Rose basketball highlights
FRI.| 4-12-24 | ENTERTAINMENT
Porter swings for success in Rose golf top five
MON. | 04-11-22 | SPORTS
Freshman Noah Porter not only has the nerves of coming into high school as a freshman with all older kids, but also has the pressure of being one of the top five starters on the Rose men's golf team.
Starting high school can be difficult for some students, and fitting into a team of older students can be another challenge added on. Playing sports only adds to the pressure, but for Porter it became an opportunity to show his talent. Porter expressed that he did not have any expectations to get into the starting five, but he knew with enough work and effort he might have the chance.
“I knew I had potential but there are several of us that are really good, so it was hard to tell,” Porter said.
Cameron Hardison is a senior at Rose who is committed to play at the collegiate level for Barton College. Porter and Hardison had played together prior to Rose, so the stress of being younger was relieved a little because of the friendships they had already made.
“I knew Cam because we have played together a few times,
Contributed Photo
and all the older guys are really nice so it was easy to get along with them,” Porter said.
Porter did not just luck into his spot on the golf team, he had worked hard playing tournaments all last summer. Porter's father, a golfer himself, began taking six-year-old Porter out to play golf, a hobby they still continue to do together, and they still go out today.
“My dad plays and I've been close to him my whole life and we will go out and play, sometimes we can make it competitive, but it's just for fun and getting better,” Porter said.
Playing a sport is all about getting comfortable, and leveling up from middle school can make the adjustment more difficult. Porter's nerves come from the inexperience he has had in his highschool career, the season has just started so it is going to take some getting used to.
Time management is something that all highschool students have to learn at some point with having so much going on such as practices and tournaments.
“We have rose practices right after school at Greenville country club that typically start around four and end around six.”
“When you get up on the first tee, everybody's nervous but since I'm a freshman, and I haven't been playing as long, it gets to me more and it's very nerve-racking,” Porter said.
The physical aspect of being the youngest on the team is hard to overcome, but the mental side of the sport is another advantage the older teammates have.
“The older guys' scores are lower, so they are able to keep their mental game together and finish the tournament instead of collapsing on the last few holes,” Porter said.
As the season goes on, Porter will learn the in and outs of how his game works and how the Rose team works to come out on top.
