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Show Page 12 The Thxmderbird Tuesday, October 25, 1383 Stuart Adams: Among the best golfers ever at SUSC by Brooks Washburn To those people who dont know him, he would appear to be just an ordinary groundskeeper at the Cedar Ridge golf course, but to those who have played golf with this man he is anything but ordinary. Although Stuart Adams is small in stature, he is far from short on skill, as many opponents can attest. A year ago, Adams, a standout Thunderbird linkster, won medalist honors as the top golfer in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. He missed qualifying for National competition by one stroke. Adams, a junior from Vacaville, Calif., first started his golfing career when he was 13 years old. My dad was in the Air Force when I was growing up, he said, and we were stationed in Hawaii. It was while we were in Hawaii that first started to right-hande- d 1 really play golf. His father had bought him a set of junior clubs a few years earlier but Adams did not start to really concentrate on his golf game until his family moved to Hawaii. When I lived in Hawaii I would play every day with my dad and it was there that I began to really develop my game. Although Adams never had any real golf lessons, he played well enough to qualify for the Hawaii junior golf team, and was able to travel to San Diego for the Junior World Tournament, where he placed 14th in his division. "I guess that golf has always come natural to me, Adams said. I never had any real lessons from anyone but I have had some tips from a few people and also have received help from John Evans, the pro at Cedar Ridge golf course. After several years in Hawaii, the Adams family moved to Vacaville, Calif., where Adams played golf for Vacaville High. While at Vacaville, he played the number one position on the golf team and had lots of success. Adams not only had success in his golf but in other areas as well. While at high school he met his future wife and two years later they were married. Adams now makes his home in Cedar City and works part time at the golf course as a groundskeeper. Adams plans after SUSC do not include golf. I plan to finish my education and go on to Ophthalmology school, he said. There are so many good golfers in the pros that its tough to compete and make a living at it. You always hear about the outstanding pro golfers but you never hear about the golfers who have to sleep in their cars because they have to save the little money they have in order to pay the entry fee for the upcoming golf tournament. |