Mark Farley was surprised when he didn’t have to pump gas.
Farley and Evan Thornton were the two freshmen who traveled nearly 8,000 miles up and down the East Coast.
Thornton was often the victim of more jokes, but Farley was still surprised he avoided having the freshman duty of filling the team’s van’s tank at a pit stop.
“I don’t know how I got out of that one,” Farley said.
The college golf season starts in late September, breaks in early November and resumes in late March with Temple’s two marquee events coming in April and May.
Each fall and spring pose unique difficulties to the Owls.
In the fall, the key is time management. Once the season starts Sept. 21, the Owls will be on the road almost every weekend into November.
“It’s all about staying organized before you leave and realizing what you’re going to miss and how you get caught up,” senior Liam Fahey said. “You have to think ahead.”
The spring season poses a new challenge.
The semester begins in the middle of January. With low temperatures, the team cannot get out and practice the way they can in the summer.
Coach Brian Quinn provides the Owls with an indoor hitting facility, his BQ Golf Academy in Conshohocken.
“That’s a really beneficial thing thing for us to have access to,” Farley said. “We can go there whenever.”
Last years, Temple’s week-long spring break was the first week of March.
The team used this week to shake off the rust that comes with the beginning of the spring season by taking a week in Coral Gables, Florida to play 36 holes a day all week.
“That was such a memorable trip,” Farley said. “To not be able to play for two to three months and then having that available to you was pretty awesome. I thought it was a great trip. I can’t wait to go back next year.”
Senior Brandon Matthews has grown accustomed to the schedule. While most upperclassmen budget their time throughout the year, the fall is still a learning experience for younger players.
“It’s a very important lesson I think to a lot of the incoming freshmen very quickly that you manage your time and you learn quickly,” Matthews said. “We’re student athletes and student comes first.”
Farley learned quickly and acknowledged while the beginning of the spring is always a difficult time of year, that shouldn’t change what’s anticipated from the team.
“Obviously it’s expected that most guys are going to be a little sluggish out of the gates [in the spring],” Farley said. “If we all lower our expectations, it might be tough to really get things going.”
Greg Frank can be reached at greg.frank@temple.edu or on Twitter @g_frank6.
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