From the early age of four Natalie was drawn to golf from tagging along with her dad to the local courses. By the age of 7 she had already won her first tournament and was breaking par by age ten.

At school she was an all round athlete competing in diving, gymnastics and even joined the men's golf team at her high school Granite Bay. At the age of 13 she finished second in the 1996 Women's Amateur and a year later was the youngest player to qualify for an LPGA event, although this was later beaten by Michelle Wie in 2004.

Following high school Natalie received a scholarship to play collegiate golf at the University of Arizona. In the summer before her sophomore year she made the cut at the US Women's Open and not long after earned female MVP honours at the USA-Japan Collegiate Golf Championship. Due to her success that summer Natalie decided to turn pro and make a living from playing one of her favourite sports.