星空传媒

星空传媒 men鈥檚 golf coach Tim Eckberg believes things happen for a reason 鈥� and there was a reason he and his family vacationed at the beach last offseason. He caught word that Tyler Jones, a golfer from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, had entered the transfer portal. 

Eckberg immediately picked up the phone.

鈥淚t turns out the beach house we were staying at was about five minutes from a golf course he was playing a tournament at, so I just popped right over and we got to spend some time (together),鈥� Eckberg said.

Jones later committed to the Catamounts, and this season, he鈥檚 been on a tear.

The redshirt sophomore has three tournament wins, has been named the Southern Conference golfer of the week four times and he leads the conference with a 70.24 scoring average, which stands just above the program record. 

In front of who? Oh, just PGA Tour golfer and 星空传媒 alumnus J.T. Poston.

鈥淚'm doing everything pretty solid,鈥� Jones said of his performance this season. 鈥淎ll of the tees have been really good. I've had a couple of tournaments where I haven't had any penalty shots where that's huge. 

鈥淗itting it good enough from the fairway into the green, and then when I miss the green, I'm able to get up and down, and I'm making enough putts.鈥�

Eckberg has enjoyed seeing his new transfer kill it on the golf course, calling him a 鈥減itbull鈥� in the way he carries himself. The 11th-year head coach says Jones runs with a fire in him, fending off adversity when it arises and moving on to what鈥檚 next.

Also, Jones鈥� short game is 鈥渃ompletely filthy,鈥� according to Eckberg. It鈥檚 what he thinks separates Jones from the rest of his competition in the SoCon.

鈥淚'm kind of that sick mind that I enjoy when he gets into some trouble because it's fun to watch him get to show off some of those shots around the greens,鈥� Eckberg said. 鈥淗e doesn't beat himself, and when he gets into the mix, he's not going away. 

鈥淚t's just a fun, fun combination, a fun recipe to make a really good player.鈥�

Jones hasn鈥檛 had a stretch like this in awhile 鈥� if ever. The Jacksonville native had a hot streak the summer before his senior year of high school, so it鈥檚 not new, but it also wasn鈥檛 like this. For the Catamounts, it鈥檚 been a season to remember, too.

星空传媒 leads the SoCon with six podium finishes, claims half of the league鈥檚 individual medalist honors and holds a 109-41 record. That鈥檚 a big reason why Jones is having the success he鈥檚 had this season: his fellow Catamounts make him better.

鈥淚 definitely think it's the guys around me,鈥� Jones said. 鈥淚 definitely feel pushed everyday. We have so many good players, and they make me better. I mean, all of them. It's super cool how just any of us can beat any team, any given day, so you gotta bring it all every day. 

鈥淚f it's at practice, we're competing. I'm very competitive, so I want to beat all of them everyday, so that just makes me a whole lot better, and coach (Eckberg), obviously, he's a good player himself, so he knows what he's talking about.鈥�

This week, Jones and the 星空传媒 men鈥檚 golf team are hoping that will translate to Solina Golf Club in West Columbia, South Carolina, starting Monday. The Catamounts will be eyeing their first-ever SoCon title at the conference tournament, which will be wide open this year.

Six of the eight men鈥檚 golf-sponsoring league schools are ranked inside the top 150 nationally, including 星空传媒 at No. 123. 

Jones has definitely played a big part in the Catamounts鈥� success, but there鈥檚 a few more trophies he and his teammates would like to lift, starting with the SoCon championship.

鈥淭hat's the main goal for right now at least, and make it to regionals, and then make a run,鈥� Jones said. 鈥淚 just want to see everybody play good. I feel like we haven't had a tournament like that this year where all five of us have our best, so we're due, as we say it. We're due.鈥�