By Jim Walker

jim.walker@irontontribune.com

For Sam Walker, his signing day wasn’t just an event on the calendar. It was a continuation of a much deeper path to the next facet of his life’s journey.

The St. Joseph Flyers’ senior golf signed a letter-of-intent with the Ohio Christian University Trailblazers on Wednesday, but he made a point that his success was due mainly to his hard work, but it couldn’t have been possible without the example of his late father.

Sam Walker’s signing ceremony was held in the Parish Life Center, a facility designed by Shawn Walker who was an architect but died of cancer when he was in the fourth grade.

The moment wasn’t lost on Sam.

“It’s hard to put into words,” said Sam. “The reason I started playing golf was because of him. He loved the sport, but he was so bad at it.

“But he’s the reason I started playing because I remember that even at a young age I could see he had a passion and desire to play that sport. It was something that he loved doing. He wasn’t good, but it didn’t stop him. That’s why I picked it and I didn’t expect to get to the point where I am today, but he guided me along that path.”

Walker started playing golf in the sixth grade when he was just 12 years old, but he said he didn’t get serious about the sport until his sophomore year. However, he made great strides once he began to focus on the sport.

“It’s definitely been something that doesn’t happen often in golf. A lot of people will progress slowly and what is done in the course of five years, I’ve done in three years,” said Walker.

“I’ve gone from someone who shot roughly in the 120s to 70s. In that short of time it’s almost unheard of. I’ve been very pleased with how I’ve come along. And it takes a lot of hard work and dedication.”

The improvement in his game led to earning berths in the Division 3 district golf tournament his junior and senior seasons, once with his team and once as an individual.

He was fifth overall his junior year and was the third individual qualifier.

“It took a lot of preparation to get to that part. It’s a lot of mental with golf, so I just have to control how I am mentally and how I approach my strategy on the course. It was different than how I approached anything else in my life,” said Walker.

When Walker decided to play golf at the next level, there were several programs that came calling and texting. He was on the line with Tiffin, Heidelberg, Marietta, and Shawnee State as well as Ohio Christian.

“I like the environment, especially that it has a religious affiliation coming from a Catholic school. That’s something that was very important to me my whole life. So, I’m very much looking forward to going to Ohio Christian because of that faith based background,” said Walker.

“I also just liked the people there, especially my admissions counselor Keith Carroll. He was the most interactive of all the admission counselors I’ve had. He’s seen me more as a person than just a number and money for the school.”

Flyers’ golf coach Quinn Cole said Walker was one of those golfers who rarely comes along.

“Sam has all the intangibles you would want as a coach,” said Cole. “He’s a natural leader, he was our senior captain this year, and he led our team so well. He’s the hardest worker I’ve ever coached and he pushes the other guys.”

Two of the biggest intangibles Walker has are his leadership and his work ethic.

“Whenever I’m the coach and I say, ‘Hey guys, it’s time to go home so wrap it up,’ Sam is saying ‘Nope. We’ve got 10 more minutes of daylight. We’re going to keep going,’” said Cole.

“His spirit and drive is infectious. I think that’s going to translate well at the next level. You have to be a self-starter in golf, especially in college golf. You play a long season and you play in the fall and spring. You have a lot of down time and you have to keep pushing yourself.”

Walker didn’t have any athletic goals other than to enjoy the ride.

“I just want to play golf and have the best time of my life making new friends and making a new life,” he said

Walker has been doing the play-by-play for the St. Joseph online streaming of basketball and baseball games through Dave Lucas Communications. Although he doesn’t plan to major in communications, he left the door open to add it to his studies.

“I loved it. It’s something different and I got a lot of experience in terms of public speaking,” said Walker.