Coaching Spotlight: Andrew Tredway

Mercer men’s golf coach Andrew Tredway has had a short tenure at Mercer but has managed to motivate the team with continued success over the seasons. A former professional golfer on the Australian PGA tour, Tredway sat down with The Cluster mid-season to answer a few questions.

Cluster: Besides winning, what specific goals is your men’s golf team trying to accomplish this year?

Tredway: Our main goal is to really try to focus on the process of improving, and not being result-oriented. That’s really our big goal. As far as tangible goals, we expect to be inside the top 100 teams in the nation. One thing that we are really working towards is getting Mercer’s first at-large bid into the NCAA tournament. We are 94th right now in the nation, and the top 70 in the nation get at-large bids each year.

C: In the past, you have coached at larger schools such as the University of Alabama. How do you think this has been beneficial in respects to coaching at a smaller school?

T: I’ve been around the game at the highest level, professional and in college. It’s given me some perspective. It’s also given me the ability to see where we can get our program to, and what’s realistic for Mercer. I think we are a lot closer to those bigger schools than maybe a lot of people in those major-type schools are.

C: During your first two seasons at Mercer, how were you able to change the program to where Mercer’s team ranked 85th in the nation?

T: We had two players, Bill Jones and Ryan Blackburn. Those two just really improved their games in a year. You just have to have good players. Without having good players there is really not much we can do.

C: Is there a motto that you live/coach by?

T: Focus on the process and not so much the result. We try to do as well as we can each day, and improve each day.

C: What did you learn under the tutelage of Ben Crane (PGA tour winner) and Hank Haney (Tiger Wood’s coach) that you implement into your coaching?

T: With Ben I learned a lot about how you can mold yourself into a top-level player. He is a top 50 player in the world now, and he’s done it through a lot of hard work. I try to tell my players that the most talented players do not always become the best players. Through hard work, you can turn yourself into one of those guys. Through Hank I learned a lot about expectations. If your expectations are too high as a teacher, you are ultimately setting yourself up for failure. I really try to relay my expectations to my team and hear their expectations of me as a coach. This way, we are all on the same page and moving forward together.

C: In the upcoming weeks your team will be playing in Oregon. Having played as a collegiate athlete there what are you telling your athletes to expect at this course?

T: I’ve always wanted to take my team back to Oregon. I’d love to have Mercer take it to my alma mater. It’s going to be a fun experience for us to go out there. Playing on the Oregon coast is a different style of golf altogether, with the wind and other elements. It’s going to be a challenge, but it gives our players an opportunity to see where they stand among the best in the country.
Continue to support the Mercer Bears as they gear up to compete in the Bandon Dunes Championship in Bandon, Ore.