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Harker Aquila

The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

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Maverick McNealy competes in NCGA Amateur Match after USGA Championship

Maverick+McNealy+plays+his+third+shot+on+the+12th+hole+as+seen+during+the+third+round+of+match+play+at+the+2012+U.S.+Junior+Amateur+at+Golf+Club+of+New+England+in+Stratham%2C+N.H.+on+Thursday%2C+July+19%2C+2012.+
Maverick McNealy plays his third shot on the 12th hole as seen during the third round of match play at the 2012 U.S. Junior Amateur at Golf Club of New England in Stratham, N.H. on Thursday, July 19, 2012.

On August 16, senior Maverick McNealy competed in the NCGA Amateur Match Play Championship, losing on the first playoff hole.

“I thought it was really good,” Maverick said about his performance. “In the last match, I played against one of the guys I actually played in the [Junior Amateur Championship] earlier this summer.”

On July 14, Maverick flew to New Hampshire to compete in the United States Golf Association (USGA) Junior Amateur Championship and placed eighth in the country.

Before reaching the quarterfinals, Maverick competed at the Sunny Side Country Club in Fresno. Then he and 155 other finalists continued to New Hampshire where Maverick advanced to the quarterfinals and lost his match on July 20 to secure an eighth place finish.

“It was the experience of a lifetime and I was very happy with how I played. To make it to the quarterfinals of a big tournament like that, you have to be playing well,” he said.

Although the championship was competitive, Maverick enjoyed his experience participating.

“It was probably the most pressure I’ve ever played under,” he said. “There were about 70 college coaches there. That’s the most people I’ve played in front of my entire life. Just the fact that it’s the national championship makes it all that much more pressure, but it was so much fun.”

Maverick felt that he was well prepared going into the competition.

“I practiced really hard in the weeks leading up to it,” he said. “I spent about eight to 10 hours on the course a day. […] My dad and I charted out the course on a notebook, which had [my] game-plan for how I was going to go about playing the course.”

In addition to a rigorous practice schedule, the support of Maverick’s friends and family instilled more confidence in him.

“My parents were awesome,” he said. “They flew down to New Hampshire with me and they followed me during every round. They didn’t allow parents to caddie, but my uncle caddied for me, which was an absolute blast. I’m very happy that people were rooting for me.”

Upper School Athletic Director Dan Molin was impressed with Maverick’s performance in the championship and commended his consistently strong work ethic.

“Maverick is by far the most talented golfer in Harker’s history,” Molin said in an email response. “He is the only Eagle to compete in the [Junior Amateur Championship]. To compete at that elite level requires a tremendous work ethic and a mental toughness that is not easy to coach. He has a natural ‘no quit’ attitude that will take him far in the game of golf.”

Maverick plans to continue playing golf after graduating high school and has verbally committed to join Stanford next fall.

 

 

 

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About the Contributor
Vasudha Rengarajan, Harker Aquila Editor-in-Chief
Vasudha Rengarajan is the Editor-in-Chief of Harker Aquila. As former Features editor and Sports editor for Aquila and a reporter for The Winged Post, Vasudha has enjoyed a versatile career in student journalism. She combines her love of journalism with her interest in science, holding a position as an associate editor for The Triple Helix at Harker. When not pursuing a lead or tracking down sources for quotes, Vasudha enjoys singing, dancing, and spending time with family.