Charlie Hanoian, Norwood Golf

Having first picked up a golf club around the age of three, one would have expected Norwood’s Charlie Hanoian to focus all his time and energy on the greens. The Norwood senior, however, explored other athletic avenues since he picked up that golf club many years ago.
“I eventually stopped playing golf to play all the other sports,” Hanoian said. “Then when I was in seventh grade I had found out that the high school had a golf team so I figured I’d give it another try.”
Hanoian began practicing religiously in hopes that he’d be able to earn himself a spot on the Norwood team. During the eighth grade, would suit up for the basketball team in the winter and then took out his golf clubs in the spring practicing just about every possible day.
Eventually, he made the varsity roster during his freshman campaign, but not without the normal first year jitters.
“Tryouts that freshman year were nerve racking as I really didn’t know what to expect,” Hanoian said. “Besides a few friends who also went out for the team, I didn’t know anyone of the other kids or how they played. The first day I shot a 92 through 18 holes and a 46 through nine holes on day two. I played around my expectations, but there was a couple of freshman who did better than I did.”
That freshman year, Hanoian was an alternate on the team, but it wasn’t a problem as he found himself learning more about the game. Match after match he noticed that some of his buddies were beating him on a regular basis. That off-season, he dedicated himself to playing and improving his golf game. That freshman year he was shooting a 46, and now three plus years later he’s writing a 39 on his scorecard, eliminating seven huge strokes from his game. When he returned to school in the fall of his sophomore year, Hanoian had secured the number three golfer on the squad, and each year following moved up. During his junior year, he was a close second and this fall he’s the team’s top golfer.
“Charlie takes the game seriously and works extremely hard not just during practice and games, but during the offseason as well,” Norwood Coach Chuck Allen said. “He’s a great leader, but is more about the team than himself. Golf is a team sport, but it’s the individuals who are out on the course by themselves.”
The senior captain continually looks to work on his game no matter what the season. When it’s too cold and snow blankets the local golf courses, Hanoian practiced on an indoor simulator in Dedham that allowed him to play throughout the winter months and he surprisingly found it to be rather accurate.
As a senior captain this fall, he’s looking to make sure all the other golfer’s priorities are set; he believes it is his responsibility to make sure everyone gets to practices and games.
“Last year was my first year as golf coach and I have seen him mature quite a bit since then,” Allen said. “He’s one of our top golfers and often goes to the other golf courses that we are going to play on to get a feel for the course. If it’s private, he’ll just walk it.”
As the season continues, Hanoian is looking for the Mustangs to make it back to the tournament, but do much better.
“Last year was the first time that the golf team made the tournament in four years and we had a blast,” Hanoian said. “I want to get back there and do better than our 8th place finish out of 15 teams.”
Hanoian would also like to make it to the individual golf tournament this fall. Last year, he had a rough start and his driving put him in a hole early and he was never able to recover. Since that tournament, he has worked extremely hard to improve his game and qualifying would mean a lot to the senior golfer.
As the Mustangs continue to work hard and earn themselves a return trip to the state tournament, Hanoian is also thinking about his future after Norwood. As graduation creeps closer with each passing month, the Norwood golfer would like to pursue golf on the collegiate level come next fall. He has been thinking about schools here in the north, but he is also looking into Florida Atlantic University, where he could play golf year round.
Finding himself a big fan of Tiger Woods, Hanoian looks to his idol for guidance.
“I get my inspiration from the professionals, like Tiger Woods,” the Norwood senior said. “Golf starts off mentally and then you have to apply that to physical play. Tiger always wants to win and in my mind that is what I am looking to do.”
If Hanoian and his teammates continue to put forth a good effort on the course, there is no reason why they shouldn’t be able to advance into the tournament, and then hopefully make some noise once there.