Sept. 29, 2008
By Greg Kincaid, Athletic Communications Student Assistant
Imagine waking up everyday, smelling some fresh cut grass and eating your breakfast on the porch in the backyard, where the eighth hole of a golf course resides. For one particular Penn State student-athlete, this is a dream come true.
Recent Penn State graduate and former golfer Robert Rohanna grew up in Waynesburg, Pa. loving the game of golf. He began playing golf at four years old, where he used his family-owned course to practice his skills.
"Getting started wasn't too much of a problem for me," he said. "I would just go mess around everyday for hours and I've loved it ever since."
Rohanna's Golf Course, which is located in Waynesburg, is a little public course that Rohanna and a lot of his family grew up playing on. According to Rohanna, it is a pretty short course in which you have to be accurate with your irons. There are additionally some holes that can be tricky that cause people a lot of problems.
"It's a fun course that most people enjoy playing," Rohanna said.
Rohanna recently graduated from Penn State and capped off a stellar golf career with the Nittany Lions last season, earning his second-straight first team All-Big Ten selection and his third-straight NCAA All-Region selection.
Throughout his career, Rohanna accumulated a never-ending list of accomplishments. In 2008, he captured his second consecutive Marshall Invitational individual victory. There, he tied the course's all-time scoring record, finishing with a six-under par 136. Rohanna was only the second golfer to win back-to-back titles in the tournament's 39-year history.
On April 20, 2008, Rohanna cranked out his second consecutive Rutherford Intercollegiate Tournament victory, leading the Nittany Lions to the team victory as well. The win marked Rohanna's fifth individual title, tying former Nittany Lion Dirk Ayers for most individual wins in program history.
Rohanna believes that what turned his golf career around was also his greatest accomplishment at Penn State, winning first-ever golf tournament his junior year at the Georgetown Invitational.
"It was such a burden on my shoulders not winning," he said. "I was so close so many times but couldn't pull out the victory. So that was a momentum changer for my career."
Most of Rohanna's success not only came from the practice he had at home growing up, but he also viewed his dad as one of his most important mentors. His father has been the most dedicated to his game of golf. Ever since he played competitive golf, his father has travelled to all of his events and has been his biggest fan.
"My dad was probably my most influential figure with golf," he said. "From ages four to nine I played a lot with my mom and her friends, then I got good enough to play with my dad and my mom gave me the boot. So my father has been a big influence on my career."
Rohanna was not only known for his golf skills at Penn State, but he was also known for being such an excellent student. The three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection felt that balancing academics and golf was not an easy task. But he found a way to come through.
"The biggest challenge I encountered in the game of golf is the challenge of mixing college academics and finding enough time to practice," he said. "Golf is a game that requires countless hours of practice, and when we are at school those practice hours are minimal with the studying and class schedule."
Many students come to Penn State for one reason and one reason only. Football. Rohanna came to Penn State because he loved the golf program and everything the campus had to offer. However, like everyone else, his big reason for attending was Joe Paterno and the Nittany Lions football team.
"The obvious reason for coming here is the atmosphere that our football team and Joe Paterno create," he said. "No matter who you talk to, when you say Penn State, they say `Joe Pa'. The academics here at PSU were another huge persuasion factor, the academic advisers were great and they were a huge help."
Based on his stellar golf career, his academics, and of course football, Rohanna has no regrets wearing the blue and white.
"My career at Penn State has definitely been a memorable one. When I finished up last season I couldn't believe that it was all over. The four years go by so fast, especially when you are an athlete. I had a great time representing Penn State and I am very glad I made the decision to come here."