Virginia Golfer May / Jun 2019 | Page 11

Around The Commonwealth LEFT: Brennan will attend Wake Forest University and receive the prestigious Arnold Palmer Scholarship. BELOW: Brennan won the VSGA Junior Match Play title in 2017 and reached the semifinals in 2018. VG: When did you begin playing golf? What drew you to the game, and who are some of the teachers who have helped you grow in it? MB: I started “golfing ” in my family room with a little plastic Capitals hockey stick when I was just 2. I started going to the golf course and golfing when I was about 6 years old. My dad would go to the driving range and just bring me along, I would hang out and hit some balls. I started out swinging a club left hand low and no one ever corrected me. I eventu- ally figured out how to hold the club the proper way. My dad was my coach until I was 12, he taught me the fundamentals until I started working with my current coach, Adam Harrell. We have been work- ing together since then, he has really shaped my game and allowed me to grow as a player. VG: Aside from playing golf, you play bas- ketball at Tuscarora High School. How do you keep your game sharp during bas- ketball season, and do you feel like it’s important for young players to experience difference sports in high school? MB: During the basketball season I am not too worried about keeping my golf game sharp, I’m pretty focused on basket- ball because we are practicing, working out and playing games six days a week. I don’t play in any tournaments from November until the Dustin Johnson World Junior in the beginning of March (Brennan finished tied for third in 2019). I’ll start hitting balls in my basement around the first of the year but this is my only practice until basketball season ends mid-February. I’ll get two weeks of on-course practice in before the DJ. I rec- ommend kids to play other sports other than golf, it gives you a period of time to reflect on the season and reenergizes you for the next season. Playing basketball helps with athleticism too, it works both sides of the body, versus just one side in golf. Plus, I really enjoy being on a team too. I cannot wait to get out on the course towards the end of basketball season. vsga.org VG: What’s a hobby that you have away from the course that people may not know about? MB: I love to play basketball in the winter but when I’m not golfing or playing basket- ball, I’ll be working out or hanging with my brother or friends. VG: How have you managed the height- ened expectations that go along with having a great amount of success early in your career? MB: I am extremely competitive and I expect a lot out of myself. Expectations others put on me don’t impact me. Sometimes I need to remind myself that the results aren’t always directly correlated to the work that I put in. VG: What are some of your goals for the next two summers as you begin to wind down the junior portion of your career? MB: First and foremost, I need to work on getting better. I’m looking forward to trying my hand at larger national amateur tour- naments and even international events. It would be really nice over the next two years to get a state title. I hope to compete in the U.S. Amateur two more times and make it to the round of 16, if not deeper. “I am extremely competitive and I expect a lot out of myself. Expectations others put on me don’t impact me. Sometimes I need to remind myself that the results aren’t always directly correlated to the work that I put in. ” —Michael Brennan M AY / J U N E 2 0 19 | V I R G I N I A G O L F E R 9