Golf is a sport that takes years of practice and hard work in order to play at an elite level.
That hasn’t exactly been the case for recently graduated Woodrow Wilson all-stater, Zan Hill.
Sure, Hill has put in the time and dedication to be a great player, but in the span of only four years, Hill has closed the gap from beginner to elite player far quicker than most.
Thursday afternoon, Hill’s hard work and dedication paid its biggest dividend when he signed a National Letter of Intent to play golf at Concord University this fall.
“The coach and I bonded pretty well together and I knew a couple of the players on the team really well. It seemed like a good fit for me,” Hill said. “Two of their best players are fifth-year seniors, so hopefully I will be able to step right in there and make an impact for the team.”
Although his dad and his older brother were both excellent golfers, it took a little time for the younger Hill to warm up to the game.
“We moved to Glade Springs my eighth grade year and that is when I picked up golf. I was thinking that was a good time to start,” Hill said. “Then during Covid when nobody could go out, for seven or eight months I played pretty much every day. That really got things going. I wasn’t very good to start with, but here in the last couple of years I have definitely improved my game.”
Improved may be a polite understatement.
As a junior, Hill finished fourth overall at the state golf tournament on the Speidel Course at Oglebay Park which included making a hole-in-one.
“He advanced fast. I think the competition with his brother, Jackson Hill, helped motivate him to play pretty good. Then playing with some people like Charlie Houck really helped him,” Woodrow Wilson head coach Butch Freeman said.
Jackson Hill is currently playing golf at Wofford College.
This past season Hill’s star shined even brighter when he won the Class AAA individual state title. That performance came on the heels of a sixth place finish at the W.Va Jr. Amateur and an appearance at the Amateur.
“He has really matured during high school and he really has the desire to improve his game and work at it,” Freeman said. “He is just a great young man. It has been a joy to have him and Jackson and coaching them the last few years.”
After such rapid development during his high school years, Hill is excited to see where the next four years take him as a Mountain Lion.
“Concord plays multiple events in state, but they also go out of state. I think they went to Pinehurst last year, so there will be some bigger events to play,” Hill said. “I have played a couple of tournaments at Pinehurst, so I have a little experience with those type of events. Hopefully I can take that with me.”
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