The Bradsher Beat
Thursday, May 8, 2014
By Bethany Bradsher |
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Conover blazed unexpected
trail to ECU
By
Bethany Bradsher
©2014 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.
As a freshman entering N.C. State in 2011, Wes Conover was a former high
school baseball player who loved golf. In fact, he chose to attend NCSU in
part because he wanted to major in PGA Golf Management there. But he didn’t
envision himself as a Division I college golfer.
PGM majors, who are aiming for careers as pros at golf courses, play
golf every day. It wasn’t long before Conover realized his game was
progressing significantly. At the amateur tournaments in which he competed
during the summer after his freshman year, he defeated some collegiate
golfers.
Just like that, a door seemed to open in
his mind.
“I started to think that I was good enough
to play college golf,” he said. “I just decided to try.”
Conover mailed letters to a handful of
colleges in North Carolina, all smaller schools than East Carolina. He had
just about decided to sign with Western Carolina when a series of events led
him to Press McPhaul and the ECU program.
McPhaul had been following Conover’s
progress, and when he realized there was mutual interest he offered to help
convert this Wolfpacker into a Pirate.
“The kid started to realize that he was
better than he thought he was,” McPhaul said. “We were really fortunate to
get him here.”
Conover had completed two years of studies
at N.C. State when he arrived in Greenville last fall, but athletically he
entered as a sophomore. There was an adjustment period as he found his
footing on a new campus, with a more intense level of competition. But
judging from the award presented by Conference USA on Tuesday, the
transition was more than worth the trouble.
The league office announced that Conover
was the 2014 recipient of the C-USA Newcomer-of-the-Year award. A two-time
Golfer-of-the-Week winner this spring, he was the first member of the ECU
team to win the newcomer award.
The most notable season highlights
reflected in the honor were Conover's ninth place finish at the Sea Best
Invitational in February for his first top ten finish and his individual
championship at the River Landing Intercollegiate in 2014. He concluded the
season with the second-lowest scoring average on the team (74.29), second
only to senior Eric Brady (73.49).
“Coming in, my goal was just to make the
team that traveled to the tournaments,” Conover said. “I did that before the
first one in the fall, and soon I realized that I was good enough to really
play against these teams.”
A competitive turning point for Conover
came at Sea Best, where he shot a 5-under 67 in the final round to break
into the top ten and help the Pirates to a seventh place finish. That
tournament provided an infusion of confidence that carried him through the
spring and culminated in the River Landing title on April 12.
Two of the most consistent Pirates this
season — Conover and Brady — are ex-baseball players. McPhaul is convinced
that there is a connection between the two sports, especially when it comes
to the mental side of golf. In baseball, an outstanding batting average is
akin to a 40 percent success rate, so baseball players can face an errant
shot with a different perspective.
“They don’t expect everything to go right,”
McPhaul said. “.400 is awesome, and if they get on base 60 percent of the
time that’s unbelievable. They’re used to disappointment, having to wait two
innings to have another chance."
After a season of staying on the bubble
regarding NCAA regional qualification, the Pirates were disappointed with an
eighth place finish at the C-USA Tournament that put an end to their team’s
season, although Brady will compete in the regionals as an individual.
Conover’s surge this spring is one of many
reasons for optimism as the squad looks to next year. And another bright
spot, one of McPhaul’s talented freshman recruits, is another Conover --
Wes’s younger brother Tim.
“I can’t wait until next year,” Wes Conover
said. “I love East Carolina, and I love my teammates, and I'm so thankful to
Coach for giving me an opportunity to play here.”
E-mail Bethany Bradsher
PAGE UPDATED
05/08/14 01:56 AM.
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