Going for the green
By Glenn Branum
It’s considered one of the hardest things to do in sports; hit a long straight tee shot. And not to mention bunker shots and hitting long irons into the wind.
All that just to have to make a 10-foot putt under pressure. Competitive golf is not for the faint hearted.
Greenville has always had a reputation for producing outstanding golfers. Names like Hancock, Ryan, Wesley, and Norman.
Well, add the name of Jackson Scott to that list. The senior golfer at Fort Dale Academy is enjoying a strong season participating in golf in the AISA.
Jackson has had an impressive March competing for Fort Dale and won his first match of the season held at Greenville Country Club by shooting a 68 to lead all scorers.
He followed that up in subsequent matches with a fifth place finish at Cambrian Ridge and a second place finish at Lagoon Park.
He closed out the month with a first place finish at another tournament at Greenville Country Club and had a third place finish at Saugahatchee Country Club in Opelika the first of April.
In the six tournaments he has played in since March 1, he has two wins, two second place finishes, a third place finish, and a fifth place finish.
Fort Dale’s golf coach, Speed Sampley, had an interesting outlook on Jackson’s golf progress. “I’ve coached various sports for over 36 years now, and I’ve never seen an individual more dedicated to, or work harder at his sport than Jackson. He loves the game of golf, and it shows. He loves both practicing and playing.”
Jackson is all in on golf and works relentlessly to get better. He spends Monday through Friday playing nine holes after school.
After that, he practices his short game. He then works out after practice. Jackson does all this a minimum of four days a week.
Every other Wednesday he sees his swing coach, Tolver Dozier, in Troy to work on his swing and anything else that needs improving.
He always spends Saturday and Sunday playing 18 holes. Many nights he also spends his time hitting balls into the net.
Even during this past basketball season, Jackson spent countless hours at night after practice hitting balls into a net or working on his putting on the putting green.
As a result, his putting has improved significantly this year and that has saved him several strokes a round.
“My number one strength has always been my driver” he said. “A lot of people struggle to hit their driver or don’t have confidence in it, but I am the opposite. I love to hit my driver and it has turned into my best club. I have a large amount of confidence in it”.
As for things in his game that he wants to improve, Jackson was emphatic with an answer. “The number one thing I want to improve is my mental game. My technique obviously has to get better, but I need to have better mental focus.
“The mental aspect of the game is the hardest part about golf. Keeping focus is very hard when things happen during a round. My mental game used to be the worst part of my game and it was honestly embarrassing.
“My mental focus has improved greatly this year. It’s not always perfect and I slip up occasionally but as a whole it is ten times better.”
Coach Sampley agreed with Jackson’s assessment. “The biggest change I have seen in Jackson this year is his ability to put a bad shot behind him and go to the next one,” he said. “His mental maturity has really been the difference in his game.”
An accomplished athlete, Jackson has also excelled off the golf course. He was selected Most Valuable Defensive Player for the varsity basketball team at Fort Dale this year and helped lead them to their best record in a decade.
But golf is his love. He was one of five players from the AISA selected to represent Alabama in the Southeast Commission of Independent Schools All-Star Tournament held at Grand National in Opelika on March 25 where he competed against fellow all-stars from Georgia, Mississippi, and South Carolina.
Jackson finished with the best score on the Alabama team and was the second place overall male competitor.
“I have been around golf ever since I can remember since my dad has played most of his life,” said Jackson. “I was never too serious and played off and on my whole childhood. Around sixth grade, I started playing a lot in the summer and by eighth grade I was hooked and was playing every single day.
An honor student with a 4.3 GPA, Jackson is at or near the top of his class and is in the running for Valedictorian this year.
Fort Dale headmaster David Sikes had great things to say about him. “Jackson is an outstanding student and individual and is one of the finest and nicest young men you will ever meet”, he said.
“He’s accomplished many things academically but the best thing about him is his willingness to serve other individuals and be a team player”.
Jackson participated in several junior tournaments the past two years on the Southeast Junior Golf Tour.
His play allowed him to be one of the prestigious few selected to participate in a regional qualifying tournament for the US Junior Amateur and also a regional qualifying tournament for the US Amateur.
Jackson recently signed to play golf for Lurleen Wallace Junior College next year. LBW’s golf coach, Josh McLendon, was excited about his incoming golfer. “I’ve been watching Jackson for a long time,” he said.
“He’s exactly what we need at LBW golf to put our young program on the map. He understands the game of golf and is willing to work to improve his skills. He comes from a great family, and we are excited about the future of LBW golf with Jackson and the other team members we have for next year.”
As for plans after that, Jackson stated, “After junior college, my goal is to play at the Division 1 level.”
He added “I am extremely excited to play for LBW next year and see where it takes me in golf.”
Jackson hopes to keep the winning momentum going over the next four weeks of tournaments and then have a good outing at the AISA State Championship at Lagoon Park on April 29 and 30.
“Winning state would be the perfect cap to the season,” he said. “I want to be the best golfer I can be.”
