UNLV GOLFER HAS PRO DREAMS IN SIGHTS
Once the winning stopped — became impossible, really — he started to see how tedious the sport really was. Swimming up and down the pool for hours kind of lost its appeal.
That’s when Ban turned to his second sport and dedicated himself to golf with the energy he had previously devoted to the pool. And while he wasn’t great at it right away, he found that golf was a better fit for his personality. Where the act of swimming was droning and mechanical, Ban found golf to be an intellectual challenge. Every course was different, no two shots were alike and there were endless permutations of every round.
“I was burnt out on swimming,” Ban said. “With golf, every time, it’s different. Every time I play is a new learning experience for me. And each individual is different with their own game and their body type. Even smaller people can win majors. Golf kind of gave me hope.”
With his mind stimulated and his swing locked in, it wasn’t long before Ban was one of California’s top prospects, and after four years at UNLV, his creative approach to the game has helped him become one of the nation’s top amateurs.
At the Mountain West cham- pionship, Ban assessed the layout of the Gold Mountain Golf Club in Bremerton, Wash., and surmised that a cut would be more playable on certain holes than his natural draw — meaning, his stroke would induce the ball to curve from left to right in flight, rather than from right to left as a draw would. Though he’d almost never used a cut in previous tournaments, he had the confidence and the creativity to go for it and make it work in big situations. The result was a 16-under-par performance and another individual title.
“He’s got a lot of control over his game,” UNLV golf coach Dwaine Knight said. “He’s got great touch, and he’s got great control of the golf ball right now. He’s a really creative mind, and that’s unique for an athlete. He sees things people don’t see. He’s one of the best I’ve seen around the green, and it’s because he has such a creative insight to his game.”
Ban is set to graduate today, and after competing in the NCA A championships he plans to turn professional and attempt to make his way onto the PGA Tour. It’s a realistic path, as evidenced by the success of former UNLV golfers like Ryan Moore, Charley Hoffman and Chris Riley.
Ban wants to be the next UNLV alum to make a splash on the pro circuit, and it doesn’t take a creative mind to imagine it happening. “I don’t just think I’m in college now and then I’m going straight to the PGA Tour,” Ban says. “There are so many factors. I have to make qualifying school first. It doesn’t work out for everyone, and it might not happen for me, but I’ll never stop trying. College has helped shape me for that.
“It’s more of a reality than a dream now.”