They made their reservation and waited nine long months, six travelled from Seattle to Girona to eat at the three-Michelin star, El Celler de Can Roca. The service began at 9pm and finished at 1am.
Myrissa Yamashiro is a former gym owner, personal chef and food tourist but more importantly a wife and mother, and now a #GolfLikeMe advocate.
The Michigan native is determined to help increase the visibility and representation of golfers from currently underrepresented backgrounds.
“It means that you don’t have to be a certain person a certain type, anyone can golf, and I hope that I can share my story and inspire someone to take up the game,” said Yamashiro.
“There’s big stereotypes around golf, a male dominated sport and we’ll add in wealthy which maybe people think it’s kind of true but it’s not.
“Anybody can golf and I just want to share my story, maybe someone can be like yeah let me try it.”
Yamashiro grew up in Southern California and went to school in the San Francisco Bay Area where she met her husband, Tokuro.
They got married and moved to Seattle in 1995, their son Julian was born four years later and in 2017 they relocated to Ireland.
“I was really into fitness, triathlons, marathons that kind of thing and caught the bug and decided I was going to open a gym in Seattle,” said Yamashiro.
“I did that and it lasted six years before I sold it and then I got really into food, I worked at a couple of restaurants, was a personal chef and I guess considered myself a foodie.”
Once their son graduated from school they planned their latest adventure and the move to Europe. It wasn’t for another four years before Yamashiro decided to pick up a new sport.
It was 2021, Covid-19 restrictions were beginning to lift and she was about to fall in love with the game of golf.
“You could go outside of your home and do any activity outdoors so the social club I am in, the International Women’s Club in Dublin, they were offering golf lessons,” said Yamashiro.
“I said to myself I have nothing else to do besides baking sourdough bread, I might as well do something outside and take up golf.
“So I did a couple of lessons, realised that oh I may need some clubs so I happened to meet someone who sold me their really old set of clubs for €60.
“I played with those for about a year and a half and I just kind of caught the bug, like the gym bug but I caught the golf bug this time.”
Yamashiro joined Grange Castle Golf Club and has brought her handicap down to 19 while she competes regularly in competitions and has even had some victories recently.
“I am enjoying it, I am winning more which is kind of nice, trying to get the handicap down,” said Yamashiro.
“Irish Golfer magazine host this amateur series during the summer and I did the one in Bunclody and did horrible, I did the one at K Club South and I won, I won the ladies category so I’m going to play on the 29th at the final at The K Club.
“I luckily got a spot in Tralee on Monday, that’s another qualifier so since I already qualified, I am just going for fun.”
Together with the seven other #GolfLikeMe advocates Yamashiro has been given her opportunity to spread her message far and wide through the Golf Ireland channels.
The goal of this campaign is to bring even more diversity in this space by providing a platform for individuals to share their inspiring stories of how golf fits into their lives.
Golf Ireland is especially focused on elevating voices that are currently underrepresented in the sport, including members of the LGBTQIA+ community, people from minority or diverse ethnic backgrounds, women and girls, young people, individuals with disabilities, and those from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds.
Yamashiro is the #GolfLikeMe advocate for October and you can follow her journey on the Golf Ireland social channels.
“I am enjoying my golfing journey, and I tell you it is a journey, it’s a journey of ups and downs,” said Yamashiro.
“It’s one of doing your personal best and enjoying the outdoors but for me mostly enjoying the social aspect of golf too.”
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