The crowd is silent as he focuses on the hole, his eyes fixate on the ball as he takes a deep breath and tightens his grip on the club.
He winds up and exhales as his club strikes the ball 250 yards away, perfectly setting him up for his second shot.
Gregory White is a 20-year-old communications major that plays for the El Camino golf team. White started playing golf when he was eight years old but also grew up playing soccer, baseball, and wrestling.
White’s passion for golf runs in his family, he began to golf after visiting country clubs as family outings.
“They would always talk about the rounds and how they were swinging the club,” White said. “I had no clue what they were talking about so I thought, might as well try it out. And I’ve been hooked on it ever since.”
White currently averages an 80 par, the term par is used to describe the expected number of shots that it takes to play each hole. Therefore, the lower the average; the better the player.
White said he wanted to pursue golf in college to advance his technique and represent his school. His father is his biggest inspiration and wrestled throughout college at California Polytechnic State University (San Luis Obispo).
White hopes to follow in his fathers footsteps and play at a collegiate level. He plans on transferring to California State University Dominguez Hills to play for the golf team and earn a bachelor’s degree.
“I want to be able to say I was a really good athlete, really dedicated, busy throughout my college years and had all these fun times,” White said.
Christopher Chin is a 34-year-old assistant coach for the EC golf team and has known White for two years now.
“On the course, he’s serious,” Chin said. “But he’ll talk about anything, he can ramble about movies and Disneyland for 18 holes straight.”
On Wednesdays, White often hangs out with friends to practice at Alondra or Victoria Golf Course and sometimes they make funny videos on Instagram.
Ryan Omoto is a 19-year-old fire and emergency technology major at EC and is a good friend and teammate of White.
“There have been times when I’ve been having a bad day and just his simple words of encouragement has really helped me get through the rounds,” Omoto said. “It’s a blessing to have him on the team.
Despite the quiet audience, golf is actually a very social sport. White is often talking to teammates and competitors while on the course.
“One thing I like about golf is that I get to play people and I get to talk to them about their life,” White said. “There’s no other sport where you can talk to people and learn about them one on one in the middle of a game.”
