Aces and Fastballs
Virginia Golfer: What drew you to
playing golf?
Justin Verlander: My dad always took
me to the driving range as a kid. I just
kind of loved hitting a golf ball. My best
friend in high school, one day after a foot-
ball game we broke his clubs out and he
asked me to hit one and I drilled it right
through the uprights with a driver. Who
knows where it went. But it went right
where I was aiming and he goes, ‘Man,
that was awesome. You need to come out
for the golf team.’ So I did and I was hor-
rible. Just really, really bad. They didn’t
even count my scores and it was a really
small school. If you had a lick of talent
you were on the golf team and I did not
have a lick of talent.
“
VG: We understand you made a heck of
a shot during the first round you ever
played. Tell us a little about it.
JV: My first ever full round I knocked
one in from 240 with a ladies’ Jack Nick-
laus 3-wood. It was the only clubs my par-
ents could give me. So I had this ladies’
Jack Nicklaus 3-wood and I knocked it
in. And the next round I knocked one in
from 120 and I was hooked. One was for
eagle and the other one was for birdie.
They both should have been for eagle if
I was in play, but I wasn’t. Yeah, so that
was the end of my experiment with golf.
When I got drafted and had a bunch of
down time, me and my friend in Norfolk,
Va., played golf all the time and he start-
ed asking me to go play with him. That’s
VG: You’re a member at Kinloch Golf
Club, but what other courses have you
played in Central Virginia?
JV: I didn’t really play as a kid. I hopped
around. Now I go play sometimes at Rich-
mond Country Club. Really, I go to Kin-
loch most of the time. Spring Creek is
nice. There’s one out in Powhatan (The
Foundry), but it’s mostly Kinloch. That’s
where I play most of my golf. When I
came back home and lived there, my
routine was wake up, go work out, come
home, shower, go play golf at Kinloch, go
home. Rinse, wash, repeat.
VG: What do you consider the strength
of your golf game? And what do you
want to improve on the most?
JV: I think I have a pretty good short
game. I feel like I save a lot of strokes
around the green. I don’t three-putt too
often. I probably need to make more 15
footers. So I have pretty good feel and I
don’t three-putt much. My chipping is
usually pretty good. My distance is an
I think I have a pretty good short
game. I feel like I save a lot of
strokes around the green. I don’t
three-putt too often. I probably
need to make more 15 footers.”
when I really kind of picked it up and
started playing full time.
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