry that is well-received by the whole team. Part of that feeling has come from what Kenney and Wells have brought to the team.

“Bringing in a different culture helps broaden our horizons,” Meshke said. “They’re really fun to be around, and they make the [traveling] trips exciting.”