STARKVILLE — Jace Hobart doesn’t recall feeling out of place on a golf course.
Maybe all of the time he spent with his father, Hobie, using sand wedges on the family’s yard helped him develop an appreciation for the skills he needed to develop.
Hobart also never allowed his size to prevent him from pursuing his love for the game. As a sixth-grader, Hobart’s golf bag might have been bigger than him, but he didn’t let that or the opinions of others keep him from building confidence and a game that matured as his body did.
Maybe that’s why the Starkville High School senior golfer looked comfortable Wednesday posing for pictures with family members and friends as he waited to sign a letter of intent to play golf at East Mississippi Community College in Scooba. After working so hard and investing so many hours honing his skills, Hobart was proud of the road he traveled to accomplish his goal.
“I never actually thought I would be here playing college sports,” Hobart said. “It is a big opportunity to go to the next level. I am so excited.”
Starkville High boys golf coach Sam Bryant said Hobart has been a “constant” on the golf course since he joined the school’s program as a sixth-grader. He said he could tell Hobart was dedicated and committed to the sport, even if he was the smallest player on the team or on the course. Bryant said Hobart never wavered after people asked numerous times “Are you really on the high school team?” because they didn’t believe someone his size (Hobart said he was “4-foot tall”) could be on the team.
“I am proud of him,” Bryant said. “(His opportunity to play at EMCC) shows work ethic. He enjoys the sport more than anything. With golf, you have to enjoy it.”
Bryant said Hobart was a “free-swinger” early in his career. He said Hobart has worked hard to develop consistency. He feels Hobart has the length off the tee to compete at the next level. He said he has to work on his putting so he will be able to make his mark at EMCC. He doesn’t believe that will be a problem for someone who fit in as a sixth-grader and learned how to use his love for the game to relate to the older players.
“He was never intimidated,” Bryant said. “Even when he was grouped with a senior, he was out there to play golf and enjoy it. It has been fun to him. I think he has never known it has been competitive to him until recently, but that side comes out.”
Hobart said he remembers the top five players, who were all much older, coming to the sixth-grade school to pick him up for matches. He credits Bryant and his mother, Angela, who is the assistant golf coach at the school, for pushing him to become his best. He said the encouragement from his coaches helped him realize he had it in him to accomplish a lot on the golf course.
“I really don’t let things to get in my head,” Hobart said. “I stick to myself and don’t let things bother me.”
This season, Hobart hopes to grow into a bigger leader. Last season, Starkville had a young team and didn’t advance to the state tournament. Bryant said he hopes Hobart will help set the tone by encouraging his teammates in practice and on the course to focus on their game and not to let one shot get them down.
Hobart, who is now 5-7, played in the state tournament as a sophomore, hopes to eclipse the low round of 79 he shots two years ago. He said his goal the rest of the season — the team has played two matches to date — is to shoot in the mid-70s, which is about what he will have to shoot at the next level if he wants to be competitive. Hobart believes that is well within his reach because even though he will be a youngster again, his love for the game of golf will help him fit in wherever he goes.
“I went from being a smallish sixth-grader to being in college playing sports.” Hobart said. “It is pretty cool.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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