Swedish Swing

One of the brightest areas for the Park Hill golf team halfway through their season has been the play of senior Victor Soderholm. While Soderholm’s performance on the course is a topic of discussion on its own, his personal story adds even more interest.

Soderholm is a foreign exchange student from Sweden. A soft-spoken kid, Victor was shy at first, but has warmed to his teammates.

“Early on he was quiet and didn’t really interact with the kids,” Dorrell said. “Now he’s becoming more comfortable, starting to show more of a personality and is fun to be around.”

Last week was a breakout week for Victor as he led the Trojans with their lowest score four consecutive days including an 84 at the Ray Pec Tournament, a 77 at Liberty, a 40 (on nine holes) at St. Joe Central, and capped it off with a second place finish in Park Hill’s annual tournament by shooting a 78, besting over 50 other golfers in the field.

“No one has ever won (from Park Hill), I’ve now had two kids that have taken second, including Victor,” Dorrell said of his top golfer.

While he said the car and traffic flows of the U.S. were particularly different along with an apparent love for McDonald’s, for Soderholm some of the interesting contrasts are golf-related.

“You’re not really a member here,” Soderholm said of many of the local courses. “There you’re usually a member and pretty much play the one course.”

Victor finds himself in a unique education situation. Although an 18-year old senior at Park Hill, Soderholm is considered a tenth-grader in Sweden and upon the completion of this school year, he will likely return and attend two more years of high school. With such a high quality of skill, Victor would be a top candidate for a golf scholarship to attend a college or university in the United States, but the rules or requirements are uncertain.

“I have two more years in high school. I don’t really know how that works, but I’d really like to do it if I got a good offer,” Soderholm said.

Soderholm’s first exposure to golf was in 1999, but didn’t really start until 2003 when he and his father picked up the sport. Pending a waiting list, they were finally able to become members and started playing more and more.

“Someone has taught him very well and he’s had formal training,” Dorrell said of Victor’s talent level.

Even with the quick season high school golf has, Victor could be peaking at the right time. Saying his strength is approaching the green, he hopes to improve on his putting.

“I kind of knew in the beginning I would get better, and just kept my confidence to stay calm. I want to have an average around 77. The last week I’ve gotten closer and closer. I want to be as good as possible for the team, play well at districts and make it to state,” Soderholm said.