Second year golfer and sophomore Ryan Young shares his experience as a member of the Whitworth men's golf team.
1. Since coming to Whitworth, what kind of strides have you seen made by the golf team?
My freshmen year our team was really strong and experienced having three seniors. That year we won just about everything! This year has been more of a rebuilding year, because we graduated those three seniors and two other quality players transferred, leaving only our senior James Dykes and me returning. Knowing this, our team has really come through this year building our team chemistry and developing our young team into one that is going to be at the top for many years to come!
2. As the lead golfer on the team as a sophomore, what kind of leadership role have you taken or another teammate on amongst your the team on and off the course?
First of all I try and have the same quality attitude that our senior James Dykes brings everyday to the course. Aside from that, knowing that we are a young team and will be together for many years, I really tried to bring us together both on and off the course. I can easily say that we are all good friends and have fun hanging out with each other. This promotes good team camaraderie which enables us to encourage each other to play our best and put in the extra work needed on top of normal practices.
3. How does the team aspect play into a sport widely considered to be rather individualistic?
When you're golfing badly it is easy to let yourself give up and shoot a bad score, but when you know that your score is going to count towards the team's total score at the end of the day, it keeps you from giving up and to scramble your way to a decent score. Especially since we have always been short a player this year because of a small team, we know that our scores are probably always going to count, forcing us to be on top of our game everyday.
4. Looking from past to present, how has your personal game transformed since joining the Whitworth team?
I have pretty much been shooting the same scores since I came to Whitworth, but now I am shooting them more consistently and in tournaments where they count. My mental game is what has improved substantially. Knowing that I am here to play golf and to represent my school, I have controlled my game to where I am always trying to fight my way through a good round no matter how badly I start. This fight-to-the-end mentality has payed off because it got me two wins so far this year, including one that came after a four-hole playoff.
5. Please say a little bit about your teammates and the atmosphere as a whole.
I love my team this year. I loved my team last year as well and learned a lot from the upperclassmen, but we were not all as close. This year not only do I have quality teammates that care about the game and playing well, but also I have good friends. Our new freshmen this year, Jeff [Aly] and Curtis [Day], are a couple of quality players. Jeff works hard at his game, both on and off the course, and has constantly been at the top of our team because he does not give up. Curtis brought style to our team this year with his European-style tight pants and purple belt; he has always come in very clutch in many tournaments. Jacob [McCallum] was hidden talent that we did not know about last year. He makes it fun for us on the course; he has also came in clutch this year bringing in a couple great scores that has helped us win two big tournaments. Our senior James Dykes has been that leader who teaches us how to handle ourselves both off and on the course and leading our team in many tournaments as well.
6. Glancing to next year, what is the future of Whitworth golf?
We may have been rebuilding this year, but we have been on the top of the conference for the past 3 years and will guarantee to be back there next year and many years after. We may still be a young team, but we are now experienced and will have a very good freshmen class coming in to help us. I am excited to make the run for the conference title next year and a chance to play at nationals!
Compiled by Colin Zalewski in an e-mail interview with sophomore Ryan Young. Contact Colin Zalewski at colin.zalewski@whitworthian.com.
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