Habersham Central Raiders golfer Cooper Roland last Friday made it official with Truett McConnell University to continue his golf career. The senior leader for Habersham this past season, Roland was often looked to for his leadership by coach Matt Hudlow and the Raiders.

“Cooper has been an outstanding representative of our program for the last four years,” says Hudlow. “He lettered and played a major role on our team, even as a freshman. He played as our number one or number two golfer for the past three years.”

Roland’s scoring average in his junior and senior seasons was in the 70s, and he finished third at the 8-AAAAAA region tournament with a 77, battling high winds and cold temperatures.

As it sometimes happens, the best players don’t always finish their careers the way they wanted to.

“Unfortunately, Coop had his worst day in two years at state qualifying [area],” says Hudlow. “He followed that up, true to his character by posting scores of 79 and 74 at Achasta in the North Georgia Classic. I truly believe his best golf is ahead of him.”

Roland claims the recruiting process taught him a lot about the college game and he felt it was “very enjoyable,” words not often used by some when it comes to dealing with the exhausting back and forth of recruiting.

“After visiting the [TMU], I really felt connected to it because of getting to meet the coach and players,” says Roland on what sold him on Truett’s program.

“Coach [Steve] Patton at Truett is really excited about him coming to play for them and expects him to contribute to their program as a freshman,” says Hudlow.

With Roland being a key contributor the last four years (four-year golf letterman) and team captain in 2018, it’s no surprise that the program will feel their low medalist’s absence moving forward.

“Cooper will be missed, but I am excited about what the future holds for him and am very proud to have been his coach,” adds Hudlow.

Displaying leadership and success also off the court, Roland earned the Academic Excellence Award, which goes to the highest senior GPA on the golf team.

He was awarded a Joe Dumphy Memorial Scholarship, awarded to a senior golfer in north Georgia based more on character and how you handle yourself on golf course.

As always, moving from high school to college comes with excitement of looking to the future, but it’s hard to not continue looking behind, too.

“I really enjoyed my time in Habersham, and I made some life long friends,” reflects Roland. “I am excited about furthering my education and my golf career, but it is definitely bittersweet to know that my classmates and I will all be headed in different directions in our next season of life.”

True to his character, the excellence in his golf game, his attitude and his classroom success still wasn’t entirely satisfying for Roland.

“Looking back, I could have worked a little harder in school and in sports,” says Roland, who also says he’ll miss most his friends and teachers.

But on looking forward, Roland is ready for the challenge TMU has to offer, but wants to fine tune his game in the meantime.

“I feel like I’ve made a huge improvement in my short game the last month,” says Roland. “However, I still need to work on my short game. Really I can’t wait for that first tee shot in my first collegiate tournament. I hope I hit it in the fairway.”