A good golfer is nothing without confidence — something junior T.J. Mitchell lacked before his victory in the Old Dominion/Outerbanks Collegiate Invitational  last October.

“That gave me a lot of confidence because in SEC sports, anytime you’re shooting low, it gives you confidence because you know you can compete on that level,” Mitchell said.

His victory proved to be a much-needed mental boost.

T.J. MITCHELL

“I was really burnt out from golf,” he said. “There were times where I wanted to talk to my coach and say, ‘Hey, I need to sit this one out so I could get revamped for the spring,’ but something just told me to play the last tournament and just have fun, because after these three rounds you get a long break.”

In the last match of the 2011 fall season, Mitchell collected his first collegiate victory as a part of the Bulldogs’ win in the Outer Banks Invitational.

“It was good to see him get a victory,” fellow junior Bryden Macpherson said. “He is obviously a very talented player and he played really well that week, and kept his composure really well.”

Through the first eight holes of the tournament, Mitchell was at even-par, but finished his last ten at 8-under par.

He continued his success through the second day, and ended his final round with a 5-under 67.

Mitchell finished the tournament at 15-under par to secure a two-stroke victory over Liberty’s Robert Karlsson.

“I just kind of went into it by hitting every shot and not worrying about the outcome and just making good aggressive swings, and letting it be,” Mitchell said. “I sped up my routine, and tried to take all the thinking out of it and just react.”

The victory was not only his first as a collegian, but also his first as a captain.

Bulldogs head coach Chris Haack felt that after being named captain, Mitchell knew “he had to step up.”

“I think that gave him a little boost of confidence that the guys believed in him, and that has helped him to getting more consistent and become a leader of the team,” Haack said.

Since receiving the title of captain and notching his first win, Mitchell is blooming with confidence — and it’s shown in his recent play.

The Bulldogs are doing a double-elimination match play tournament to prepare for the spring.

Mitchell has defeated everyone he has gone up against.

He is slated to play in the finals of the tournament against Michigan transfer Joey Garber.

“Again, that just shows that his game is pretty sharp, and it is going to give him another vote of confidence,” Haack said.

But Mitchell’s victory has done more than just give him added confidence.

With his success, he has also become an even bigger role model for some of the younger golfers.

“I definitely look up to him because he had a really good fall,” freshman Sam Straka said.

“He has gotten better through hard work and you can see the results just by his example. He demonstrates good work ethic and works on his game and it makes you want to do the same.”

As any team captain would, Mitchell cares more about what his victory has done for the team as whole than for himself.

“It shows other guys on the team that they can compete at that level as well,” Mitchell said. “They have beaten me at tournaments and it shows them that they can compete. I think it has helped push people.”

And the Bulldogs are going to need to be pushed to be successful after losing their top three starters.

Georgia has two returning veterans in Macpherson and Mitchell, but are going to need some of the younger Bulldogs to up their level of play.

Regardless of the makeup of the squad, Haack said he has the utmost confidence in Mitchell and the rest of the Bulldogs.

“I think anytime you have good things happen to you it breeds confidence, and when you have a good guy like T.J., he helps breathe confidence in others,” Haack said.