Kyle Martin had a golf club in his hand not long after he could walk.
Now, all the hard work put in by the 2009 Plant City High School graduate is paying off.
After retooling and refocusing his goals, Martin has improved significantly, finishing ninth in a field of professionals and amateurs three weeks ago, at the Florida Open, and tying for second at the U.S. Am Qualifier at Orange County National last week, in Orlando. That earned him an invite to the U.S. Amateur Championship this month, in Brookline, Mass.
Martin will be among a field of 312 of the best amateur golfers in the country. The winner of the prestigious tournament will qualify for the 2014 Masters Tournament, 2014 U.S. Open and the 2014 Open Championship, provided the winner maintains his amateur status.
The tournament begins Aug. 12, with qualifying rounds. Match play begins Aug. 4, with a field of 64 players trying to make it to the weekend.
“The first goal I’ve got is to make it to match play,” he said. “If I make it to Wednesday, the next goal is to make it to the weekend, and if I make it to the weekend, then make it to Sunday and the final round.”
RIGHT PATH
Martin was a four-year varsity player at Plant City High School, where he was named to the All-Hillsborough County First Team his junior and senior seasons.
But, it wasn’t until he got to Brevard Community College that he decided to pursue a career in golf.
“When I got to Brevard, I started realizing that this is what I wanted to do and this is what I want my job to be,” he said. “Coming out of high school, I didn’t really know what I wanted to do. I wanted to play golf, but I didn’t know for sure if I would make it.”
An All-American for his two years at Brevard, Martin took eighth as an individual at the national championship tournament as a sophomore.
After taking a year off, with dreams of playing for a big-name college program, he transferred to Southeastern University, in Lakeland, where he will be a senior this fall.
“I decided to take a year off, improve my game and find a place that would fit me the best,” he said. “I never really got the chance to get with a bigger school, and Southeastern came to me and said if I wanted it, they had a scholarship, so I couldn’t turn it down. I decided to go with it, and it was a good choice.”
Martin, 22, said it was a struggle adjusting to a new team and a coach, who was much different than his coach at Brevard.
“It took me a little while to get used to it, but I got through it,” he said.
A new swing coach, Brett Hitchcock, also helped with Martin’s mechanics, as well as his mental approach to the game. Martin began working last November, with Hitchcock.
“I knew that I needed to change something if I wanted to stay with golf,” Martin said. “Brett is a good friend of mine and has helped me with my swing and getting through some of the mental stuff, because he’s been through it.”
FOCUS
The fall of his junior year at Southeastern came with a fair share of setbacks, including injuries that sidelined him for several tournaments.
“That wasn’t a very fun semester,” he said.
After taking a break, Martin returned for the spring season and had his best semester playing college golf yet, with five top-five and six top-10 finishes.
Martin said he’s looking forward to playing against some of the best players in the country at the U.S. Amateur Championship.
“Normally, when you go out there, you’ve got a lot of the bigger guys from the big schools playing well, and you really have to play your best to do well,” he said. “It’s usually the big guys, because they’re at those schools for a reason, but I try not to think about that and just keep focused on my game. Whatever happens, happens.”
FAMILY AFFAIR
Martin inherited his love of the sport from his grandfather, Larry, a former athletic director at Plant City High School and principal at Tomlin Middle. Larry Martin also coached the 1967 PCHS boys basketball team to a state championship.
As a child, Kyle Martin enjoyed many rounds with his grandfather on the Walden Lake course. He began playing at 2 and was competing in tournaments by 6.
“When he was 5 or 6, people would come and watch him hit balls,” Larry Martin said.
Although they don’t get to play together as much as they used to, the pair comes together every year to compete in the Parent-Child Tournament, at Disney. After coming in second in 2011, the Martins have won the tournament the past two years.
Larry Martin believes his grandson has a bright future ahead of him, including a possible professional career.
“I’m 79 years old and can still go out and shoot my age, but that doesn’t matter to me,” he said. “What matters is Kyle and the great things that he’s doing. He’s just a great kid and has always had a great attitude. I believe that Kyle will make this whole area proud of him one day.”
Contact Matt Mauney at mmauney@plantcityobserver.com.
USGA U.S. Amateur Championship
WHEN: Aug. 12 to 18
WHERE: Brookline, Mass. Stroke-play qualifying at Charles River Country Club and match play at The Country Club.
HOW TO WATCH: First-, second- and quarterfinal-round matches will be aired on the Golf Channel, while semifinal matches and the championship match will air on NBC.
WEBSITE: usga.org