Steven Fox looks to season with Mocs

photo Steven Fox holds the Havemeyer Trophy after winning the U.S. Amateur golf tournament in 37 holes at Cherry Hills, Sunday, Aug. 19, 2012, in Cherry Hills Village, Colo.

Steven Fox will practice on the driving range at The Farm Golf Club before the Carpet Capital Invitational next month.

Fox won the U.S. Amateur on Sunday at Cherry Hills Country Club outside of Denver.

The college competition next month in Rocky Face, dubbed 'The Masters of college golf,' will be filled with players who wanted and still want the Havemeyer trophy Fox won Sunday.

Some of the Carpet Capital competitors attempted to win the tournament Fox claimed Sunday by topping University of California's Michael Weaver on the 37th hole.

"It's hard to imagine," said Fox, a senior at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. "From where I was a year ago to where I am now, things have changed drastically. I don't know what's going to happen."

A few Carpet Capital competitors will congratulate him. All will be jealous. Fox won the most prestigious tournament college golfers dream about before they turn pro with dreams of winning the Masters.

Fox has remained out of the limelight for every college tournament of his career, especially with former UTC star Stephan Jaeger leading the Mocs until his graduation in May.

With Fox's victory Sunday, he is now the star -- the rock-star of American amateur golf.

Fox vaulted to No. 18 from No. 127 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings with his victory.

"This is by far the coolest thing I've done in my career," said Fox, who earned exemptions into the 2013 Masters, the U.S. Open and the British Open. "It's a total life-changer."

He'll be favored to win almost every tournament he enters until he turns professional.

Those events include every college team tournament he'll play up to the NCAA championship, and other amateur events including Tennessee Golf Association events and other national invitationals.

"College-wise, I'd like to go win another one like Furman," said Fox, who tied for medalist at the Furman Invitational last fall along with Clemson's Ben Martin who was the 2009 U.S. Amateur runner-up. "That was an awesome experience for me in a college event.

"Maybe I can set the new goal of being among the top 50 in the country. It was always to be top 100 and I got to that this last year."

For Fox, his senior season will be a switch from being down the in rankings and playing for constant underdog UTC which won an NCAA Regional this spring.

"I haven't even had time to think about new goals," Fox said. "Everything that I've done now is good. I've done what I wanted. I have to sit down with coach and set new goals."

As for the majors, when Fox will be sporting blue-and-gold including the opening round of the Masters paired with Bubba Watson, Fox has the same goal for all three of the majors.

"I want to make cut," Fox said. "And to be low-am would be a great accomplishment."

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