Mustang Spotlight: Sean Lehman - Men’s Golf
1/20/2022 11:32:00 AM | Men's Golf
By Kalee Graff
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — The boys in the Lehman family are part of a bloodline of professional golfers.
You may know Sean Lehman as the freshman on the Cal Poly men's golf team or you may know Sean Lehman as the political science major from Scottsdale, Ariz. in your general education class. However, you may not know that Sean is the son of an American professional golfer, Tom Lehman, who is the only golfer in history to have been awarded the Player of the Year honor on all three PGA Tours.
Sean started out playing football instead of golf as a kid because he didn't want to be seen in his dad's shadow. He was lined up to accept a Division I offer for football until his senior year of high school when he ended his football career by tearing his left anterior cruciate ligament.
"I felt excluded from my high school golf teammates at first because I walked in and was one of the best on the team even though I hadn't practiced with them before," Lehman said.
It was an easy choice for him to accept a Division I offer for golf at Cal Poly because of his mother and brother's attendance. Sean's brother, Thomas Lehman, was also on the men's golf team at Cal Poly from 2016 to 2019. Thomas carried on to be a professional golfer like his dad after graduation. This meant Sean was and currently is the last Lehman amateur golfer and is now playing alongside some of his brother's former teammates.
"It makes me feel great honestly that I know the seniors because it made the transition from high school to college a lot easier."
Even though Sean has experienced some undesirable feelings that come from having a celebrity dad and professional older brother, there were perks to the situation as well. One of them was this year's PNC Championship in Orlando, Florida. The PNC Championship is a televised two-player team annual tournament. The teams consist of PGA Tour and Champions Tour golfers with usually their son.
"It caught me by surprise to hear I was going to play in it, but it was the most excited I have ever been to play in a tournament."
The tournament is a scramble format, which means each member takes a swing and then it is decided which shot will be played each time. This worked out great for the Lehmans because Tom hits it straight while Sean hits it far.
"I definitely carried my dad in that tournament," Lehman joked.
When describing the experience, he noted the environment. He expected the professional golfers to talk at least a little about the sport because it is their job and passion, but none of them did. Sometimes Sean got compliments on his shots, but the sideline talk was other sports and such.
The Lehmans tied for fifth overall in the tournament.
"The tournament opened my eyes to how hard I have to work to get to that next level of being a professional player. It inspired me to work harder and work more."
Sean wishes to follow in the footsteps of his dad and brother by being another Lehman professional golfer.
Photos courtesy of Sean Lehman
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — The boys in the Lehman family are part of a bloodline of professional golfers.
You may know Sean Lehman as the freshman on the Cal Poly men's golf team or you may know Sean Lehman as the political science major from Scottsdale, Ariz. in your general education class. However, you may not know that Sean is the son of an American professional golfer, Tom Lehman, who is the only golfer in history to have been awarded the Player of the Year honor on all three PGA Tours.
Sean started out playing football instead of golf as a kid because he didn't want to be seen in his dad's shadow. He was lined up to accept a Division I offer for football until his senior year of high school when he ended his football career by tearing his left anterior cruciate ligament.
"I felt excluded from my high school golf teammates at first because I walked in and was one of the best on the team even though I hadn't practiced with them before," Lehman said.It was an easy choice for him to accept a Division I offer for golf at Cal Poly because of his mother and brother's attendance. Sean's brother, Thomas Lehman, was also on the men's golf team at Cal Poly from 2016 to 2019. Thomas carried on to be a professional golfer like his dad after graduation. This meant Sean was and currently is the last Lehman amateur golfer and is now playing alongside some of his brother's former teammates.
"It makes me feel great honestly that I know the seniors because it made the transition from high school to college a lot easier."Even though Sean has experienced some undesirable feelings that come from having a celebrity dad and professional older brother, there were perks to the situation as well. One of them was this year's PNC Championship in Orlando, Florida. The PNC Championship is a televised two-player team annual tournament. The teams consist of PGA Tour and Champions Tour golfers with usually their son.
"It caught me by surprise to hear I was going to play in it, but it was the most excited I have ever been to play in a tournament."
The tournament is a scramble format, which means each member takes a swing and then it is decided which shot will be played each time. This worked out great for the Lehmans because Tom hits it straight while Sean hits it far.
"I definitely carried my dad in that tournament," Lehman joked.
When describing the experience, he noted the environment. He expected the professional golfers to talk at least a little about the sport because it is their job and passion, but none of them did. Sometimes Sean got compliments on his shots, but the sideline talk was other sports and such.
The Lehmans tied for fifth overall in the tournament.
"The tournament opened my eyes to how hard I have to work to get to that next level of being a professional player. It inspired me to work harder and work more."
Sean wishes to follow in the footsteps of his dad and brother by being another Lehman professional golfer.
Photos courtesy of Sean Lehman
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