Getting up and down on the fourth hole to save par was the turning point for Nolan Sun ’21, who won his match comfortably in the end after a tough start to the round. This result was among several great performances which saw Andover Golf beat Worcester Academy 9.5-2.5 at home at Indian Ridge Country Club.
According to Co-Captain Griffin Hout ’21, the general takeaway from the match was that it was a comfortable victory without many obstacles.
Hout said, “I guess I would [describe the match as] smooth. I don’t think we had too much drama at the end of our matches; I think we were able to win most of our matches by a fairly comfortable margin, so that was good.”
According to Sun, the win was important to give the team confidence heading into more difficult matches, both for the team and for himself to play his first match after an injury in January.
“[The win] felt very great and instilled a lot of confidence in our team. I think we have a very solid lineup from one through eight. It was also the first match I got to play in after being injured back in January and having to recover for such a long time before I could get on top of my golf game again. It felt good to not only win, but also know that I played well and I guess we deserved the win, and we played to the best of our abilities. To add a little bit to that, even though golf is an individual sport, we played as a team and everyone had to play well in order for us to beat their team collectively, so I’m glad that everyone played well and we put out a victory,” said Sun.
Sun says that his ample experience helped him stay calm in key moments, and that he advised his younger teammates to play their own game and to stay unaffected by their opponent.
Sun said, “As a Senior and having played a lot of golf matches, I wasn’t very nervous. It comes with experience and knowing that it’s just another shot in your whole round, and one shot won’t make it or break it… The most important thing about golf is to play your own game and don’t get intimidated by someone else or don’t do something that you wouldn’t do because you’re influenced by your opponent. The best way to win is just to stay confident and play to your own strengths and not necessarily to the opponent’s weaknesses. I think we have a very strong line-up, and everyone has a very consistent game, as long as they stay composed and don’t get too nervous.”
According to Hout, one of the biggest factors in winning was that the team as a collective played well and that each player put out a good performance.
Hout said, “For the first time, we had most of our players on a hot streak and playing well. We were able to win all but one of our individual matches. I think a lot of things went well.”
Andover Golf will face Northfield Mount Hermon at Crumpin-Fox Club on Saturday, May 8.
