Senior Derek Bayley chats about getting back to basics in his final collegiate season.
You as an individual have obviously been performing really well this spring, what adjustments did you make after the fall season to come back so strong?
I just have been working on my game more and just changing the way I do things, kind of getting back to where I was freshman and sophomore year. I think the biggest thing was just kind of getting back to who I was as a golfer, if you aren't a golfer you don't understand that but the way I play is different than the way a lot of the guys play. I just got back to that and figured out the recipe that works for me the best. I think I just got a little bit more aggressive in that stretch that I wasn't really playing that well, and that's not really who I am as a golfer. I'm more of a guy that hits fairways and greens rather than goes after certain pins when it doesn't really call for it, and things like that. I just got back to hitting more irons off of tees and playing things safer, and basically making fewer bogies.
In the Bandon Dunes Invitational you posted your best career finish since 2015, how did it feel to come up with a season-best finish?
I didn't really know the number but I knew that I had won once my sophomore year and a third place finish my freshman year. I knew I had never posted a second place finish before. I was focusing on winning and that's really all that was on my mind during the moment and playing well was great, but most importantly it helped our team play well and get a third place finish there.
When you're having one of those rounds where everything is going well and you know you're positioned higher in the standings, does that drive you more or can it be somewhat distracting to think about?
I think it makes you focus a little bit more. If you are kind of down and out it's maybe harder to stay focused. When you are in contention it's a different feeling inside your body, whether that's nerves or anxiety or pressure, and the more you are in that situation the more it's going to help you. I would say it's a really good thing. You can get a little anxious at times when you're there looking at scores and wondering where you are, but I try to focus more on our team. Everyone has an individual goal obviously, but if you do your job individually that's all going to add up to the team. I'm not just playing for myself I am playing more for my guys.
After a round that maybe did not go so well, do you ever find it challenging to shake it off before heading into the next round, particularly on 36-hole days?
At times, but being a senior and having been here four years you kind of learn to flush that out of your system. I have been in a spot the last couple years where you can get into a slump and things really aren't going your way and it's hard to flush that out and battle back, but the saying "trust the process" is how it works. The sooner you can have a short memory, the better you are going to be.
You guys only have one tournament left before the Pac-12 Championships, are there any final kinks that you hope to work out as a team in Tempe?
Just kind of tuning up. We are going to have six guys going to Arizona and that will be perfect to prepare for Pac-12's. We didn't play very well in Palm Springs as a team, so hopefully we can clean it up a little bit and play better in Arizona and then at Pac-12's.
You're in your final season with the Cougars, is there anything specific you want to accomplish before the season ends in April?
We are kind of battling as a team right now, and I always jet back to that team. I'm the team leader and I think just playing my game and being myself. I wouldn't say any certain accomplishments; I think any accomplishment is going to come by trusting the process and being who you are.
You as an individual have obviously been performing really well this spring, what adjustments did you make after the fall season to come back so strong?
I just have been working on my game more and just changing the way I do things, kind of getting back to where I was freshman and sophomore year. I think the biggest thing was just kind of getting back to who I was as a golfer, if you aren't a golfer you don't understand that but the way I play is different than the way a lot of the guys play. I just got back to that and figured out the recipe that works for me the best. I think I just got a little bit more aggressive in that stretch that I wasn't really playing that well, and that's not really who I am as a golfer. I'm more of a guy that hits fairways and greens rather than goes after certain pins when it doesn't really call for it, and things like that. I just got back to hitting more irons off of tees and playing things safer, and basically making fewer bogies.
In the Bandon Dunes Invitational you posted your best career finish since 2015, how did it feel to come up with a season-best finish?
I didn't really know the number but I knew that I had won once my sophomore year and a third place finish my freshman year. I knew I had never posted a second place finish before. I was focusing on winning and that's really all that was on my mind during the moment and playing well was great, but most importantly it helped our team play well and get a third place finish there.
When you're having one of those rounds where everything is going well and you know you're positioned higher in the standings, does that drive you more or can it be somewhat distracting to think about?
I think it makes you focus a little bit more. If you are kind of down and out it's maybe harder to stay focused. When you are in contention it's a different feeling inside your body, whether that's nerves or anxiety or pressure, and the more you are in that situation the more it's going to help you. I would say it's a really good thing. You can get a little anxious at times when you're there looking at scores and wondering where you are, but I try to focus more on our team. Everyone has an individual goal obviously, but if you do your job individually that's all going to add up to the team. I'm not just playing for myself I am playing more for my guys.
After a round that maybe did not go so well, do you ever find it challenging to shake it off before heading into the next round, particularly on 36-hole days?
At times, but being a senior and having been here four years you kind of learn to flush that out of your system. I have been in a spot the last couple years where you can get into a slump and things really aren't going your way and it's hard to flush that out and battle back, but the saying "trust the process" is how it works. The sooner you can have a short memory, the better you are going to be.
You guys only have one tournament left before the Pac-12 Championships, are there any final kinks that you hope to work out as a team in Tempe?
Just kind of tuning up. We are going to have six guys going to Arizona and that will be perfect to prepare for Pac-12's. We didn't play very well in Palm Springs as a team, so hopefully we can clean it up a little bit and play better in Arizona and then at Pac-12's.
You're in your final season with the Cougars, is there anything specific you want to accomplish before the season ends in April?
We are kind of battling as a team right now, and I always jet back to that team. I'm the team leader and I think just playing my game and being myself. I wouldn't say any certain accomplishments; I think any accomplishment is going to come by trusting the process and being who you are.