A TEAMMATE REMAINS HUMBLE S ophomore men's golf team member Alex Williamson qualified and competed at the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship in the summer. Williamson was the first in Harding's history to compete at one of the most prestigious amateur tournaments. The Public Links tournament was created in 1922 to expand golfing competition to people who were members of public clubs, rather than the more prestigious private golf clubs. Approximately 3,000 athletes competed for one of the 156 spots in the Public Links Championship. Golfers qualified for the tournament at regional competitions. Each regional competition took the top two or three players. Williamson tied for third at a competition in Houston, Texas, June 15 and then won a tie-breaker to qualify. Team captain senior Lucas Collins said that Williamson's dedication to improving his game was part of what led him to the Public Links Championship. According to head coach Dustin Howell, Williamson went above and beyond what was expected of the team members, sometimes taking short lunches and practicing before going back to his afternoon classes. Williamson began golfing competitively in the seventh grade, but he had only completed one year at the college level before competing in the Public Links Championship. Williamson said that his experience on the team as a freshman prepared him to compete at the same level as those he encountered at the tournament. "You learn not to stress as much and to not get down because you can get shots back," Williamson said. "Once you get angry, you lose all your composure." Competing at the Public Links Championship gave Williamson a confidence he did not have his freshman year. Collins said he noticed a difference in Williamson after his participation in the national competition. "He has a lot more confidence in himself and in his game," Collins said. "Going and playing in a tournament of that caliber, you learn a lot about your game and about yourself." Because of his experience over the summer, Williamson returned to the team in a leadership role. Collins said Williamson led by his humility. "He knows that he is one of the top players on the team, but he is very humble about it," Collins said. "He never brags about it, but always looks to help others on the team." The team looked to Williamson as a leader to score well and boost team standings, something Collins said Williamson was particularly good at. "Being a leader is coming in consistently with a score every time," Collins said. "That's what he does." Williamson had known he was capable of qualifying for the Public Links Championship, but he did not expect to do so until his senior year. After competing at the tournament, he had new goals for the remainder of his college career. Williamson said he wanted to qualify again for the Public Links Championship and then for the U.S. Amateur Championship, the highest-level competition for amateur golfers. He also wanted to win his first college tournament. Howell and Collins both expected Williamson to continue to perform well on and off the golf course, because he demonstrated leadership in all areas of life. "He's definitely a lead-by-action guy," Howell said. "He doesn't talk about his game. [He] doesn't assume anything. He just goes out there and takes care of business." Shelby Moore Row 1: C. Morgan (coach), C. Freeman, A. Springer, E. Plyler, B. Marquez, L. Schwartz. Row 1: D. Howell (coach), B. Clark, T. Williams, K. Evans, L. Collins, B. Lamb. Row 2: L. Thomas, . Kannenberg, J. Perry, A. Williamson, L. Garbrecht.
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