This weeks’ Athlete of the Week is a freshman on the Men’s Golf team, John Clare. Clare is a central New York local from Camillus, NY. This rookie has made quite an impact on the greens already and doesn’t seem to be slowing down anytime soon. Out of the six tournaments played, John tallied two wins and two top 10’s. He also won Rookie of the Week for the Northeast-10 Conference four times and Player of the Week once. Some other awards include 2013 Syracuse District Player of the Year, 2013 Post-Standard Amateur Champion and qualifier for the 2012 Mitchell Cup as the first high school player ever.

How he got started: “My parents got me started at Drumlins Country Club when I was really young then we moved to Camillus Country Club when we moved from Fayetteville-Manlius to Camillus. It was an instant love for the game. I would never want to leave the course, doing anything I can to stall my parents from leaving like hitting those extra putts and extra chips around the practice green until dark.”

Major and Future Plans: “Right now I’ve decided to major in Criminology. My future plans are to play professional golf. It’s been my goal since I was younger and I don’t plan on giving up that dream anytime soon. And since my coach, Joe Tesori, and Dan McCarthy have done it coming out of Le Moyne I don’t see it as impossible.”

Why Le Moyne: “Choosing a college is always tough because it’s a huge decision for somebody’s future. But what set Le Moyne apart from other schools on my list was the fact that Coach Joe Tesori told me during his recruitment of me that no other college told me was that I was wanted for more than just my clubs. That basically sealed the deal for me other than the great reputation this college has for education.”

Favorite Food: “My absolute favorite food would be a Buffalo chicken sub sandwich from Wegmans. I go to the Wegmans in Fairmount and have a specific seat I go to every time.”

Most Influential Person: “There are multiple people because I’ve been blessed to have such a great family and great people surrounding me my whole life. Without my parents I wouldn’t have clubs or any way of playing in tournaments so they play a huge role. My older brothers for pushing me to get better and wanting to always beat them made me a better player. Joe Tesori has no doubt taught me the most about golf and has also taught me a lot about life. His wisdom is irreplaceable and I’ve been truly blessed to have him as a teacher, coach, and role model.”

Goals: “I’ve reached my goal of winning as a freshman by winning twice but I’ve still got my sights set on All-American honors. Knowing the final and hardest stretch of this season is coming up in the spring fuels me to keep working hard during the off season in the gym and on my swing as well.”

Advice to other players: “The best advice I can give to any athlete is that you don’t have to be good you just have to be good enough. Joe [Tesori] and I made up this saying a few years ago and it’s been such a big part of my success. Having a clear view of what needs to be done instead of most people trying to one thing on top of another and so on is what I believe sets me apart from my competition.”

Pre-Game Ritual/ Fun Facts: “The night before a round I like to play a round of golf in my head. By this I mean that after seeing the course in the practice round, at night I will hit every shot in my head that I want to hit the next day in tournament play as sort of a visualization technique. I’m the only person I know that goes through all 18 holes as extensive as I do. I try and visualize the most realistic characteristics like wind blowing in the trees, different colors in the grass, marks from golf balls on the greens. It really helps me try and execute my game plan better the next day. Fun Facts are that I’ve had my Racoon head cover for my driver since 8th grade and it’s still the only one I’ve seen ever.”

Most Memorable Moment: “My most memorable moment would be after winning the Post-Standard Amateur tournament this past summer. After sinking the winning putt I heard everybody cheer and clap and then to be able to go and hug my parents and to see the happiness I brought to them after all the hard work I’d been putting in to have it finally pay off was really cool and I’m glad I was able to get our name on the trophy forever.”