Most 18-year-olds come to college with little more than a laptop, a few trash bags worth of clothes and an economy-sized package of Ramen Noodles to his or her name.
Before his college career began, golfer Mitch Sutton bulked up his resume with several junior tournament wins including the Ontario and Canadian Juniors. He served as runner-up in the 2009 Canadian Men’s Amateur. Ontario product Mike Weir earned similar accolades before earning a spot on the PGA tour.
“He represented himself very well and let everyone know that he’s going to be a force to be reckoned with in the future,” Pack head coach Richard Sykes said. “I think a lot of things were predicted for him in the future and I don’t see why all of those can’t come true.”
Getting Sutton to commit to N.C. State was a simple formula – one part facilities, two parts familiarity. Sutton is a native of London, Ontario, the same province teammates Brad Revell, a senior, and Matt Hill, a junior, hail from.
“I’ve known Matt for a bit. I’ve played a bit of golf with him and Brad and they told me it’s a great place down here,” Sutton said. “They helped me with my decision.”
According to Sutton, the promise of a brand-new course just five minutes away didn’t hurt, either.
Sykes called the process by which the Canadian invasion occurred a “trickle-down” effect.
“Brad Revell came first, and he had a lot of influence on Matt Hill coming here. Then Matt Hill had a lot to do with Sutton coming here,” Sykes said. “I’d like to say I’m just a fantastic recruiter and I just went out there and dragged them all down here, but I don’t think that’s the way it worked.”
After Sutton finished settling into his Raleigh apartment and acclimated himself to the team, which he called a “great fit,” he and Revell finished in a tie for fifth place at one-under par at the University of Maryland Intercollegiate to kick off the fall season.
“It was pretty special for a freshman to place so well in his first tournament,” Sykes said. “Then he played well at the [Ping-GolfWeek] Preview against some stiff competition.”
Next, Sutton helped the Pack to a fourth place finish out of 15 teams from around the country in the Ping-GolfWeek Preview. The preview is considered one of the top collegiate tournaments of the fall season.
The team was second to last for most of its fall finale, The Ridges Intercollegiate, and managed a 10th place finish of a field of 15. The last day, the team came out and compiled the second lowest round of the day and as a result, Sykes said it was able to salvage a bit of pride.
According to Sykes, Sutton came back from a rough start and pared every hole until the last at the tournament until the final one, which he double bogeyed.
Despite this, he kept a level head.
“You can watch him play and you can’t tell if he’s playing great or playing poorly,” Sykes said. “He never plays any differently, which is a good trait to have.”
Before the spring season begins, Sykes’ next order of business will be getting Sutton to open up and make himself heard.
“He may be the quietest person I’ve ever met – I can’t get him to say a word around me. He must be talking to someone when I’m not there,” Sykes said.
Sutton himself said the silent treatment is not anything unusual.
“In general, I’m pretty quiet. I’m kind of calm and relax and listen more than I talk,” Sutton said.
After a long winter break, the team will pick up tournament play in late February. It will host the Wolfpack Invitational Apr. 9-10, which will serve as the first time either of State’s teams will host a tournament at Lonnie Poole golf course on Centennial Campus.
