Hole-in-one

Freshman golfer wins first tournament

All the way from Harare, Zimbabwe, freshman Kieran Vincent is not only ready to play, but ready to win.

Vincent claimed the first-place title in his first golf tournament at the 2016 Rod Myers Invitational to begin the 2016 season at Liberty University.

“I felt relieved because this year I’ve had so many near-misses,” Kieran Vincent said. “I finished runner-up three or four times this year.”

Kieran Vincent won by six strokes and helped the Flames finish the tournament in second place. He then received an unexpected call from his role model.

“My brother was super happy,” Kieran Vincent said. “He phoned me and told me how good it was to do that, telling me that to do that at your first tournament was really something.”

Vincent’s older brother Scott Vincent was an All-American golfer at Virginia Tech, so he has experience winning at the collegiate level.

Scott Vincent was one of the major influences in Kieran Vincent’s choice to come to Liberty.

“Being an outsider you usually only hear about the Ivy League schools,” Kieran Vincent said.

“But I heard of Liberty from my brother. He recommended all these universities to me, and he put an asterisk next to Liberty.”

Kieran Vincent said he values his education greatly, but truly wants to use his time here to push his game to the next level.

“I’m sure everyone’s going to want me to say ‘I’m going to be a business man,’ but my main objective in coming here was to play golf,” Kieran Vincent said.

“Although education does come first, I’ve just always felt like I’ve come here to play golf more than to study. But I’ll definitely put the time and effort into my studies.”

Kieran Vincent hopes to actualize a dream to become a professional golfer after college that was born 15 years ago.

“I first picked up a club when I was three,” Kieran Vincent said. “My dad was the first to introduce me to golf. I beat my dad sometimes, but to this day I’ve never beaten my brother in a tournament. I like to say the five-year age difference is a big deal.”

The family that connected him to golf and supported him is now a 22-hour flight away, and that has been the toughest change to face.

“Being away from home has definitely impacted me a bit,” Kieran Vincent said. “Especially when I first came over, I struggled quite a bit. It’s not like home is down the road.”

Home has become motivation and a catalyst to push him through the tough times.

“The most important thing is to glorify God, but I also play for my family and the people back home that have poured money, time and effort into me,” Kieran Vincent said. “Every time I’m stressed out when things aren’t going well, I just remember home and that helps me focus back.”

Collier is a sports reporter.