Starting right about the time he could walk,
Mark Benevento had a golf club in his hands.
His father, also named Mark, built mini-golf courses at the Jersey Shore, so it was natural for Benevento to have been exposed to the game early on. It didn't take long before his dad traded the plastic mini-golf putter for a real club, and Benevento was at the driving range and tagging along on his dad's rounds at the age of 4.
From the kid that had everything to learn about the game, the Ocean City, NJ, native now finds roles reversed, as the lone (redshirt) senior on the Villanova golf team is now serving as a mentor and as example to others.
"It's cool to see the impact I can have on the younger guys being three or four years older than them," Benevento said. "I can tell them about the good and bad experiences I've had and help them avoid making some of the same mistakes."
Villanova has a young squad that featured just two upperclassmen in the fall before the arrival of redshirt junior
Max Siegfried this spring.
From an underclassman at Delaware for his first two years, before a transfer and redshirt year again left him in unfamiliar territory, Benevento has grown into a leadership role the last two years, and is embracing it in his final year.
His (which player?) play on the course last year and his reputation as a competitor solidified his role as the leader of this young Wildcats team. But his leadership and work ethic off the course are just as prominent.
Recently, Villanova's senior associate AD
Rev. Rob Hagan was making his way to the weight room late on a weekend night. Typically, he'd have the space to himself at that time. However, that time he found Benevento there, by himself, putting in extra work. Nobody told Benevento he needed to, but he knew he needed to.
"I think everybody respects how hard he works," head coach Jim Wilkes said. "He does a lot that the outside world doesn't see."
As Benevento has become one of the veteran leaders on the team, giving advice to and setting the tone for the younger players, he still finds ways to learn from the rest of the team. His biggest takeaway from the underclassmen and each batch of newcomers? Fearlessness.
"When you come into college, especially within your sport, you're not afraid of anything going wrong," Benevento said. "You're a little more fearless and less afraid to take risks. I've tried to follow their lead in that regard and keep that same mentality."
Benevento began his collegiate career at Delaware, playing two seasons for the Blue Hens. His own fearlessness as a freshman helped him lead Delaware to a team title while placing sixth individually in just his fourth collegiate tournament.
However, he had always been interested in Villanova, and was torn deciding between the two schools to begin his collegiate career. A little help from the 2016 Villanova basketball team capturing the national spotlight (with a national title) helped recapture his interest in the university, and following a few phone calls with Coach Wilkes, he ultimately decided to make the change.
"I think he was still attracted to the academics and business school here," said Coach Wilkes. "It was still in the back of his mind that the opportunity to have a degree from Villanova was really important to him."
Beyond the academics, playing for Coach Wilkes felt like a perfect fit for Benevento.
"We have very similar goals and see things on and off the course from a similar perspective," Benevento said. "It's a really good relationship."
As Benevento has gained more experience at the collegiate level, he has learned to harness the fearlessness and turn it into mental toughness, a point of pride for this team.
While Benevento works to set the tone for mental toughness, the team works to all hold each other accountable before, during and after rounds. The team often uses a word heard frequently on the Villanova campus: attitude.
Head basketball coach
Jay Wright's mantra has extended throughout the athletic department, and the golf team repeats it as well.
Attitude and mental toughness helped lead Villanova to its first team win during Benevento's time here last season.
On a cold, windy day at LuLu Country Club in Glenside, Pa., Villanova took home first out of eight teams at the Explorer Invitational. Given the conditions of the day, it was a testament to the mental toughness the team displays.
"We went into it mentally ahead of everybody else," Benevento said. "We beat some teams that we weren't supposed to beat that day according to the numbers and rankings."
The day was admittedly one of Benevento's favorite moments as a Wildcat, seeing the hard work pay off and being able to celebrate alongside his teammates.
Now, Benevento will work to close out his collegiate career on a high note. The team plays four regular season tournaments to gear up for his ultimate goal, the BIG EAST Tournament.
"We haven't finished to well at BIG EAST Tournament as a team in the last few years," Benevento said. "I'd love to improve our team finish there. We all have the game to do it, we just have to put it together at the right time."
A push for a strong finish at the BIG EAST may start with Benevento, who placed second at the tournament two years ago and was in contention to win on the final hole.
"There are a lot of really good players that I've had that weren't able to achieve that." Coach Wilkes said. "That kind of performance on that stage shows the type of player and competitor he is."
Even as his time as a Villanova Wildcat comes to a close, there is still more golf on the horizon for the young man who has been around the game since he was a toddler. He was recently selected to the field of the USGA Four-Ball, set to be held at the nearby Philadelphia Cricket Club on May 23-27.
But that's still almost three months away. As for right now, Benevento is focused on his first appearance of the spring at the Fort Lauderdale Invitational, and making the most of his final season at Villanova.
