TAMPA, Fla. (May 9, 2024) – On Feb. 28, USF men’s golf junior Jake Peacock had one of his highlight moments by firing a final-round 67 to win medalist honors at the Lake Las Vegas Invitational.
Afterward, his emotions were muted.
“Because as a team we lost by a shot and finished second,’’ Bulls coach Steve Bradley said. “College golf is interesting because it’s an individual sport played in a team-sport format. It says a lot about Jake. He wants to do well, of course, but what makes him really happy is the team success.’’
On April 21, Peacock enjoyed that ultimate experience while registering perhaps the best weekend of his golf life. Peacock took first place at the American Athletic Conference Tournament by shooting a 69-66-64 — 199, while helping the Bulls to the team title (USF’s sixth AAC championship under Bradley).
Peacock is a major reason why the No. 8-seeded Bulls could have even bigger things ahead at the NCAA Rancho Santa Fe Regional, which begins Monday at The Farms Golf Club in Southern California. It’s the 10th regional appearance for USF men’s golf, which is seeking its fifth NCAA Nationals trip.
The top five team finishers — and the top individual from a non-qualifying team — earn a spot at the Nationals.
USF’s recent momentum was spurred by Peacock, whose AAC final-round 64 was a career-low effort. Meanwhile, the 199 was his best 54-hole total.
Talk about coming through in the clutch.
“Certainly, Jake has been our best player all year,’’ Bradley said. “So for him to get that win, I think, was a sense of validation for not only what he has worked on this year in his physical game, but also the work on his mental game. He is putting it all together.’’
Peacock, from Milton, Georgia, transferred before last season to USF from Western Carolina University, where he was the Southern Conference Freshman of the Year.
He’s now a two-time All-AAC performer at USF and this season’s AAC Player of the Year. In addition to the two tournament victories and five top-10 finishes, he has shot par or better in 21 of his 33 rounds, including 15 rounds in the 60’s while compiling a team-best 70.27 stroke average.
“The conference tournament was definitely a moment I will cherish forever and it’s the top highlight of my career so far,’’ Peacock said. “To win as a team just put it over the top. It was a thrill to hold that conference trophy high. So we were all elated after that whole experience. The best part is I don’t think we’re done yet.’’
USF has enjoyed a turnaround year after missing the NCAA Regionals last season, an unusual occurrence in the Bradley era. After the Bulls fell into a late-season slump, jeopardizing the NCAA possibilities, Bradley said his team found a new outlook after an honest and raw meeting.
“I think Coach (Brad) Caldwell (assistant) and I were putting too much pressure on the guys throughout the season, knowing what was at stake and not wanting to be in the situation where we could possibly miss (an NCAA bid) again,’’ Bradley said. “We had more talent. We were solid in the fall and started good in the spring.
“I think we were carrying tension with us in how we were coaching the guys. So when we had an open, honest conversation with the guys and talked through everybody’s feelings, there has been a sense of relief, light-heartedness, and joy in what we were doing. It’s a pressure-packed weekend at the regionals, but we just want to be who we’ve been the last month or so. We’re enjoying it and the guys are certainly playing great right now.’’
Nobody at USF is playing greater than Peacock.
Bradley said Peacock’s golf performances are a reflection of his personal maturation.
“He’s comfortable with who he is,’’ Bradley said. “You take for granted that these are 18-to-22-year-old kids, figuring out school, life and social situations. He came to us as a transfer last year and that brought different dynamics.
“Now he has such overall confidence and security in himself. His ball-striking is better. He has worked hard on his wedges. But Jake is one of the best putters, if not the best putter, I have ever coached. There’s always a chance the ball is going in the hole. Frankly, it’s almost a surprise when it doesn’t.’’
Peacock said his putting — along with his entire game — is based on a mentality of consistency and focus. He credits Bradley and Phil Shomo, his Hilton Head-based mental coach, with allowing him to not be bothered by poor shots.
He slows himself down, takes deep breaths, and taps into his vast memory bank of good golf performances. Due to his putting prowess, he also believes that can get red-hot at any moment, so he plays with a belief that the next birdie is around the corner.
“I try to keep it simple and not overthink things,’’ Peacock said. “At regionals, that mindset doesn’t change. We’re excited for a new ballgame, but the location and who else is in the field, it really doesn’t matter. We need to compete the same way and earn our way to a national championship.’’
Asked the consider the possibility of reaching the nationals with USF’s entire team, Peacock broke into a broad smile.
“It would be the best,’’ Peacock said. “That’s what we’re shooting for. Now we just have to go out and do it.’’
About USF Men’s Golf
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The USF men’s golf program has captured 19 conference titles and has seen players earn 19 All-America honors. The Bulls have won six American Athletic Conference Tournament championships in wire-to-wire fashion, winning four consecutive from 2015-18. The Bulls have had four individual conference champions, including Albin Bergstrom in 2021, and gone on to earn nine straight NCAA Regional appearances, including a 6th place finish in NCAA Championship match-play in 2015. USF is led by Steve Bradley, who has been named American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year five times since taking over the program in 2014. The Bulls have posted 24 tournament wins under Bradley including three in the 2023-24 season, by far the most under any coach in program history.
– #GoBulls –
