PGA.com

Tour News Quick Links


 

Surviving college as foreign student prepared Villegas for PGA Tour

- AP

NEW YORK (AP) -- Camilo Villegas works hard, sets goals and stays organized so he can manage his time. Those are good attributes for any PGA Tour player.

But that's what it took for him just to survive college.

Villegas struggled with his English when he left Colombia to attend the University of Florida, where he found himself in classrooms with as many as 300 students. He could understand better than he could speak, and reading took time.

But he graduated in 2004 with a degree in business and a GPA of 3.8.

"Reading, it was very slow, but it was good," Villegas said. "When you have classes with 300, 400 students, I didn't see the point of showing up. I just got my book, I read it, and I went and took the test. It took time, and obviously coming to Florida and having all those new opportunities was a little overwhelming.

"But you have to just really manage your time, have a good plan for every day and stick to it."

The hardest aspect of a new country was speaking, and Villegas said it didn't help that he was shy. In golf terms, he decided to start firing at flags.

"One day I said, 'You know what? Hell with it. I'm just going to open my mouth, and whatever comes out, comes out,'" he said. "If somebody is going to make fun of me, I'll say, 'Hey, instead of laughing at me, why don't you tell me the correct way of saying it?' And I got better."

Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved.

 
McGladrey Team Championship
Ryder Cup
 

Most Popular Stories

Kim leads AT&T National by 3 after course-record 62 at Congressional

BETHESDA, Md. (AP) -- Anthony Kim is regaining a lot of his strength an... continue reading

Woods doubles as host and star attraction as AT&T National starts

BETHESDA, Md. (AP) -- It's not often that a player is bold enough to ch... continue reading

Salvaging round slipping away, Woods moves into halfway lead at AT&T

BETHESDA, Md. (AP) -- The best of Tiger Woods came Friday when his game... continue reading

MAJORS
PGA OF AMERICA EVENTS
PGA OF AMERICA CHAMPIONSHIPS
PGA Professional National Championships

PGA Professional National Championship

Twin Warriors Golf Club
Santa Ana Pueblo, N.M.
June 28 - July 1, 2009

2009 PGA Championship

PGA Championship

Hazeltine National Golf Club
Chaska, MN
Aug. 10-16, 2009
2009 | 2010

2009 Grand Slam of Golf

PGA Grand Slam of Golf

Port Royal Golf Club
Southhampton, Bermuda
October 19-21, 2009

2010 Senior PGA Championship

Senior PGA Championship

Colorado Golf Club
Denver, CO
May 25-30, 2010
2009 | 2010

2010 Ryder Cup

Ryder Cup

The Celtic Manor Resort
Newport, Wales
October 1-3, 2010

Play Golf America

Helping To Grow The Game

One of the most important missions for the PGA of America is to promote and grow the game of golf.


About PGA.com | Advertising | Feedback | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use
© 2003-2009 PGA / Turner Sports Interactive. All rights reserved.
PGA.com is part of the Turner Sports and Entertainment Digital Network