Alex Scott has been nothing short of dominant in his golf career at Grand Valley State; so dominant that he has already become the most accomplished golfer in the school’s history. Scott recently added yet another accomplishment to his resume with an impressive performance at the 2018 Patriot All American Tournament in Litchfield Park, Ariz., finishing tied for second after shooting a 208 (-2) for the entire weekend.

Even with the Michigan winter preventing him from taking swings outside, Scott was still able to stay prepared and work on his golf game over winter break.

“In the winter, the main thing you can do is main swing changes,” Scott said. “It is really difficult to work on short game and the touchy stuff without being able to hit off of real grass. We’ve been cleaning up my swing, making it more efficient and more powerful. That’s been the main goal.”

Scott’s work with his swing coach has paid off so far with the early results evident in this big tournament finish. Head golf coach Gary Bissell is not surprised by this result because he’s seen Scott perform on big stages time and time again.

“Every time you play well it helps your confidence, but this has become pretty routine for Alex. It just seems like the bigger the event, the better he plays, which is a great quality to have,” Bissell said. “I just think it does help to continue to validate himself as not just one of the best players in Division II, but one of the best players in college golf.”

Scott played well enough to finish only three strokes behind the winner of the tournament and was proud of what he was able to do well during this event.

“It was actually kind of funny because I talked about how much I worked on my swing. I hit it alright, I hit it pretty good on the first day, but really in the final round I really didn’t hit it that well,” Scott said. “My short game was really good. My pitching, chipping and my putting were all really good and that was the reason why I was able to place where I did.”

Bissell knows that a performance like that can do a lot to boost the confidence for not only his player but also for him as the upcoming season gets closer.

“We try to be a very process oriented team. We are big believers that if we put the work in day in and day out, the results will come,” Bissell said. “My expectations for him are the same that they always are — that he comes to work every day and works to get better. I know the results will be there he’s just got to make sure the day to day stuff stays consistent.”

This event was the last one Scott will be playing in by himself before the official season starts. The opportunity to see his upcoming competitors and familiarize with their schools gives Scott a good feeling going into the season.

“You see the names and the rankings of the players I finished amongst and even the schools they attend. It’s nice to see Grand Valley take second, but then you see names like Oklahoma, Illinois, Oklahoma State and Pepperdine, all of these very top notch golf schools that I finished amongst the best in,” Scott said.

“To be able to take that kind of confidence away and know that I can compete with any amateur in the country is a huge milestone.”

The next time Scott will be in action is in March when the Grand Valley State University men’s golf team travels to Florida to participate in the Saddlebrook Spring Kick Off, beginning on Wednesday, March 6.