Chipping and Putting with Kevin Dore
10/12/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
University of Michigan sophomore men's golfer Kevin Dore quickly made a name for himself during his first season with the Wolverines and has continued to do so in the start of his season. As a freshman, the tall, lanky Canadian played and started all 12 tournaments for the Wolverines and led for was second among Wolverine players in eight of those events.
Starting off his second season, Dore has continued to perform as he has finished as the top Wolverine at the Northern Intercollegiate and was the second among the Maize and Blue players at the Radrick Farms Intercollegiate. He currently leads the Wolverines with a 72.83 scoring average.
His quiet production on the course is just another reflection of himself as Dore reflected back as he sat down to reflect on his first year in the U.S. and his first football game at Michigan. He also talks about what it is like to be a "lefty" and his idol PGA player Mike Weir.
On what is different from his first year in college to his second
"I think having the experience to handle school and golf, especially in the fall, at the beginning of the year it's pretty important, because golf starts immediately. Having that experience really helps as does the experience of playing with a team. I've never played golf on a team before and I think that really helped me this year. Both those experiences give me a comfort level going into this year."
On whether he was overwhelmed his first year in the United States going to college
"It was different. Canada is a different country, but at the same time it is so close, which makes it very similar. But there were things that were different such as university life here and university life back home. There definitely was an adjustment and a lot of learning experiences. The sizes of the schools are different. It doesn't seemin Ontario at leastthat the universities are this big. In Canada we have athletics, but not on this scale, so it's definitely and eye opener."
On what he enjoys the most about golf
"I enjoy the thinking part of golf. It takes skills and smarts. I find it very enjoyable. It's an individual competition and you can push yourself every time you play."
On whether he is a talkative person on the course
"I'm a quiet person on and off the course. I'm very low key and I take that out on the course. I do start up conversations with other people though, especially if I've played with them before, but for the most part I'm a little more reserved."
> On how he started playing left-handed
"It was very natural to me, even though I am right handed. I originally started playing left handed, so I just stuck with it. I never thought to change when I was younger, because it was something I was comfortable with. I also played hockey left handed which might have something to do with it. My brother is also left handed, so I may have started playing with his clubs ... I don't really remember."
On whether he tries to follow the game of Canadian PGA Golfer Mike Weir
"I've never met him and I don't really model my game after him. We have different builds, but I enjoy following him. I would say I try to see how he handles himself out on the course, more than how he swings his club."
On whether golf is growing in Canada
"Golf is definitely a growing sport in Canada. A lot of people in the last 10 years have picked up the sport and really enjoy it. It might not get the full respect it deserves, but there a lot of great players in Canada that don't get the publicized in America."
On going to his first football game and seeing over 100,000 fans
"I loved my first Michigan football game. I've always followed football, but I'm not a hardcore football fan. The atmosphere of the football games are so great, Michigan has a great tradition, and the team is always very good which makes it fun. It's fun to see the whole town shut down in excitement over the football game. That's one difference from home that people in America get more excited about college sports than they do in Canada."
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