FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood University junior men’s golf standout Dylan Jensen/Martinsville is this week’s Longwood Male Athlete of the Week. He fired a 54-hole score of 72-70-72--214 en route to earning individual medalist honors for the second-straight year at the Manor Intercollegiate hosted by Longwood on April 12-13 at The Manor Resort Golf Club. Jensen, who won the 2012 event with a tournament-record 209, helped the Lancers to a third-place finish last weekend. He followed his winning effort with a 76-78-75--229 at the Coca-Cola Wofford Invitational on April 15-16 in Spartanburg, South Carolina, finishing his week with a 73.83 scoring average in the two tournaments (six rounds). Jensen has led Longwood this year with his 75.33 average through 10 events and 27 rounds, and will enter next week’s Big South Men’s Golf Championship (April 21-23) with a career average of 75.80 to rank ninth all-time.
Question and Answer Session with Dylan Jensen and Ashley Robbins
AR: Talk a little about how your junior season has gone so far?
DJ: It went better than my freshman and sophomore years, but not quite to where I thought it could be. As for the team, I also think we fell a little short of our expectations. We have the conference tournament this weekend, so hopefully we can pick it up and play how we want to play.
AR: What are your goals heading into the Big South Championship?
DJ: I would really like to take a top six finish so I could go to NCAA Regionals. For the team, I want us to get a top five finish. That would be great. I’m working on being more confident on the golf course. I’m a little too timid, so I just want to be more confident with my shots.
AR: Do you find yourself giving advice to your younger teammates?
DJ: Yes, especially since my roommate (Kyle Bodin) and I are the oldest guys on the team now after four guys graduated last year. However, golf is really individual, so if they want advice, I’ll give it to them, but I won’t just push it on them.
AR: What do you plan to do in the offseason and what are your goals for your senior year?
DJ: I have an internship in my hometown (Martinsville) with a finance department, but [the owner] knows I play golf, so I can make my own hours. I’ll be playing a lot of golf in the offseason. Next year, my goal is to have two wins individually and to have the team get a couple, as well.
AR: What does it mean to you to get to play in the Big South this year?
DJ: It was really nice. It’s more consistent and we have something to look forward to at the end of the year. Having the conference tournament is nice and I’m really looking forward to it.
AR: What is the best advice you’ve gotten from Coach Fillman during your time at Longwood?
DJ: Just go out there, be confident and play one shot at a time. Don’t get ahead of myself. My freshman year, I was so worried about qualifying to just be able to play and start, I was thinking about the end result when I was halfway through the rounds. Coach has helped me not worry about the future, but stay in the present, and just play and see what happens.
AR: Do you have any role models?
DJ: My head golf pro at home, who kind of taught me golf is a big role model of mine. His name is Robert Weinerth. I’ve only gotten lessons from his since I was seven, so he’s kind of like a second dad to me and definitely a role model.
AR: Why did you choose Longwood?
DJ: I really liked Coach Fillman a lot and I really liked the guys on the team. I also like The Manor Golf Course. I think that’s a really great course. Coach and I have gotten along really well from the start. We have a really good relationship, so I think that was the main reason I came.
AR: Do you have any superstitions when you play?
DJ: I do. I actually listen to the ‘Lion King’ soundtrack before every tournament to help calm me down. I always have certain things in each pocket, too. I always have my ball and tee in my right pocket, my pencil is in my left pocket and my scorecard is in the back right. I also can’t use the new quarters (for ball markers). I have to use the old ones, preferably from the 70s. I never have more than one tee at all times. I’m very superstitious.
AR: Who is you favorite athlete and what’s your favorite team?
DJ: My favorite athlete is Aaron Rodgers and my favorite team is the Green Bay Packers. My dad is from Green Bay, so we actually go up for one game every year. It’s really fun.
AR: What advice would you give to a young athlete hoping to play Division I golf?
DJ: With golf, you really have to concentrate on it. You also have to realize you’re not going to play well every day. There are going to be terrible rounds that you just have to ignore. The biggest advice I can give is to just forget the past, whether it’s good or bad. If it’s really good, you have to let it go because you aren’t always going to get that, and if it’s bad, you just need to move on.
