Published in Cameron Collegian
Change is not always easy, but sometimes it is necessary. Former Aggie golfer Peter Svajlen has been coming to grips with this notion since the beginning this semester.
After spending five years as a member of the CU golf team, Svajlen now serves as the team’s Graduate Assistant. He said adjusting to his new role as a coach has had its challenges, but he said that he is enjoying the overall experience. “I enjoy being a coach, but as a coach I’m starting to some things from a different view,” Svajlen said. “I see things that sometimes you take for granted as a player.”
One of the toughest transitions Svajlen has faced is no longer being able to compete with the college team. “Sometimes I get jealous watching the guys play,” he said. “I wish I could be playing with them.”
Although he is now as assistant coach, Svajlen has not fully embraced his new position. “I wouldn’t say that I’m their (the players) coach,” Svajlen said. “Idon’t feel like I’m superior to them, I feel more like I’m in a captain’s role.”
Since he is no longer playing for the Black and Gold, Svajlen is finding it more difficult to stay active as a golfer, but he is doing his best to stay at the top of his game. “I’m practicing more this year than I did last year, but it’s hard to keep being competitive,” he said.
One of the ways Svajlen is staying active in the sport is by participating in professional tournaments. Over the summer, Svajlen competerd in the Czech Open. Though he finished just three strokes from making the cut, Svajlen was the top finisher from his native country of Slovakia, and came away from the tournament with a positive outlook about his game and his future in golf.
“The Czech Open was a good experience, and I proved I can play against any of the guys out there,” Svajlen said. “But, I had a bad week. I was struggling with my swing a little bit, but if I play how I usually do I know I can finish well.”
Playing golf professionally is something Svajlne plans to pursue after completing his graduate coursework at CU. “I definitely want to give it a run to compete professionally,” he said. “I have worked hard over the last 10 years of playing golf, and I don’t want to throw it away before I give professionally a shot.”
Svajlen said that breaking onto the pro tour will not be easy, but hopes that competing against top tier players will help him make improvements as a golfer and push his game to the next level. The former Aggie standout believes that drawing on his experiences as a collegiate golfer will help him develop as a professional.
“When I first got here, my game was not where it needed to be to compete for the first positions in tournaments,” Svajlen said., “But I’ve developed as a player and learned to think like a golfer. Nobody at home could have taught me what I’ve learned here. I’ve learned lot from Coach Hrnciar, but I’ve learned a lot from other players as well. I can do the same thing in professional golf. I can learn from the other guys I’ll compete against, and I think, after a couple of years, I can make it on one of the main tours.”
