St. John’s standout golfer poised to take shot at pro career
He’s got the drive for success.
Peicheng Chen first visited Long Island from his home in Beijing as a tween who spoke no English and knew little about America. His father, an incredibly successful skydiver on China’s national team, brought Chen over to fulfill his high aspirations of turning his boy into a golfing elite.
“My dad wanted me to play an Olympic sport,” Chen, now a 22-year-old senior standout golfer for St. John’s University who shot a record 62 on Bethpage Yellow, told The Post.
“We tried tennis when I was 6, but the ball knocked the racket out of my hand, and he said, ‘OK, we move on,’ and took me to a driving range.”
After a fallout with Chen’s former golf instructor, a family friend referred them to Michael Jacobs, a golf pro consistently ranked as one of the top 100 nationwide. At age 12, Chen went to Jacobs’ Rock Hill Golf Club in Manorville, where his mom had to explain the situation using limited English.
Jacobs was happy to help — only Chen didn’t exactly look like a future star golfer.
“All of a sudden, this little, skinny, Urkel-looking kid with glasses came in the door,” the golf pro said, adding that Chen was known to wear vibrant red clothes with the word “China” all over them at first.
He found the cultural differences tastefully amusing and quickly recognized the important things: Chen had the heart and the ambition to get better every day — despite the difficult language barrier.
“Back then, he would give me very simple words to demonstrate the motion I needed to do or use body language,” said Chen, who won the Big East individual title last year.
“He would even open up Google Translate to find a word that he wanted to say. … He’s been taking care of me since I was 12.”
That first summer turned into a decade of blossoming friendship between the two, as Chen loved returning to LI from China during the warm weather months each year until fully attending St. John’s at age 18.
“A lot of times when kids come with their parents, they want instant gratification,” Jacobs said. “They have to understand that golf is an evolving journey. Chen understood that right away.”
Chipping away
As Chen’s golf skills patiently emerged by his 20s — he won last year’s Doc Gimmler tournament by shooting a 5-under 206 over 54 holes at Bethpage Black — Jacobs knew his bet for pro potential was spot on.
The rising star was also privy to expertise passed along by some of Jacobs’ clientele, including Hall of Famer Padraig Harrington and major winners Jason Dufner and Steve Elkington.
Jacobs influenced Chen to attend St. John’s to be close to the club as well.
“Long Island, Rock Hill, is my second family out here. They taught me everything I needed to know about the United States,” said Chen, who pointed out that China has only 400 golf courses nationwide compared to the nearly 100 he gets to play and learn from on LI.
Those lessons also included American sarcasm and humor — Chen excels at both — while being treated as a “celebrity” by club members, staff and even landscapers who still smile when he visits from Queens.
“They really do take care of me,” said Chen, who will start as an assistant pro at Rock Hill after graduating in two weeks.
“Michael Jacobs is basically my big brother. We have a tremendous, unbelievable friendship together.”
Moving fore-ward
While Chen looks forward to having a job to pay the bills, Jacobs, with whom he has a brotherly, golf-ball-busting rapport, has the position designed for a higher purpose.
“Everything is geared towards getting him ready to be a professional player,” Jacobs said.
“I never got married, I never had kids, or a little brother, so I feel like I’ve finally been able to pass on my golf knowledge to Chen.”
Nevertheless, there is still more to be done with the Johnnies before the next proverbial hole of his life.
Following a mighty comeback on the third day of the Big East Tournament this year, Chen’s third-place performance was enough for an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament at Poplar Grove Golf Club in Amherst, Va., starting Monday.
He got the news on the 10th tee box at Noyack Country Club during a U.S. Open qualifier in Sag Harbor.
“I saw my name and started jumping up and down,” Chen said. “This year I want to go out, play my own game, have fun, and just try and make St. John’s and Long Island proud.”
