NIAGARA- ON-THE- LAKE — Zach Soccio-Marandola is a late bloomer. The 17- year- old Denis Morris graduate didn’t start taking golf seriously until a couple of years ago but quickly picked up the game.

Soccio- Marandola earned his first victory on t he Niagara District Junior Tour Wednesday at the Niagara-onthe-Lake Golf Club, firing a 70 to take home top spot in the boys division.

“I picked it ( golf ) up the summer going into Grade 10,” Soccio-Marandola said. “I was finally done with hockey and soccer and I started playing with my friends and I began to enjoy it.”

Of all the sports, golf may be the most difficult to learn, but Soccio- Marandola stuck with it.

“I started working with John (White) right away,” said Soccio- Marandola, who golfs out of the St. Catharines Golf and Country Club. “It was tough the first year. I didn’t get it right away but it came rather quickly after that.”

Soccio- Marandola nearly captured his first victory in the tour’s first stop of the season at the Port Colborne Country Club earlier this month.

“I tied for first in the first event and lost in a playoff so it was good to finally get one back,” he said. “It felt good.”

Soccio- Marandola, who will attend Canisius College this fall on a golf scholarship, played a consistent round, firing a 34 on the front nine and a 36 on the back.

“I hit 16 of the 18 greens,” he said. “I didn’t putt very well but when you’re playing that solid, you don’t need to make many putts.”

Soccio- Marandola is a big believer in momentum.