April 2, 2008
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Jon Curran was in a rut. It was Feb. 19, 2008 and he had just completed his final round at the John Hayt Collegiate Invitational, where he tied for 62nd – the worst finish of his collegiate career.
To say it was uncommon territory for the junior All-American from Hopkinton, Mass., would be an understatement. He was coming off a 2007 season where he finished eighth at the NCAA Championships, tied for second at the NCAA West Regional and tied for ninth at the SEC Championships.
In desperate need of a spark, Curran decided to change putters at the end of February and so far, the results have been everything he had hoped.
“From the equipment aspect, I really feel comfortable with what I’ve got in the bag right now,” Curran said. “My putter has definitely helped out the past few weeks for sure.”
Helped out it has. Since making the change in putters, Curran’s game has turned around 180 degrees. In Vanderbilt’s three tournaments in March, Curran posted two runner-up finishes and a win. During that time, he shot par or better in eight of his nine rounds, while posting a stroke average of 70.4.
“I think the thing that got (Curran) going was that he switched putters,” Vanderbilt head coach Tom Shaw said. “I think he was struggling most of the year with his putting not being up to the level that it was at the end of last year. Switching the putter really gave him a different feeling and a lot more confidence.”
Armed with a new dose of confidence and a new putter, Curran began his own version of “March Madness” March 2-4 at the Seminole Intercollegiate in Tallahassee, Fla., where he earned medalist honors for the first time in his career. Curran won the tournament with a 10-under 206, becoming the first Commodore to win a tournament since Luke List won the Mason Rudolph Intercollegiate in 2005.
“He really started rolling better starting in Tallahassee and that has been the main kick-start for him because when he is making putts, he is going to get on a roll,” Shaw said.
Curran concluded the month with a pair of runner-up finishes at the Kauai Collegiate Cup in Kauai, Hawaii, and the Furman Intercollegiate in Greenville, S.C.
“Winning breeds winning,” Curran said. “I hadn’t won in a long time and I kind of felt like I was getting in a rut. Now all of a sudden I have a lot of confidence and every time I go out I feel like I can win instead of just having a top finish.”
Curran’s play has turned heads not only at Vanderbilt, but also across the SEC. Following his latest runner-up finish at the Furman Intercollegiate, the league office selected him as the SEC Men’s Golfer of the Week on March 31. The honor was the first of his career.
“It is a pretty cool honor,” Curran said. “The SEC is a real strong conference. There are definitely a lot of strong players in the league and it feels great to win such an award.”
Curran has not been the only one who has reaped the benefits of his play. The team has also been fueled by Curran’s success. Since the start of March, the Commodores have reeled off three straight top-five finishes, including a victory at the Kauai Collegiate Cup. Prior to March, the team had only two top-five finishes in its previous six tournaments.
“Our back’s are kind of against the wall right now in terms of regionals and our ranking, so in order for us to get where we want to be in regionals, we have to step it up,” Curran said. “Thankfully, we’ve been doing it. Sometimes it takes something like that to really get you in gear and we are really stepping up.”
Although every team’s score is determined by totaling four of its five lowest rounds, Shaw believes that Curran’s play can account for more than just one of the team’s four scores.
“We saw that in Tallahassee a little bit,” Shaw said. “The guys saw that he was lighting it up and they needed to honor his good play by stepping up themselves. They don’t want to be dragging the team down. When John starts playing well, I think it lifts everybody up. He knows how to rise to the occasion when we need him most.”
With just one tournament remaining before the SEC Championships, April 18-20, Curran seems to have found his remedy with a new putter, and it couldn’t have come at a better time for the Commodores.
“I just feel real comfortable with my game and the equipment right now, and it’s kind of coming together.”