By RAY McCARTHY
Assistant EditorKevin Phelan admired the crystal trophy he was given for winning the AJGA’s Mizuno Junior at Innisbrook and absent-mindedly turned it in his hands. He found a Waterford Crystal sticker on the bottom.
For most, a Waterford might symbolize opulence, something to display on a mantel in one’s living room. But for Phelan, it represented much more. The trophy was a reminder of what had once been home, an emerald-green town of 50,000 in Ireland, where he grew up and learned to play golf, a game he’s beginning to play well here in the States.
Phelan, 17, won by five shots at Innisbrook with rounds of 71-70-70. A week earlier, he finished second at the Florida Azalea Amateur after playing in the final group with top juniors Peter Uihlein and Zeyu He, and noted amateur Tom Sykes. Uihlein won by five after shooting a final-round 67.
“It was a really good experience for me playing with (Uihlein),” said Phelan, No. 81 in the
Golfweek/Titleist Junior Rankings. “I really liked his swing and his attitude. He started off bad and kept at it. It showed me that you don’t always have to have a good start.”
A week before the Azalea, Phelan won the Florida Junior Tour’s Amelia Island Plantation event. His successful stretch has come from a renewed focus and unwavering commitment to his shots.
“I want to make sure I’m not thinking of other things,” Phelan said. “My only goal is to be committed to every shot, and if I do that, then I’m happy with how I played.”
Phelan, who was originally born in New York City, moved to Waterford, Ireland, with his family – dad John, mother Josephine, and brother Brian – when he was 3 and began playing golf at 7.
Kevin’s parents are both Irish natives, and his father decided to settle there after enjoying a successful professional squash career in the U.S.. Kevin, his father, and brother – who at 15 years old is a 3-handicap – played many memorable rounds in wind and rain that often pelts the Irish countryside.
“Those were the best times,” John said of their rain-soaked rounds. “We were all starting out, just figuring it out as we go along.”
Waterford’s main attraction is the crystal factory, where Kevin’s uncle, Liam, has worked for 20 years as a glass cutter. Liam helped Kevin and his family trace the origin of his Mizuno trophy back to the same Waterford factory near where he was raised.
Kevin and his family moved back to the U.S. when he was 12, and he began playing competitive golf regularly. With the guidance of Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.-based swing coach Mike Blackburn, Phelan has improved all facets of his game to the point where self-diagnosis becomes routine on the golf course.
“He’s made a huge jump because he’s figuring stuff out on his own,” Kevin’s father said. “Sometimes I back off because I know that he’ll be able to sort things out himself.”
Phelan’s run in amateur events continued April 20 when he finished at 1-over 217 to tie for fifth at the Terra Cotta Invitational.
And though the ceramic Terra Cotta trophy eluded him, Phelan’s vision for the future is crystal clear.
• • •
Ray McCarthy is a
Golfweek assistant editor. To reach him e-mail
rmccarthy@golfweek.com.
Posted: 4/25/2008
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