Vikes golfer named Male Rookie Athlete of the year

Inside Owen Croft’s improbable journey to varsity golf

Five years ago, UVic varsity golfer Owen Croft wasn’t even playing competitive junior golf. In March, he won Male Rookie Athlete of the year. 

“I remember getting into arguments with my dad because I didn’t want to go to the golf course,” said Croft. He only golfed occasionally as a teenager, usually to spend time with his grandfather. At that time, Croft was shooting scores that most recreational golfers wouldn’t be envious of: “I wasn’t breaking 100,” he said. 

Instead, Croft’s passion was hockey. Like many young hockey players growing up in Ontario, he hoped to be drafted to the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). That changed when he was hit into the boards during a AAA major bantam hockey game. The impact separated his shoulder and broke his collarbone in two places. After his return to the ice seven months later, he broke the same collarbone again — all but assuring he would go undrafted. Croft was devastated. 

The following winter — to fill time without hockey — he began going to a golf simulator with his mother. 

“You could take mulligans at the simulator,” laughed Croft. “I had so much fun, so I just kept going back. And I learned how to hit it a little better.” 

Then COVID-19 hit, and golf became his new obsession. Croft almost never left the course. In under a year, his golf handicap (a numerical score that measures a golfer’s playing ability) dropped to four over par — an average score that less than ten per cent of recreational golfers hold. 

Eventually, Croft’s parents suggested that he try entering junior golf tournaments. A year and a half later, he placed second in the 2022 Canadian Junior Match Play Championship and won the National Junior Golf Championship — Canada’s most prestigious junior golf event. 

In less than two years, Croft had gone from average to exceptional, and set his sights on playing university golf.

In 2022, Croft flew to Vancouver for a recruitment tour at the University of British Columbia (UBC), but he found out he didn’t have the grades to get into the Bachelor of Commerce program.  

“I thought, I might as well go check out Victoria,” said Croft. 

He was accepted into UVic’s economics department. However, there was one problem. The golf team was full.

He emailed Vikes golf coach Justin Clews — no reply. So, Croft became a member of Uplands Golf Club, where the Vikes golf team trained.  

“My goal was to show up every day and basically just be seen,” said Croft, who began playing practice rounds regularly with the team during his first semester. By the end of the year, Clews asked him to sign. In September 2023, Croft returned to UVic for his rookie season.  

“I was basically picked up off the [driving] range,” he said. “So, when I came in the second year, it was a lot of pressure…. My goal was … to prove to this coach that he made the right decision.”  

On the golf course, he did just that. But the team’s demanding travel schedule for the Continental Athletic Conference (CAC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), was difficult for Croft.

“I struggled heavily with school,” said Croft.  “[One week] we were going to Arizona, [then we would] come back home for a few days and then take back off to Arkansas or somewhere for another five days…. It was tough to balance.” 

Croft ended up failing a couple classes that year.  

By the second semester, his golf game was taking off. In March 2024, Croft tied for second individually at the Vikes Spring Shootout, helping his team win the men’s side of the event. A month later, at the CAC Championship, Croft played some of the best golf of his life. 

The Championship spans three rounds over three days. Winning it qualifies teams to play in the NAIA National Championship.

Croft started the tournament with an even par round of 70. In round two, he was four over par after nine holes.  

“I was telling myself, ‘hey, stay in it. Stay present’,” recalled Croft.  

On the back nine, Croft rattled off an incredible seven birdies to shoot a 29 — one of the rarest feats in tournament golf. The next day, Croft finished the job, winning the individual title and helping the Vikes secure a third-straight CAC championship. He was named the CAC men’s golfer of the year.

However, before the CAC Championships even began, Croft almost dropped out of UVic altogether.  

“I had a big conversation with my parents because of the way academics was going…. It was really, really dark. [But] my parents told me, just grind [away at] school…. So, I kept my head down, I grinded through it. It was tough. And then I won.” 

In the car to the airport after his win, Croft called his father.  

“I was bawling my eyes out on the phone,” he said. “I remember saying [to him], I wouldn’t have had this opportunity [if I dropped out]. This is the craziest thing that’s ever happened in my life.”  

Two weeks later, Croft capped his rookie season with a fourth-place finish at the Canadian University Championships, earning him All-Canadian honors. 

“Did I expect [to win Vikes] rookie of the year? No, I did not. I had no clue.” 

Now, Croft’s focus is on helping the Vikes win another 2025 CAC Championships this April — where he has the chance to repeat as champion.