Above Par

For many people, the golf course is a getaway. Give them a leather bag of clubs and point them toward the tee. For Bill Allcorn, getting away from the golf course helped him comprehend just how much he needed it. When Baylor let out for the Christmas holidays last December, Allcorn was as ready for the break as anyone. But something clicked during those few weeks between semesters—and that something was the realization that his journey in golf spikes was far from over.

“After the fall semester, I really wasn’t sure I wanted to keep playing competitively after college,” Allcorn said. “I started thinking about what I wanted to do after school, and my parents and I prayed about it, and then it seemed like the right thing to do. I’d been given a talent to play this game a little, and I really enjoy playing the game.”

So Allcorn made the decision to turn pro after Baylor. Then he started playing like a pro for the Bears this spring. Allcorn posted a team-best 73.24 scoring average in Baylor’s spring action, and shot his way to three top-ten finishes. But it was at the Big 12 tournament at Prairie Dunes Golf Course in Hutchinson, Kansas, where Allcorn’s game began to soar.

 “Bill had a great run, just an outstanding tournament all week,” Baylor coach Greg Priest said. “He just happened to get beat by the guy who shot the lowest round of the championship.”

Unfortunately, Allcorn wasn’t able to unleash his burgeoning confidence on his NCAA rivals after the Big 12 tourney. While competing in a practice round for the NCAA regionals, Allcorn suffered a severe sprain of his right hand and was forced to miss the event.

 “I couldn’t even grip a club,” Allcorn said. “It was a disappointing way to end my career, but things happen.”

Growing up in rural Louisana for part of his youth, Allcorn’s backyard literally bumped up to the edge of a golf course, and he took advantage by getting in more than his share of swings. Allcorn tried his hand at plenty of other sports, but right before he entered high school, he decided to dedicate himself more seriously to golf.

It was a wise decision. Having moved to Abilene, Allcorn was his team MVP all four years of high school, and before he was done he had set a new school record for career victories. He also landed a scholarship offer from the Bears.

Both of his parents, Stan and Claudia Hahn Allcorn, are 1976 Baylor graduates, and Stan is on the school’s Board of Regents, so Baylor seemed like a natural fit. After redshirting his first season in 2004-05 and playing in just six tournaments the following year, the younger Allcorn began to truly feel at home for the green and gold as a sophomore in 2006-07, earning a pair of top-fifteen finishes, including an eleventh-place showing at that year’s Big 12 Championships.

Now a Baylor graduate himself, Allcorn says he’s fully recovered from his hand injury and ready to embark on his chosen profession. Whatever happens, Allcorn can’t wait to tackle a heavy “course” load. “I really want to do as much with this game as I can,” he said. “I’ve been blessed to play golf, and now I want to try and play as long as possible.”