Last week, Davidson golf secured their fifth Atlantic 10 (A-10) title, their fourth in the last five years. From April 22 to April 24, the ‘Cats battled in Orlando, Florida, with Nate Faulkner ‘28 and Joshua Stewart ‘25 playing an integral part in the team’s success. Named Most Outstanding Rookie, Faulkner made par on the 18th hole of the tournament’s third and final day, securing a one-stroke win for Davidson. Stewart and Faulkner both finished third overall, and Stewart was named All-Conference and A-10 Player of the Year in the process.
In an interview with The Davidsonian, Faulkner and Stewart shared what it was like to play a crucial role in the team’s most recent championship win.
Q: How do you feel your attitude about golf has changed from when you first arrived at Davidson to now?
Stewart: My attitude toward golf has stayed consistent over my time at Davidson. I have wanted to play professional golf since I was a kid, so I have always made it a priority. I’ve approached golf with serious dedication, discipline and a long-term perspective. Although college presented new challenges as well as opportunities, my commitment to improvement in [order to have] a professional career has never wavered.
Faulkner: I feel like college golf is definitely different [from] junior golf, just because you’re part of the team now and the courses are harder. Everything’s a little bit more [intense], so I think just getting comfortable with that, just sticking to your own game plan has been important.
Q: What has been your favorite part of being on the team this year?
Stewart: I have enjoyed growing my relationships with my teammates. As a senior I have been able to mentor some of the younger guys on the team and show them what it takes to compete at the collegiate level, which has been fun.
Faulkner: I think last week kind of highlights some of the key things, [but] just being on a team and winning together and practicing together [is] a part of it that you just don’t get unless you’re on a college golf team. That’s been really cool to experience, especially at Davidson too. Outside the golf team, just being able to get to know everybody around campus, just being [at] a smaller school has been special.
Q: You had some intense moments in the A-10 tournament last week. How did you keep your composure throughout?
Stewart: I keep my focus on task-relevant information the best I can. This means being present and engaging every shot with the same level of focus. I see golf as me, the ball and the golf course and do not worry about external stimuli. I don’t look at leaderboards because it’s not relevant to my performance, so I had no idea how close the scores were coming down the stretch.
Faulkner: Golf definitely has a lot of mental [components]. We’ve worked a lot […] this year on mental [strength] and nailing down a process that you can repeat under pressure. And so it’s just about trying to not think about the things you can’t control and just focus on the one thing that you can do, which is [to] make sure your thoughts are good [and] focus on what you’re doing, not [on] everybody else.
Q: What are some challenges you faced on the course last week? Each day is different, but what did you find to be one of the harder aspects?
Stewart: I struggled with reading the greens throughout the week. My judgments of both speed and line were off, especially the last day. It was the best I’ve hit the ball in a while and the most comfortable I’ve felt with my approach game, but did not putt up to my standards. I was a full 3.5 shots worse than my season average the last day on the greens.
Faulkner: We knew what we needed to do, which was to win in order to move on, but, at the same time, you’ve got other teams playing well. So dealing with some uncertainty and the added pressure of knowing that we have to win in order to move on. Trying to keep those thoughts away [was difficult].
Q: What has it meant to be such an integral part of the team, especially after being named A-10 Rookie of the Year and A-10 Golfer of the Year respectively?
Stewart: It is a testament to my hard work paying off and shows me that I am on an upward trajectory. I have bigger goals in the game of golf than player of the year awards, but this was definitely a goal I had going into the season, and it was nice to check that off the list.
Faulkner: It’s definitely the highlight of my golf career so far, [especially after] being able to come through at the end […] we all came together when we needed to. That doesn’t happen every day.
Q: What are your goals for regionals? What are you hoping to get out of the remainder of your season?
Stewart: My goal for regionals is […] to make it to the NCAAs as an individual. I believe with the right prep over the next two weeks this will be accomplished. If I can tighten up my start lines, […] and putt up to the standard I am used to, I fully expect to achieve this goal. Once I get there, I will look to compete to the best of my ability. Hopefully, the game I bring to the course produces the results I am looking for.
Faulkner: I’m excited to see where we’ll end up. I think it’s the same thing […] we know what we need to do to move on. So I think now it’s about practicing and executing a game plan to get better.