Co-Captain Kyle Simard hit his
first hole in one at the Brookside
Club last Tuesday
As a Blue Key Head on campus, Co-Captain Kyle Simard ’21 brings enthusiasm to the team along with an appreciation for golf. Beginning at a young age, Simard played golf for fun with his family but started competitive play as he entered high school. He uses the game to connect with friends in a casual way while also competing against high school competition with the same mindset.
According to Co-Captain Griffin Hout ’21, Simard’s vibrant personality is unique to the team.
“As Co-Captains, I think we both bring very different styles of leadership to the table. Kyle’s one of the Blue Key Heads and he’s always bringing us a ton of energy to everything he does, so I think that he’s a really great energetic leader for our team in that way,” said Hout.
Simard believes that the community aspect that connects friends is what is most special about the sport and fuels his passion for playing.
“I like the community it forms. I can go out with one friend, two friends, three friends, or just have a few groups out there and have a good time. It’s very social. It can be competitive, but it doesn’t have to be. You can do it alone or you can do it with a bunch of people, so there are a lot of options and you can make it what you want,” said Simard.
According to Mason McCormack ’23, Simard demonstrates confidence as co-captain on the team which sets an example for all of the younger players.
“He is very patient and confident in himself which you can see when he is playing and around other people. As a younger player, I don’t know him too well as it is early in my first season but I see that he is very confident and respectful to everyone on the team,” said McCormack.
Simard attributes his ability to reach his full potential during competition to his poised mentality.
According to Simard, he has a varied skill set and consistently focuses on improving all aspects of his game.
“My game is pretty fluid. Sometimes I am hitting my driver well, sometimes my wedges are good, and sometimes my putting is good. That is always shifting and I am always working on something. Something that is relatively constant is a positive mindset and a strong mind through good or bad shots which is pretty important in golf,” said Simard.
According to Coach Brian Faulk, Simard has worked his way up to a key role on the golf team and progressed substantially during his time at Andover. Faulk mentioned his outgoing and energetic qualities that allow him to lead the team.
“As his teacher and coach, I have seen the type of tenacity Kyle brings to both his chemistry studies and his golf game. This is the quality that the coaches and his teammates admire most in his golf game—he has climbed the ladder from a JV player to a Varsity starter during his time at Andover. Our athletes value his sense of humor and thoughtfulness, certainly key attributes when playing golf in the early spring in New England when bogies are abundant. Kyle leads by example and he has set a high standard for future Andover golf captains,” Faulk wrote in an email to The Phillipian.
According to Simard, he will use his competitive high school golf experience to mentor younger players who have never played on this level before. Despite an imperfect start of the season, he has high expectations for the team going forward.
“We are off to a tough and slow start, but one thing I can do as a captain with a bunch of new players on the team because we didn’t have a season last year and we have a lot of freshmen this year. With a young team, players are trying to get a grasp on what high school golf is like. I think there is a lot of value in showing them the ropes and helping them with things that I have learned along the way. We haven’t had the best start, but I think there is a lot of hope for what is to come this season. We play a lot of teams that we have played again so I think we have a lot of hope in improving not just our golf game, but our ability to play well in matches,” Simard said.
