It’s like shaking one of those snow globes, a jarring
change to something firmly established or even just settled
comfortably. But there is no shook-up confusion or even ruffled
composure within the men’s golf team.
With the advent of another promising season and school year,
each golfer has trained rigorously throughout the off-season and
played independently in tournaments. But between the NCAA
Championships on May 31 and the Long Beach Men’s City
Championship on July 8, a new face smoothly glided in to take over
the coach’s chair.
Coach O.D. Vincent, previously the team’s coach for the
University of Washington for five years, was announced the new
coach for UCLA on July 25, taking over the resigned post of Brad
Sherfy.
“O.D. Vincent represents a future of great achievements
for the UCLA men’s golf program,” Associate Athletic
Director Glenn Toth said in a statement. “His proven
accomplishments in recruiting, teaching, academics and fundraising
will take the men’s golf program to new levels of
success.”
In addition to the fresh perspectives on golf and coaching that
he plans to bring to the team, he’s also made the effort to
hold individual meetings with all the players for better adjustment
and transition to a new team and new season.
“Having a coach that’s making the effort to be there
and available is a positive outlook for the team,” junior Roy
Moon said.
“I feel really good about the new season,” sophomore
Steve Jones said. “There’s a top crew coming in, and
we’re feeling really positive, a lot different, more
coordinated. There’s just good team chemistry.”
The past summer has already shown the promise for the new
season, as junior John Merrick won the Long Beach Championship, and
junior teammate Travis Johnson competed in the SCGA Amateur. Moon,
too, took first place in the fourth annual Moreno Valley City
Championship in July.
And right before the school year, the players will have spent
ten days in sunny Palm Springs on a retreat to further settle the
team chemistry and incorporate the new recruits to the group.
“We’ve played real well over the summer in
tournaments,” Moon said.
“The last couple of years have been kind of
disappointing. But the new coach is a good change, it’s
kind of an outside look on the team, to be coming in and getting to
know what’s going on.”
Almost comparable to the view of the spectator, the initial
perspective of the outside-looking-in seems to be working for the
team.
With Vincent subtly taking the opportunity to introduce the
men’s golf players to himself and the rest of the season,
there is already an air of impenetrable calm and concentration
hanging around the men’s golf team.