Quick Chat: Trent Phillips
March 22, 2019 | Men's Golf, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
Watching Trent and Trevor Phillips on the driving range of the UGA Golf Course, it's easy to picture the brothers, reunited this year on the Georgia golf team, spending hour after hour tinkering with their swings and trying every shot imaginable.
A freshman from Inman, S.C., Trent Phillips is ranked No. 9 in the country in the most recent Golfweek rankings and last weekend helped the 12th-ranked Bulldogs win the Linger Longer Invitational in Greensboro, Ga. Phillips' game is distinctive for several reasons: the obvious talent (five Top-10 finishes in seven collegiate events), being a left-hander and because he wears gloves on both hands.
During a Quick Chat on Tuesday in the Bulldogs' locker room at the Boyd Golf Center, Phillips talked about wearing two gloves, teaming up with his brother (a Georgia junior), hitting creative shots and much, much more. Here's some of what he had to say:Â
Frierson: Take me through your start in golf, how old were you when you first started and when did it become a huge part of your life?
Phillips: I started when I was 7, my dad wanted to move to a golf course and we did. I kind of just went over with him and just kind of fell in love with it. I liked going over there and hitting balls every day, and it started to become a routine. Then it was like, I kind of want to play some tournaments to see what I got.
I went out to play a nine-hole tournament, I'll never forget it. It was in Meadowbrook, which is up the road about 30 minutes from where I live, and I shot 30 on nine holes when I was 8. I was like, man, that's pretty good. Won the tournament and I about shot 29, and I'd been playing golf for about a year.
I was like, wow, that's pretty good, I'm going to start grinding and trying hard and working at it. Me, Trevor and my dad, we would go walk the loop every day. There's four holes around our house and ... we'd play that every day, those four holes.
Frierson: Shooting 30 at 8 years old is spectacular, regardless of how long the course is.
Phillips: Yes, sir, I was like, man, I might be able to play some good golf one day, so I just kept it going.
Frierson: One of the things that struck me watching you and your brother on the range was how you guys talked through different things. It looked like you'd be happy to be out there all day doing that.
Phillips: We always love to help each other, growing up we always pulled for each other. If I'm hitting it bad, he'll help me out; if he's hitting it bad, I'll look at his swing and just tell him what I see.
Over the years, Trevor's been a really good driver of the golf ball, which is good because driving the golf ball is not easy, to hit it 300 yards, straight. And he does it a lot. That's kind of one of the things that I've been struggling with, so [today] I was just getting him to help me out with what he feels when he swings a driver and the things he sees that I'm doing.
I could see him being a golf teacher one day, seriously. He loves the swing and trying to help people with the swing. It's a good resource for me to have, for sure.
Frierson: I'm guessing that wearing two gloves is a by-product of growing up playing in the hot and humid summers in South Carolina. Is there more to it than that?
Phillips: The first time was in Pinehurst, N.C., and it was about 100 degrees — this was at the U.S. Kids Golf World Championship. I can't remember if I was wearing one glove or no gloves, but I remember it was a practice round and I hit it [and the club went flying]. It was hot, my hands were sweaty and I was like, I never want to do that again.
That was a pet peeve of mine, for my hands to slip. So I was like, I'm going with two gloves and I just did it, not knowing what to expect. I just tried and out and I liked it. It was hot and I could grip the club and feel like I could rip at it without the club feeling like it was going to slip. And I've done it ever since.
Frierson: What other sports did you play growing up?
Phillips: I really loved baseball and football, and I like baseball a little more. I was a pretty good baseball player, but it was one of those things where I got into golf and never looked back. ...
I was a really athletic kid and I played pitcher and I was a good hitter, too; I have good hand-eye coordination. I actually played on my older brother's team and he's two years older than me, and I was the only player to not strike out. I got on base every time that season — I had this little bat, it was called The Hammer, and that was my nickname, Hammer.
Frierson: I've heard that you recently had a really bad blister on your foot and wound up playing part of a practice round with one shoe. What's the story behind that?
Phillips: That was two weekends ago at Myrtle Beach and I played six or seven holes of a practice round with one shoe on. I literally could not walk, it hurt so much. Then I had to play 36 holes the next day with two shoes and a blister, and then in the final round I wore these (running) shoes I have on right now — and shot 6-under.
Frierson: How much different was it, wearing running shoes versus golf shoes?
Phillips: I think it cost me two shots. I think I should have shot 64. The last day, on 18, the tee box was so sandy and I just tried to make sure I didn't slip and I didn't come off my left side at all, and just hit a chunk with a 2-iron. And then I hit it in the bunker on 1, I was on the upslope of a fairway bunker, and you need some traction, some grip in there.
I think it at least cost me a shot or two, for sure. But I still played really well, it was the best round of the week for me. I can't say it hurt me too much.
Frierson: Do you have a creative side? Is there something creative you do or wish you could do?
Phillips: As far as golf goes, I'm very creative. If in the trees, I can see a shot that somebody else might not see and are like, "Where are you even seeing that?" That's the fun in golf to me; I enjoy stuff like that, so I'm very creative on the golf course. But off the golf course, no.
I actually enjoy that creative challenge. Obviously I don't want to be in the trees, because at times you're not going to have a shot, but I like the thrill of trying to pull off some miraculous shot.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
Players Mentioned
