Golfer Mathieu Lafontaine will not soon forget the intense moments that have marked his career as an athlete over the past few weeks.
Mathieu Lafontaine, who signed up for 4 years at Saint Leo University in Florida, currently attends training camps with Junior Team Canada in Arizona. (Photo library)
The 17-year-old hopeful of Vaudreuil-Dorion, has learned within days of each other that he will be able to undertake a university career in Saint Leo, Florida, that he has been appointed to the Team Canada junior golf team and that he was the recipient of a $ 3,000 scholarship awarded by the Quebec Foundation for Athletic Excellence.
By signing a letter of intent, Mathieu made a formal commitment for the next four years to continue his momentum with the Saint Leo University team. The long hitter will thus be able to evolve in the NCAA division II within the “Sunshine State Conference”.
Mathieu Lafontaine decided on Saint Leo University because of the quality of his coaches, the presence of a golf course on the site of the educational institution, the possibility of playing golf for 12 months of the year and the quality of its academic program.
On November 17th, he was selected by Golf Canada to be part of the national junior team along with Malik Dao (Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot), Félix Bouchard (Otterburn Park) and JP Parr (Saint- Celestin).
Three days later, Mathieu left the country for Arizona to attend Team Canada’s inaugural training camp. Mathieu will participate in 4 training camps with Team Canada. While hitting the ball in international tournaments, Mathieu must make sure to study to get to university next year.
The academic aspect is of great importance to Mathieu, who was awarded a $ 3,000 scholarship for the excellence of his athletic and academic results, having maintained an average of 90% in Secondary 5.
Among his accomplishments on the North American circuit, Mathieu won the “HJGT Red Tail Thanksgiving Junior Open” tournament in Sorrento, Florida. On August 18th, he finished 2nd at the Junior Match Play Championship in Drummondville and in July, Mathieu placed 6th out of 153 golfers at the Quebec Provincial Amateur Championship.
“For me, golf is a lifestyle and a part of my routine. Every day, I feel the urge to play golf. Sometimes having fun with my friends and at other times I play alone to practice techniques to improve my performance. As for my studies, you have to be disciplined and structured. I make a work plan for myself at the start of the year and I follow it rigorously”, describes Mathieu Lafontaine.
