Vongvanij Banking on Strong Finish to UF Career
Wednesday, April 13, 2011 | Men's Golf, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Bank Vongvanij has already accomplished some special things in his final season on the UF men's golf team.
The senior from Bradenton – via Bangkok, Thailand, and those 45-minute drives to the nearest golf course as a kid – has three medalist wins. That's something only four other golfers in UF history have achieved: current PGA standout Camilo Villegas the last to do so nine years ago.
Villegas spent Sunday afternoon walking around Augusta National playing in the final round of the Masters. Vongvanij is hoping for similar Sundays in his future as he nears the final turn of his Gators career.
But before turning his thoughts to a pro career, Vongvanij is aiming for a strong performance at the SEC Men's Golf Championship starting on Friday, just a couple of hours away from where the Masters was played. The three-day tournament is being held on the Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club in St. Simons Island, Ga., a course Vongvanij is familiar with during his time playing in AJGA events once he settled in Bradenton around the time he was 13.
Vongvanij, coming off an uncharacteristic performance– he finished tied for 41st at the Bulls Bay Invitational the final weekend of March – has worked hard to put himself in this position.
In nine tournaments this season, Vongvanij leads the Gators with a 70.85 stroke average in 27 rounds, shaving 1.40 strokes from his average as a junior. Besides his team-high three wins, Vongvanij has a pair of second-place finishes and two more top-10 showings.
Not bad for a guy who started playing golf by chance when his dad took him and his younger brother to the golf range so their mom could have some quiet time at home. While his brother lost interest, Vongvanij discovered his first love, eventually enrolling at the Bradenton Academy and catching the attention of the top programs from around the country.
“We knew he wasn't the kind of guy that was going to overpower golf courses,'' Florida coach Buddy Alexander said. “He beats people with short game, beats people with course management and he beats people by keeping his emotions in check.
“He deserves everything that he has received in way of recognition. I hope there is still some real good stuff to come.''
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Before we talk more about Vongvanij's game, let's discuss his name. His given first name is Arnond, not that anyone actually calls him that. He's been going by Bank ever since he can remember.
The obvious question: Where did Bank come from?
“It seems like everybody I talk to ask that question,'' he said.
The story goes like this: Vongvanij was born in Hawaii, where his parents were studying for their masters. His mom was ready to deliver him into the world at any moment, but that didn't stop her for acing her final exam in financial banking the night before he was born.
The professor offered to make other arrangements, but she insisted on showing up to take the test. Vongvanij was born the next morning, amazing her friends with her determination to take the final exam so close to delivering.
“Her friends starting teasing her that I should know everything already and that I should be a banker,'' Vongvanij said. “That's how I got Bank.''
The name has stuck, and based on Vongvanij's potential as a player, could have added meaning once he turns pro.
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In dissecting his season, Vongvanij said the final-round 68 he shot at Isleworth in late October is probably the best round he has played.
“My only bad hole on the card was a double-bogey on the 15th,'' he said. “I hit in the front bunker and it plugged, so I couldn't do much. That golf course was very, very difficult, and the wind was blowing too so the pin was tough.''
His best round of late came in mid-March at the Schenkel Invitational, where he shot a second-round 66. He went on to win the tournament at 9-under-par, matching Villegas (2002), Steve Scott (1999), Brian Gay (1992) and Chris DiMarco (1990) as the only Gators to win three tournaments in one season.
Asked about his overall body of work in his final college season, Vongvanij is pleased with his game entering the SEC Championships.
“I'm very, very happy with it,'' he said. “You can always ask for more, but let's just say if I was asked this question: 'Would I take this season that I've had?' I would take it in a heartbeat.”
Alexander agrees that Vongvanij has delivered in a big way. For Vongvanij to close out his UF career in a memorable way, there's not much secret on how he'll do it.
He keeps the ball in the fairway off the tee, and then let's his short game and putter do the rest.
“I manage my game around the golf course pretty well so I don't make silly mistakes,'' he said.
“He's probably the best player I've ever had inside 50 yards,'' Alexander said.
Early in his time at UF, Alexander and Vongvanij devised a plan to help him gain distance off the tee. At the time, they felt it would be an important addition to his game.
It turned out to have the opposite effect.
“He started hitting it kind of wild,'' Alexander said. “That wasn't his style, that wasn't his game. I get partial credit for that because I was involved in the thought process that he needed to get a little bit longer. It just didn't work, so we kind of went back to square one and he got a little better every month.''
Whatever he is doing, Vongvanij is usually focused on being productive.
“He doesn't drink or party or anything like that,'' Alexander said. “He is a very, very disciplined kind of guy. From a coach's standpoint, he's the kind of guy you want to have in your program.''
He is scheduled to earn his degree in finance on April 30, and will spend the summer trying to qualify as an amateur to play in the U.S. Open and hopefully earn a spot on the Walker Cup Team. Sometime after that is when he'll likely turn pro.
“That's the ultimate goal, to get on the PGA Tour,'' he said. “I will definitely try Q-School this year, and I might try some other tour in Asia too, like the Japan Tour or Asian Tour, just to see where I stand right now.''
If Vongvanij's past success is any indication, you can bank on seeing him on a professional tour sometime in the near future.
