By: Simran Sarai, Sports Writer
SFU men’s and women’s golf teams kicked off their fall season recently, and to say they’ve been busy is an understatement. Both teams recorded impressive showings last month, with the men winning the Bishop Men’s Invitational, and the women placing second at the Saint Martin’s Bishop tournament.
Two athletes, at opposite ends of their university careers, started their season with a bang. Senior men’s golfer Aidan Goodfellow celebrated his first individual university tournament win. And freshman women’s golfer Izzy Ferguson potted her first hole-in-one at SFU, placing second overall at her invitational. The Peak reached out to Goodfellow and Ferguson to find out how they’re feeling about these early season achievements, and how it impacts their plans for the lengthy season ahead.
Ferguson’s excitement over her strong showing was clear. “I’m feeling great about my second-place finish. I’m so glad to be putting my best foot forward during my first semester at SFU,” she shared. “The team has been working really hard from day one, and it has definitely been paying off.” After a slow start on day one, Ferguson started day two with multiple birdies to narrow the gap between her and her competitors before sinking her first hole-in-one.
Ferguson — who had success with this hole in practice, hitting an albatross (three strokes less than expected) — didn’t know where her ball landed during her formal attempt. “When I walked up to the green I didn’t see my ball, so I called my assistant coach Kat [Kennedy] over to look for it,” said Ferguson, believing it might have went out-of-bounds. In the end, it was coach Kennedy who checked the hole and found the missing ball. Ferguson described this moment as “the highlight of [her] day,” and was thankful it “happened in a tournament” setting so her teammates could take part in the celebration.
The shocking hole-in-one also dominoed to a surprising second-place finish for Ferguson. “I didn’t look at the leaderboard after day one as I didn’t think I was close, and wanted to keep my nerves in check,” the golfer explained. “I spent most of day two just focusing on one shot at a time, and trying not to think about the big picture. When I looked at the leaderboard afterward, it was a big surprise.”
Looking forward, Ferguson has high goals, both for the remainder of the 2022–23 season, and for her career at SFU. “I’m feeling great about the rest of the season. As a team, we have some strong goals for the rest of the year, and I know our list of accomplishments will only continue to grow.” As for her own goals, Furguson wants to “win regionals,” “make it to nationals,” and win it all.
Evidently, it was also a surprising weekend for senior Goodfellow, whose first place finish wasn’t decided until the final hole. He was equally thrilled with his first ever solo tournament win as an SFU golfer, an achievement he describes as “probably the biggest” goal for his university career.
“It’s a pretty amazing feeling. I’ve definitely been looking for that since I got here,” Goodfellow said. This win also comes after Goodfellow missed out on multiple competition seasons due to COVID–19 and unlucky injuries. “In November of 2021, so ten months ago, we were playing flag football as a team just for fun, and I ruptured my achilles tendon,” he shared.
Nevertheless, Goodfellow has roared back into competition with an early season win in his senior year, a feat he says will provide motivation for the remainder of the season. The win also helps fuel the golfer’s dream to compete professionally after his collegiate career ends. “We have two more tournaments this semester, and then the spring’s like our main season. It’s huge, especially getting it so early. I’ve never felt more confident with my game before.”
