By Joann Groff
Staff Writer
There’s a lot more to the sport of golf than meets the eye.
Not only is the game more physical than one might expect with players walking between five and 10 miles with a 50-pound bag on their back, but it is also an incredible mental game. Sand traps, ponds and different cuts of grass can all turn into a competitor’s worst nightmare, and expectations don’t help.
“When you don’t live up to your expectations you get more flustered,” senior Michael Beard said. “Trying too hard is definitely something that can hurt you playing golf.”
Outside factors such as angles, sun, wind and the crowd can help or hurt a player. So many factors, so many obstacles to land that tiny ball, only 1.68 inches in diameter, into that tiny cup. The white sphere has to travel anywhere between 150-600 feet, and in a specific direction, no less. This takes impeccable aim.
After the ball has found its way to the cup, it is time for a reflection on exactly how many strokes it took to reach that goal. That number can make that walk to the next hole seem like a quick jaunt, or a long pensive walk. Unlike a quick sport such as basketball or soccer, where a goal missed is quickly forgotten as players change direction and focus on the next play, a bad hole in golf implies at least a good couple of minutes of solitary reflection on what could have been done better.
“You learn not just to be patient but to be levelheaded,” Beard said.
But golfers are crazy for their sport, as the challenges are renewed and hopes spring eternal with each new game. There is an inexplicable pull that has made golf the immensely popular game that it is today.
The mental game was waxed and waned last week for the Waves, as the Pepperdine men’s golf team pulled out a respectable eighth-place finish at the USC Cleveland Golf Classic.
On its home practice course, the Waves expected to do better.
“Every one of us putted horrible,” Beard said. “Every hole you have to have the same intensity.”
The 16-team tournament came to an end March 5 after two days of competition at Westlake’s North Ranch Country Club.
The host team, the USC Trojans, took home the gold with a score of 864. Oregon and Washington tied for second with 867.
Senior Jason Allred and junior Brandon White tied with two other players for ninth place, hitting 218. With the top 10 finish, both Allred and White automatically qualify for the team’s match in Texas at the Morris Williams Intercollegiate competition in two weeks. The rest of the team will have to compete in a qualifier to earn a ticket to Texas.
As far as the rest of the season goes, Pepperdine, ranked No. 13 nationally, is a force to be reckoned with.
March 14, 2002