Will Hocker and the rest of his foursome had just finished up at a recent golf tournament when they were approached by a youngster looking for autographs.
“We were one of the earlier groups to finish and kidded him that he might be better off waiting for some of the guys still out on the course,” Hocker recalled.
At that point, the boy’s father chimed in.
“You guys are here for a reason; you need to believe that,” the father said.
Hocker, a 24-year-old golfer from Webster University in St. Louis, is on the verge of accomplishing his lifelong goal of playing the sport he loves at the professional level. He is scheduled to compete next week at the US Amateur Championships at The Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus, New Jersey.
The following week, he’ll attend Korn Ferry Tour qualifying as he looks to become a professional golfer.
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“I get nervous, no question, and for me, that feeling tends to go away right after I tee off on that first hole,” Hocker said. “From there, I’m usually able to relax and just focus on playing my game.”
Hocker won the NCAA Division III national title in 2021 and was named the winner of the Division III Jack Nicklaus Award following a runner-up finish at this year’s DIII national tournament in Florida. He capped his Gorlok career by winning seven tournaments this spring to give him 14 career championships.
His 70.45 scoring average was the lowest in all of NCAA Division III and he earned first-team PING All-American honors.
He joined Oklahoma’s Chris Gotterup (Oklahoma) from Division I, AJ Eward (Berry) from Division II, Jacob Staubhaug (Keiser) from NAIA and Cecil Beslisle (South Mountain) from NJCAA as national players of the year and got an opportunity to meet Jack Nicklaus during The Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Course in Dublin, Ohio, earlier this summer.
“I’ve had a lot of great things happen to me over the last few years, but getting a chance to win that award and get a chance to meet Mr. Nicklaus … that’s something I don’t think I’ll ever forget,” Hocker said.
After earning a degree in finance and sticking around this year to get his MBA, Hocker is back in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, living with his parents. But he also spent a good portion of his summer traveling and playing golf.
Due to his summer travels, Hocker elected to compete in a US Amateur qualifier at Webster Golf Club in Rochester, New York.
“I couldn’t help sending notes to my college coaches, Brad Smith and Andrew Belski, and kidding that if I couldn’t make things work for me at Webster Golf Club, it probably wasn’t meant to be,” Hocker recalled . “During our practice round, we realized it was going to be a real challenge. As that day progressed, the course came up and bit quite a few people. And it forced us to adjust our approach a little bit.
“There were spots that needed aggressive play, but others where you really had to be careful to avoid making any major mistakes.”
Playing back-to-back rounds on July 11, Hocker shot 68-69 and finished one shot behind medalist Justin Hastings of San Diego State to become one of the 312 players to advance to next week’s event.
“The timing of all this couldn’t be better,” Hocker said. “It’s my last amateur event and my first chance to compete at a US Amateur Championship. My goal is to put together a strong week of golf and hopefully get my name out there in front of people as I move towards competing at the professional level.”
Competitors will play 18 holes at Ridgewood and another 18 at nearby Arcola Country Club on Monday and Tuesday next week. After those 36 holes, the field will be cut to the lowest 64 scores for match play to begin on Wednesday. The championship concludes with a 36-hole championship match on Sunday, Aug. 21. The tournament winner and runner-up will earn exemptions into the 2023 US Open Championship at Los Angeles Country Club.
Hocker grew up playing a wide variety of sports but always felt a special draw towards golf.
“At a certain point, you realize where your talent lies,” he said. “Growing up, I played a lot with my grandparents and with my dad. I got a chance to see Jordan Spieth play and was lucky enough to play in tournaments with Scottie Scheffler and Wil Zalatoris. I got a feel for the game at the highest level and it’s something I’ve always been drawn to.
“There are a million different ways to play this game; the key is to believe in yourself and trust in your ability. And when the golf course is playing tough, you really have to keep your head down and just keep grinding away.”
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