Between focusing on homework, practicing every day and traveling to tournaments, life was anything but boring for junior golfer Ryan Hadash. Harding golf team members practiced individually during the off-season and as a team during the season. Their workout schedules included exercise and maintaining a specific diet with the help of a nutritionist. Hadash suffered an injury before the beginning of the season and as a result did not touch a golf club all summer long, making the past season a challenge. Mter much hard work, he pushed through and made his contribution to the team. "Really, it's all mental," Hadash said. "What separates good golfers and great golfers is how they approach the game. It's how they think. It's hard to stay focused for 18 holes; that's over four hours of golf A football game is only two hours. In golf, you're instigating your shot. You're not reacting to somebody coming at you to tackle; you're not reacting to a ball coming at you like in baseball; you're instigating it. You're the time manager." Hadash also said he enjoyed the constant friendly competition among the team to score the lowest, everyone encouraging each other to improve. "The camaraderie to go out all at the same time and practice, finding people you practice well with, is a good thing to have," Hadash said. "Knowing you need to shoot consistently with good scores to get in the top five to go to tournaments keeps you honest about practicing." Teammate sophomoreJordan Perry valued Hadash's technique on the green. "He's a good guy," Perry said. "He's always QK' really encouraging whenever you come and talk to him on the golf course. He brings a good vibe to the team." Coach Dustin Howell admired Hadash's ability to overcome and score well in the face of his challenges, keeping a clear head during his tournaments. "Without a doubt, Ryan is our best short game player," Howell said. "Should he ever struggle on getting to the green, there is no worry about it at all from this coaching standpoint because I know he is able to save himself from wherever he hits the ball. Ryan is very reliable, and I can send him out and rely on him to post a good score." Whether he's playing a match or practicing his swing, Hadash has proved to be a leader to the team. Ashley Rosenbaum 41 -~1 Athletics ~.: "~~ ... . ~·· 1\> -·· ' . eR!Il>
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