Irish sophomore Cory Sciupider ended his freshman season on a high note.
In the final tournament of last season, Sciupider individually placed third in the Big East Championship and helped his team finish third overall.
Sciupider led the team after two rounds, with scores of 72 in both the first and second rounds. But after 36 holes, Notre Dame was falling behind and needed a promising round on the last day to stay in contention, Sciupider said.
Sciupider came through in the clutch, lifting the team to success with a five-under 67.
"It was pretty exciting because my whole team was watching, and all the teams were watching on the last hole, and I made a birdie putt from about 15 feet," he said.
Sciupider is no stranger to great success. At his high school, Christ School in Arden, N.C., Sciupider was a three-time all-conference player and helped his team win two state titles.
"During the playoffs for our first state championship, I made the winning putt on the last hole in front of everyone," he said. "There were 100 people there, and it was pretty crazy. The whole team went crazy after, and it was a lot of fun."
Sciupider had many college offers after high school, from schools like North Carolina and East Carolina, yet decided Notre Dame was the place for him.
"I came and visited here and pretty much fell in love with the team, the coaches and everything," he said.
Sciupider said Irish assistant coach Scott Gump helped him improve his mental stability and has coached him through occasional hot-headed moments.
"Our assistant coach played on [the PGA Tour] for about 20 years, so he has had a lot of experience, so he trained me through when I would get mad," Sciupider said. "He is the complete opposite, too. Nothing makes him mad. And in general, he helped me a lot."
But Sciupider's first coach is his dad, David Sciupider.
"My dad taught me how to play when I was three," Sciupider said. "We still play together a lot in the summer."
Sciupider said his older sister, Kayla Sciupider, who is also a college golfer at Rollins College in Orlando Fla., joins them on the course.
"It's definitely a family sport," Sciupider said.
For the future, Sciupider said he is on the right track to go professional after his senior year. From there, he hopes to play on the PGA Tour.
But this year, Sciupider hopes to continue his great success from last season.
In addition to his strong play at the Big East Championship, Sciupider was the top Irish performer in the C&F Bank Intercollegiate in March, tying for first place with a three-under 67. He finished the season with an average score of 74.13.
Sciupider said he believes he can improve his play this year, especially with more competition in the ACC.
"The teams in the ACC will definitely be better; the tournaments will be more challenging as well," Sciupider said. "It's going to help us a lot because of better competition and better tournaments."
Sciupider said many of his hometown friends and teammates from high school play on ACC teams, and he is excited to compete against them.
"I grew up in the ACC," Sciupider said. "All my friends that went ACC are really good players, so it will be a great experience playing with them again."
Although the competition will be stiffer, Sciupider said the Irish will find success this season.
"More people should start looking at Notre Dame once we start playing better in ACC tournaments," he said.
The Irish open their season Sunday at the Gopher Invitational in Independence, Minn.
Contact Meri Kelly at mkelly29@nd.edu
