University of Tennessee Athletics
Vols' Renwick SEC Golfer of the Week
October 21, 2009 | Men's Golf
Oct. 21, 2009
The Southeastern Conference recognized Tennessee's Darren Renwick for his early-season performance Wednesday by naming him this year's first SEC Golfer of the Week.
Renwick tied for medalist honors last month at the Carpet Capital Collegiate, firing a then career-low 69 on the final day to lead the Vols to a runaway victory. It was Tennessee's first tournament title at the Dalton, Ga., event.
This past weekend, the sophomore again lowered his collegiate best score by shooting 67 in the second round of the Bank of Tennessee Intercollegiate in Jonesborough. In Sunday's final round, Renwick drained a 40-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole in the next-to-last group to help the Vols to an eventual scorecard-playoff victory over Oregon State.
"It's hard to put my finger on exactly why things are going so well," Renwick said. "It's really just carried on from the end of last semester, and over the summer I played really, really well.
"The whole team is really confident at the moment and it has spread into my game."
Five of Renwick's nine rounds thus far have resulted in par or better scores, with a stroke average of 72.00. That's more than three strokes below the 75.11 average he held through his first three tournaments last fall when he was making the transition from his home in Worthing, England.
"I learned a lot my freshman year playing with Chris Paisley," Renwick said of his former Vols teammate who recently competed in the Walker Cup for the Great Britain & Ireland team. "When I started last fall, I didn't really know what college was all about. It took me a little while just to settle in.
"But I started the spring with a few good finishes and it really kicked in for me at (NCAA) regionals when I was leading with a few holes to go. I learned a lot from that."
The Vols' final fall tournament is Saturday and Sunday at the UNCG Bridgestone Golf Collegiate in Greensboro, N.C. Renwick says teaming with senior David Holmes and junior Robin Wingardh has been a great combination on the course and the team really looks forward to the next outing.
"It just seems like we've been able to post good scores almost every round. We're all three at the same level; all playing really well.
"It's like we just need one good score from the other two players. And the competition to make those final two spots in our lineup has been really, really good. It's making our team that much better every week."
Auburn's Cydney Clanton earned the SEC women's weekly honor.
Players Mentioned
