“Eighty-five percent of business deals happen on the golf course. Just ask any business executive,” said first-year Dusty Roberts who has played golf for the past nine years.Knowing this, it’s no surprise that four out of the six-player golf team are business management majors, and the entire team agrees that their knowledge of the white-collar sport will help them in their future career pursuits.
“We get along really well as a team,” said first-year Andrew Thayer, who chose Guilford for its location and to play golf. “It’s also nice that some of us have classes together.”
Even though golf is a more individual sport, the team’s familial closeness is apparent as they play off each other’s joking remarks. It’s hard to believe that half the team has only been together for a semester.
Three first-years are in the team’s lineup: Roberts, who hails from Reidsville, N.C., Jeff Boyen from High Point, N.C., as well as Andrew Thayer from Charlotte, Vt.
In addition to new players, Guilford welcomes several returning upper-classmen, juniors Brian Creghan from Philadelphia, Pa., Peter Latimer from St. Andrews, Scotland, and senior Burton Wood from Siler City, N.C. These three veterans know the team’s capabilities best.
The team’s potential is evidenced by their Jan. 13 Golfstat.com rating, showing that they are currently the third-ranked NCAA division III team. Despite their nationally recognized success, this devoted group of guys don’t receive the recognition awarded to Guilford’s other competitive sports teams.
“Golf’s weird. You can’t really have fans when competitions go all day and you only have one home tournament,” said Creghan. “We’ve had a few people come out but no more then ten ever. You get kind of used to it.”
In basketball, the fan base, often referred to as “the sixth man,” is considered integral to the team’s performance. For the Guilford golf team, the “seventh man” is irrelevant to their past successes and losses.
“(The lack of fans) doesn’t really bother me. It’s not really a spectator sport at any skill level,” said Latimer, who’s been playing the sport since he could practically walk and hopes to one day play professionally.
Guilford missed the NCAA tournament last year for the first time in eight years and just the sixth time in Coach Jack Jensen’s tenure.
Regardless of last year’s misfortune, the team remains confident in their abilities, and is determined to make it to the 2009 national playoffs.
“We haven’t won a tournament yet (this year), but we also haven’t finished outside the top three,” said Creghan, who believes his strict work-out routine contributes to his success as a golfer. “Peter, Burton and I have a lot of experience and having three freshmen doesn’t hurt us. They have a lot of experience too; they’ve been playing their whole lives.”
“All we want to do is win the national,” said senior sports management major Burton Wood. “We just want a trophy, we don’t care about the (community) recognition,”
Part of their strategy to win is breaking the old stereotypes that golfers are out of shape and middle-aged. These young, fit, athletes look up to golf legend Tiger Woods, and are out to prove that they come from a new generation of golfers who put a premium on working out and staying in shape.
“We’re not just guys in goofy pants anymore. We’re hardworking athletes,” said Roberts. “The better shape you’re in the better you’ll do in the end.”
“I think of myself as an athlete,” said Latimer. “Even though I don’t work out, I spend a lot of time practicing. I put as much time into practicing as people who work out.