Eastern Michigan University senior Casey Olsen has been playing golf almost his entire life.
Everything he has done, and still does to this day, seems to carry some golf connotation along with it.
“After finishing a round of golf, I like to go back to my room and write down everything about the round while it is still fresh in my head,” Olsen said. “I will basically write down my emotions about how the round went. What I was feeling during each shot. What I can do to go forward. Basically, it is a reflection on what I did right and what I can do to improve.”
When he was younger, at his home in East Lansing, Mich., he had a green and bunker in his backyard to practice on. He said there were not enough hours in a day to count how long he spent back there.
Olsen grew up an all-around athlete. Along with golf, Olsen also enjoyed playing hockey and baseball. His dad taught him to play hockey left-handed so his hockey swing wouldn’t affect his right-handed golf swing. When it comes to baseball, he can switch hit.
He went to Okemos High School in East Lansing, where he played golf. While looking for colleges, he had a few schools looking to recruit him. His two main choices were Oakland University and EMU.
After graduating high school, he went to Oakland University to start his college golfing career with his best friend. But he quickly realized Oakland was the wrong choice for him because he and the coach did not see eye to eye.
He spoke with EMU coach Bruce Cunningham about coming to Eastern. After he completed his first year of college at Oakland, he transferred to EMU.
“Casey is an extremely dedicated and committed student-athlete,” Cunningham said. “He is an incredible ball striker that possesses above-average length and is extremely consistent. Casey is a methodical and meticulous golfer who competes with poise and composure on every shot. That mindset combined with his skill set has produced very consistent scoring over his career for our team. We were all so proud of him when he recently captured his first collegiate win at [The College of] William & Mary.”
His teammate, Brian Churchill-Smith, also had good things to say about Olsen.
“As a player, Casey is always on top of his ball striking, week in and week out. It was only a matter of time until he found his short game,” Churchill-Smith said. “He’s certainly found it and has been producing some great scores. It’s great because the team needs him right now heading into our playoffs. He stays within himself and stays level headed throughout the whole round. We definitely expect him to keep rolling.”
Churchill-Smith said off the course, Olsen is more than just golf, but said the sport still sticks with his teammate even when he’s not playing it.
“Casey is laid back, creative and enjoys to debate on certain topics over team dinners,” Churchill-Smith said. “But while he is off the course, golf doesn’t leave the mind too much. It seems like he’s always going through the holes in his head, developing a game plan on how he is going to attack or navigate his way through the course.”
After college, Olsen would like to continue playing golf.
“I am just a little unsure of how to go about it and how I will fund myself,” Olsen said. “There are thousands, probably hundreds of thousands of golfers good enough to play.”
Casey Olsen highlights:
School concentration: psychology and marketing
Favorite sport to watch, other than golf: “I love hockey,” he said. “I am a die-hard Red Wings fan, so this year has been a little rough for me. But I can watch any hockey and all hockey. I love the sport.”
Interests and hobbies: “I am really into art and music. I love writing.”
Favorite movie: “Limitless”
Favorite music: “I love Muse,” he said. “They get me ready for my tournaments. I want my emotions to be as baseline as possible. Muse is great for that, because they have a lot of soothing-type songs. However, if I want to get pumped up for some fun, I listen to a band called Destroy Rebuild
Until God Shows.”
What’s in his bag:
Driver: Callaway FT-Tour 9 degrees, Aldila Voodoo SVX6 shaft
3 Wood: Titleist 910 13 degrees, Diamana Blackboard shaft
Irons: Titleist 712 irons – cavity back 2 iron-5 iron, muscle back 6 iron-pw. KBS C-Taper shafts
Wedges: Titleist Vokey sm4 wedges, 52 and 58 degrees
Putter: Yes! Sara-12 putter
