SHUHEI MATSUO
Assistant Sports Editor
While sports Web sites such as ESPN.com and SI.com have a golf category, some people think golf is not a sport. Others think it is a boring sport compared to football, basketball and baseball.
But that’s OK. Even golfer Colin Wilcox agrees with those people.
“They are actually right,” he says with a laugh.
Wilcox, a junior on the Pepperdine men’s golf team, has been playing golf since he picked up the game when he was 10 and plans to keep playing for a long time. Because of this commitment, he had to quit playing baseball and basketball.
However, Wilcox says there are also exciting moments in golf.
“It’s exciting to see your hard work pay off when you are out there in competition,” he said. “It’s a long game and takes a lot of patience. It’s an individual sport, so everything you do is your fault. It all depends on how hard you work.”
Wilcox also said since it can be boring sometimes, it is important to try different drills to spice things up every day.
As a Division I college golfer, Wilcox is busy spending time on the game and studying. He usually goes to class in the morning, practices all afternoon with the team and goes back to school afterward, since he has some evening classes.
“You’ve really got to plan your days out ahead,” he says. “You know, clothes, where I am going to eat, what I am going to eat, carpooling and what not.”
It is a very busy life. In fact, many freshmen players have quit during their first year because of their tough schedule, Wilcox says.
Also, since he and the team play all-year round, their only time off is during the Christmas break, but during the breaks, they practice individually.
“[I miss] going to basketball games and social stuff,” Wilcox said. “It sucks sometimes, but there are also benefits for being an athlete.”
The golfers do get weekends off, but they are busy enough during the week that they have to catch up on some homework and practice for their upcoming events during a typical weekend, he says.
Wilcox’s busy life may not sound like a fun to many people, but he has been working hard with the hope of becoming a successful player like his favorite PGA Tour golfers like Davis Love III and Fred Couples.
Wilcox is one of two players on this year’s Pepperdine golf team who have played with former All-American Wave Michael Putnam, who is now a PGA Tour golfer. After playing with Putnam for a year, Wilcox says he knows what it takes to be a great golfer.
“I learned a lot from him,” his said. “He was a great guy. I wish he was still on the team.”
Wilcox also had an opportunity to see the inside the rope of golf’s No.-1 tour in the world when he caddied for his former teammate Alex Coe at the 2006 U.S. Open, where all the world’s top players play under the toughest settings in golf. Wilcox said he had butterflies in his stomach just being a caddie, but it was a great experience for him.
“I learned a lot from all the players,” he says. “That’s pretty much what it’s going to be for the next step after the college. It was a good eye opener.”
But next time he goes to the U.S. Open, Wilcox said, he will be playing, not caddying.
“I’m going to try to qualify for this year,” he said. “Just go for every year, you know.”
Like Putnam and Coe, Wilcox is planning to turn professional after the summer of his senior year. However, he has not yet accomplished one of his college-career goals: To win a tournament.
But he said the next tournament will give him a chance to capture his first college victory, since he holds the course record of 61 at the event hosting course, North Ridge Country Club in Westlake Village.
“I played pretty well in the last tournament [in Florida], which gave me a lot of confidence,” he said. “I’m just going to go out there and give my best because when I’m playing my best, nobody can beat me.”
The USC Ashworth Intercollegiate begins Monday, which means the men’s golf team will go to Westlake Village and participate in a tournament for the spring break. For Wilcox, his spring break plan to play in this tournament should sound as much fun as going to Cabo or Costa Rica.
03-01-2007