By ROY HESS | THE BROWNSVILLE HERALD
Going to college on an athletic scholarship and playing golf — could it get any better?
Hanna senior Austin O’Brien finds himself in that enviable position after signing to play his sport next school year at Schreiner University in Kerrville.
He put his name on an athletic scholarship agreement Wednesday afternoon at the Hanna gym in front of family, classmates, teachers, coaches and other Brownsville ISD personnel.
O’Brien, a top student who is known for his diligence in the classroom and on the golf course, said it may seem like an ideal circumstance, but it’s more of a willingly accepted challenge to take his golf game and academic pursuits to an even higher level.
“I’ve got to be ready for college,” said O’Brien, who is the No. 10 student academically in his senior class with a 4.76 grade-point average. “I can’t be complacent now that I’ve signed. I’ve got to keep working hard.
“My goal is to try to make it to state this year,” added O’Brien, who already has qualified for regional competition twice in previous seasons. “That’s what I’m working towards.”
The standout golfer is currently averaging 77 strokes per 18 holes and said his approach to the game is to work hard and play as many rounds as possible while taking it easy on himself mentally.
“When I was young, I would beat up on myself and be so critical of myself (for how I played),” O’Brien said. “But now I’m learning how to have fun and to just go out and play.”
He plans to pursue a double major in computer information technology and sports management.
Adrian Garcia, O’Brien’s golf coach at Hanna, firmly believes his senior co-captain is destined for success in college.
“Austin displays truly hard work,” Garcia said. “He’s No. 10 (academically) and he’s a real sharp student. It’s all hard work with him. He plays more tournaments in the summer than any junior golfer I know with his dad (Tim O’Brien) being the director of the South Texas PGA. Austin just enjoys playing golf and he’s gotten four to five strokes better every year.
“Austin has grown and matured physically,” Garcia added. “He hits it a mile (off the tee), which is very important in college. He was going to go to college strictly for academics before he decided a couple of years ago that he wanted to play golf (at the next level). So that’s where we’re at now and I’m really happy for him, his family, Hanna golf and everyone involved.”
O’Brien’s stroke average currently ranks him third in District 32-6A and seventh in the Rio Grande Valley.
“This is pretty much a dream come true for me,” he said. “I’ve been dreaming about this since I started playing around age 10. I always wanted to play college golf and now I’ve accomplished it, so I’m pretty happy.”
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess